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Chen D, Li S, Yang Y, Liu D, Yang C, Guo H, Bai X, Zhang L, Zhang R, Tian W. Development of bioassay platforms for biopharmaceuticals using Jurkat-CAR cells by AICD. J Pharm Biomed Anal 2024; 251:116431. [PMID: 39197208 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpba.2024.116431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2024] [Revised: 08/15/2024] [Accepted: 08/18/2024] [Indexed: 09/01/2024]
Abstract
The assessment of bioactivity for therapeutic antibody release assay poses challenges, particularly when targeting immune checkpoints. An in vitro bioassay platform was developed using the chimeric antigen receptor on Jurkat cells (Jurkat-CAR) to analyze antibodies targeting immune checkpoints, such as CD47/SIRPα, VEGF/VEGFR1, PD-1/PD-L1, and CD70/CD27. For CD47/SIRPα, the platform involved a Jurkat-CAR cell line expressing the chimeric SIRPα receptor (CarSIRPα). CarSIRPα was created by sequentially fusing the SIRPα extracellular region with the CD8α hinge region, the transmembrane (TM) and intracellular (IC) domains of CD28, and the intracellular signaling domain of CD3ζ. The resulting Jurkat-CarSIRPα cells can undergo "activation-induced cell death (AICD)" upon incubation with purified or cellular CD47, as evidenced by the upregulation of CD69, IL-2, and IFN-γ. Similar results also appeared in Jurkat CarVEGFR1, Jurkat CarPD1 and Jurkat CARCD27 cells. These cells are perfectly utilized for the bioactivity analysis of therapeutic antibody. Our study indicates that the established in vitro assay platform based on Jurkat-CAR has been confirmed repeatedly and has shown robust reproducibility; thus, this platform can be used for screening or for release assays of given antibody drugs targeting immune checkpoints.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dianze Chen
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Song Li
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Yanan Yang
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Dandan Liu
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Chunmei Yang
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Huiqin Guo
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Xing Bai
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Li Zhang
- Department of CMC, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Ruliang Zhang
- Department of CMC, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Wenzhi Tian
- Department of R&D, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China; Department of CMC, ImmuneOnco Biopharmaceuticals (Shanghai) Inc., Shanghai 201203, China.
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Arifin MZ, Leitner J, Egan D, Waidhofer-Söllner P, Kolch W, Zhernovkov V, Steinberger P. BTLA and PD-1 signals attenuate TCR-mediated transcriptomic changes. iScience 2024; 27:110253. [PMID: 39021788 PMCID: PMC11253514 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.110253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Revised: 04/29/2024] [Accepted: 06/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024] Open
Abstract
T cell co-inhibitory immune checkpoints, such as PD-1 or BTLA, are bona fide targets in cancer therapy. We used a human T cell reporter line to measure transcriptomic changes mediated by PD-1- and BTLA-induced signaling. T cell receptor (TCR)-complex stimulation resulted in the upregulation of a large number of genes but also in repression of a similar number of genes. PD-1 and BTLA signals attenuated transcriptomic changes mediated by TCR-complex signaling: upregulated genes tended to be suppressed and the expression of a significant number of downregulated genes was higher during PD-1 or BTLA signaling. BTLA was a significantly stronger attenuator of TCR-complex-induced transcriptome changes than PD-1. A strong overlap between genes that were regulated indicated quantitative rather than qualitative differences between these receptors. In line with their function as attenuators of TCR-complex-mediated changes, we found strongly regulated genes to be prime targets of PD-1 and BTLA signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Zainul Arifin
- Systems Biology Ireland, School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Judith Leitner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Donagh Egan
- Systems Biology Ireland, School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Petra Waidhofer-Söllner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Walter Kolch
- Systems Biology Ireland, School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
- Conway Institute of Biomolecular & Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Vadim Zhernovkov
- Systems Biology Ireland, School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Brunnberg J, Barends M, Frühschulz S, Winter C, Battin C, de Wet B, Cole DK, Steinberger P, Tampé R. Dual role of the peptide-loading complex as proofreader and limiter of MHC-I presentation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321600121. [PMID: 38771881 PMCID: PMC11145271 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321600121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Antigen presentation via major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) molecules is essential for surveillance by the adaptive immune system. Central to this process is the peptide-loading complex (PLC), which translocates peptides from the cytosol to the endoplasmic reticulum and catalyzes peptide loading and proofreading of peptide-MHC-I (pMHC-I) complexes. Despite its importance, the impact of individual PLC components on the presented pMHC-I complexes is still insufficiently understood. Here, we used stoichiometrically defined antibody-nanobody complexes and engineered soluble T cell receptors (sTCRs) to quantify different MHC-I allomorphs and defined pMHC-I complexes, respectively. Thereby, we uncovered distinct effects of individual PLC components on the pMHC-I surface pool. Knockouts of components of the PLC editing modules, namely tapasin, ERp57, or calreticulin, changed the MHC-I surface composition to a reduced proportion of HLA-A*02:01 presentation compensated by a higher ratio of HLA-B*40:01 molecules. Intriguingly, these knockouts not only increased the presentation of suboptimally loaded HLA-A*02:01 complexes but also elevated the presentation of high-affinity peptides overexpressed in the cytosol. Our findings suggest that the components of the PLC editing module serve a dual role, acting not only as peptide proofreaders but also as limiters for abundant peptides. This dual function ensures the presentation of a broad spectrum of antigenic peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamina Brunnberg
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biocenter, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main60438, Germany
| | - Martina Barends
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biocenter, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main60438, Germany
| | - Stefan Frühschulz
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biocenter, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main60438, Germany
| | - Christian Winter
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biocenter, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main60438, Germany
| | - Claire Battin
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna1090, Austria
| | - Ben de Wet
- Immunocore Ltd., AbingdonOX14 4RY, United Kingdom
| | | | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna1090, Austria
| | - Robert Tampé
- Institute of Biochemistry, Biocenter, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main60438, Germany
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Santos RF, de Sousa Linhares A, Steinberger P, Davis SJ, Oliveira L, Carmo AM. The CD6 interactome orchestrates ligand-independent T cell inhibitory signaling. Cell Commun Signal 2024; 22:286. [PMID: 38790044 PMCID: PMC11127300 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-024-01658-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND T-cell membrane scaffold proteins are pivotal in T cell function, acting as versatile signaling hubs. While CD6 forms a large intracellular signalosome, it is distinguished from typical scaffolds like LAT or PAG by possessing a substantial ectodomain that binds CD166, a well-characterized ligand expressed on most antigen-presenting cells (APC), through the third domain (d3) of the extracellular region. Although the intact form of CD6 is the most abundant in T cells, an isoform lacking d3 (CD6∆d3) is transiently expressed on activated T cells. Still, the precise character of the signaling transduced by CD6, whether costimulatory or inhibitory, and the influence of its ectodomain on these activities are unclear. METHODS We expressed CD6 variants with extracellular deletions or cytosolic mutations in Jurkat cells containing eGFP reporters for NF-κB and NF-AT transcription factor activation. Cell activation was assessed by eGFP flow cytometry following Jurkat cell engagement with superantigen-presenting Raji cells. Using imaging flow cytometry, we evaluated the impact of the CD6-CD166 pair on cell adhesiveness during the antigen-dependent and -independent priming of T cells. We also examined the role of extracellular or cytosolic sequences on CD6 translocation to the immunological synapse, using immunofluorescence-based imaging. RESULTS Our investigation dissecting the functions of the extracellular and cytosolic regions of CD6 revealed that CD6 was trafficked to the immunological synapse and exerted tonic inhibition wholly dependent on its cytosolic tail. Surprisingly, however, translocation to the synapse occurred independently of the extracellular d3 and of engagement to CD166. On the other hand, CD6 binding to CD166 significantly increased T cell:APC adhesion. However, this activity was most evident in the absence of APC priming with superantigen, and thus, in the absence of TCR engagement. CONCLUSIONS Our study identifies CD6 as a novel 'on/off' scaffold-receptor capable of modulating responsiveness in two ways. Firstly, and independently of ligand binding, it establishes signaling thresholds through tonic inhibition, functioning as a membrane-bound scaffold. Secondly, CD6 has the capacity for alternative splicing-dependent variable ligand engagement, modulating its checkpoint-like activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita F Santos
- IBMC - Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Porto, Porto, Portugal
- i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- ESS - IPP School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Annika de Sousa Linhares
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Simon J Davis
- Radcliffe Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Medical Research Council, Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Liliana Oliveira
- IBMC - Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Porto, Porto, Portugal
- i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Alexandre M Carmo
- IBMC - Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Porto, Porto, Portugal.
- i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
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Funk MA, Heller G, Waidhofer-Söllner P, Leitner J, Steinberger P. Inhibitory CARs fail to protect from immediate T cell cytotoxicity. Mol Ther 2024; 32:982-999. [PMID: 38384128 PMCID: PMC11163222 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.02.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) equipped with an inhibitory signaling domain (iCARs) have been proposed as strategy to increase on-tumor specificity of CAR-T cell therapies. iCARs inhibit T cell activation upon antigen recognition and thereby program a Boolean NOT gate within the CAR-T cell. If cancer cells do not express the iCAR target antigen while it is highly expressed on healthy tissue, CAR/iCAR coexpressing T cells are supposed to kill cancer cells but not healthy cells expressing the CAR antigen. In this study, we employed a well-established reporter cell system to demonstrate high potency of iCAR constructs harboring BTLA-derived signaling domains. We then created CAR/iCAR combinations for the clinically relevant antigen pairs B7-H3/CD45 and CD123/CD19 and show potent reporter cell suppression by iCARs targeting CD45 or CD19. In primary human T cells αCD19-iCARs were capable of suppressing T cell proliferation and cytokine production. Surprisingly, the iCAR failed to veto immediate CAR-mediated cytotoxicity. Likewise, T cells overexpressing PD-1 or BTLA did not show impaired cytotoxicity toward ligand-expressing target cells, indicating that inhibitory signaling by these receptors does not mediate protection against cytotoxicity by CAR-T cells. Future approaches employing iCAR-equipped CAR-T cells for cancer therapy should therefore monitor off-tumor reactivity and potential CAR/iCAR-T cell dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maximilian A Funk
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; University Hospital LMU Munich, Department of Medicine III, Munich, Germany; Gene Center, LMU Munich, Cancer and Immunometabolism Research Group, Munich, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Munich Site and German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Gerwin Heller
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine I, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Petra Waidhofer-Söllner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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6
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Bojko M, Węgrzyn K, Sikorska E, Ciura P, Battin C, Steinberger P, Magiera-Mularz K, Dubin G, Kulesza A, Sieradzan AK, Spodzieja M, Rodziewicz-Motowidło S. Peptide-based inhibitors targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis: potential immunotherapeutics for cancer. Transl Oncol 2024; 42:101892. [PMID: 38359715 PMCID: PMC10877416 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2024.101892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024] Open
Abstract
The PD-1/PD-L1 complex belongs to the group of inhibitory immune checkpoints and plays a critical role in immune regulation. The PD-1/PD-L1 axis is also responsible for immune evasion of cancer cells, and this complex is one of the main targets of immunotherapies used in oncology. Treatment using immune checkpoint inhibitors is mainly based on antibodies. This approach has great therapeutic potential; however, it also has major drawbacks and can induce immune-related adverse events. Thus, there is a strong need for alternative, non-antibody-based therapies using small molecules, peptides, or peptidomimetics. In the present study, we designed, synthesized, and evaluated a set of PD-1-targeting peptides based on the sequence and structure of PD-L1. The binding of these peptides to PD-1 was investigated using SPR and ELISA. We also assessed their ability to compete with PD-L1 for binding to PD-1 and their inhibitory properties against the PD-1/PD-L1 complex at the cellular level. The best results were obtained for the peptide PD-L1(111-127)(Y112C-I126C), named (L11), which displaced PD-L1 from binding to PD-1 in the competitive assay and inhibited the formation of the PD-1/PD-L1 complex. The (L11) peptide also exhibited strong affinity for PD-1. NMR studies revealed that (L11) does not form a well-defined secondary structure; however, MD simulation indicated that (L11) binds to PD-1 at the same place as PD-L1. After further optimization of the structure, the peptide inhibitor obtained in this study could also be used as a potential therapeutic compound targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Bojko
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Węgrzyn
- University of Gdańsk, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology of the University of Gdańsk and the Medical University of Gdańsk, Abrahama 58, 80-307 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Emilia Sikorska
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Piotr Ciura
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Claire Battin
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Lazarettgasse 19, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Lazarettgasse 19, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Katarzyna Magiera-Mularz
- Małopolska Centre of Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7A, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Grzegorz Dubin
- Jagiellonian University, Faculty of Chemistry, Gronostajowa 2, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Adam Kulesza
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Adam K Sieradzan
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Marta Spodzieja
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland.
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Russo V, Prencipe G, Mauro A, El Khatib M, Haidar-Montes AA, Cambise N, Turriani M, Stöckl J, Steinberger P, Lancia L, Schnabelrauch M, Berardinelli P, Barboni B. Assessing the functional potential of conditioned media derived from amniotic epithelial stem cells engineered on 3D biomimetic scaffolds: An in vitro model for tendon regeneration. Mater Today Bio 2024; 25:101001. [PMID: 38420144 PMCID: PMC10899023 DOI: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2024.101001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Tendon diseases pose a significant challenge in regenerative medicine due to the limited healing capacity of this tissue. Successful tendon regeneration requires a combination of angiogenesis, immune response, and tenogenesis processes. An effective tendon engineering (TE) strategy must finely tune this systems' interplay toward homeostasis. This study explores in vitro the paracrine influence of amniotic epithelial stem cells (AECs) engineered on a validated 3D electrospun PLGA scaffolds on HUVECs (angiogenesis), PBMCs/Jurkat (immune response), and AECs (tenogenic stem cell activation). The results revealed the role of scaffold's topology and topography in significantly modulating the paracrine profile of the cells. In detail, AECs basal release of bioactive molecules was boosted in the cells engineered on 3D scaffolds, in particular VEGF-D, b-FGF, RANTES, and PDGF-BB (p < 0.0001 vs. CMCTR). Moreover, biological tests demonstrated 3D scaffolds' proactive role in potentiating AECs' paracrine inhibition on PBMCs proliferation (CM3Dvs. CTR, p < 0.001) and LPS-mediated Jurkat activation with respect to controls (CM3D and CM2Dvs. CTR, p < 0.01 and p < 0.05, respectively), without exerting any in vitro pro-angiogenic role in promoting HUVECs proliferation and tubule formation. Teno-inductive paracrine ability of AECs engineered on 3D scaffolds was assessed on co-cultured ones, which formed tendon-like structures. These latter demonstrated an upregulation of tendon-related genes (SCX, THBS4, COL1, and TNMD) and the expression TNMD and COL1 proteins. Overall, this research underscores the pivotal role of the 3D topology and topography of PLGA tendon mimetic scaffolds in orchestrating effective tendon regeneration through modulating cell behavior and crosstalk between engineered stem cells and different subpopulations in the damaged tendon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Russo
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Prencipe
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Annunziata Mauro
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Mohammad El Khatib
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Arlette A Haidar-Montes
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Nico Cambise
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
- Research & Development Department, Assut Europe S.p.A., Magliano dei Marsi, 67062 L'Aquila, Italy
| | - Maura Turriani
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Johannes Stöckl
- Centre for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Centre for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Loreto Lancia
- Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, University of L'Aquila, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy
| | | | - Paolo Berardinelli
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
| | - Barbara Barboni
- Unit of Basic and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences and Agro-Food and Environmental Technologies, University of Teramo, 64100 Teramo, Italy
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8
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De Sousa Linhares A, Sharma S, Steinberger P, Leitner J. Transcriptional reprogramming via signaling domains of CD2, CD28, and 4-1BB. iScience 2024; 27:109267. [PMID: 38455974 PMCID: PMC10918215 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 12/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Costimulatory signals provided to T cells during antigen encounter have a decisive role in the outcome of immune responses. Here, we used chimeric receptors harboring the extracellular domain of mouse inducible T cell costimulator (mICOS) to study transcriptional activation mediated by cytoplasmic sequences of the major T cell costimulatory receptors CD28, 4-1BB, and CD2. The chimeric receptors were introduced in a T cell reporter platform that allows to simultaneously evaluate nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), NFAT, and AP-1 activation. Engagement of the chimeric receptors induced distinct transcriptional profiles. CD28 signaling activated all three transcription factors, whereas 4-1BB strongly promoted NF-κB and AP-1 but downregulated NFAT activity. CD2 signals resulted in the strongest upregulation of NFAT. Transcriptome analysis revealed pronounced and distinct gene expression signatures upon CD2 and 4-1BB signaling. Using the intracellular sequence of CD28, we exemplify that distinct signaling motifs endow chimeric receptors with different costimulatory capacities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Loop lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sumana Sharma
- MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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9
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Sharma S, Whitehead T, Kotowski M, Ng EZQ, Clarke J, Leitner J, Chen YL, Santos AM, Steinberger P, Davis SJ. A high-throughput two-cell assay for interrogating inhibitory signaling pathways in T cells. Life Sci Alliance 2024; 7:e202302359. [PMID: 38073578 PMCID: PMC10703992 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202302359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The recent success of immunotherapies relying on manipulation of T-cell activation highlights the value of characterising the mediators of immune checkpoint signaling. CRISPR/Cas9 is a popular approach for interrogating signaling pathways; however, the lack of appropriate assays for studying inhibitory signaling in T cells is limiting the use of large-scale perturbation-based approaches. Here, we adapted an existing Jurkat cell-based transcriptional reporter assay to study both activatory and inhibitory (PD-1-mediated) T-cell signaling using CRISPR-based genome screening in arrayed and pooled formats. We targeted 64 SH2 domain-containing proteins expressed by Jurkat T cells in an arrayed screen, in which individual targets could be assessed independently, showing that arrays can be used to study mediators of both activatory and inhibitory signaling. Pooled screens succeeded in simultaneously identifying many of the known mediators of proximal activating and inhibitory T-cell signaling, including SHP2 and PD-1, confirming the utility of the method. Altogether, the data suggested that SHP2 is the major PD-1-specific, SH2 family mediator of inhibitory signaling. These approaches should allow the systematic analysis of signaling pathways in T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumana Sharma
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Toby Whitehead
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Mateusz Kotowski
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Emily Zhi Qing Ng
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Joseph Clarke
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Yi-Ling Chen
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Ana Mafalda Santos
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Simon J Davis
- https://ror.org/052gg0110 MRC Translational Immune Discovery Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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10
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Funk MA, Leitner J, Gerner MC, Hammerler JM, Salzer B, Lehner M, Battin C, Gumpelmair S, Stiasny K, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Steinberger P. Interrogating ligand-receptor interactions using highly sensitive cellular biosensors. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7804. [PMID: 38016944 PMCID: PMC10684770 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43589-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Interactions of membrane-resident proteins are important targets for therapeutic interventions but most methods to study them are either costly, laborious or fail to reflect the physiologic interaction of membrane resident proteins in trans. Here we describe highly sensitive cellular biosensors as a tool to study receptor-ligand pairs. They consist of fluorescent reporter cells that express chimeric receptors harboring ectodomains of cell surface molecules and intracellular signaling domains. We show that a broad range of molecules can be integrated into this platform and we demonstrate its applicability to highly relevant research areas, including the characterization of immune checkpoints and the probing of cells for the presence of receptors or ligands. The platform is suitable to evaluate the interactions of viral proteins with host receptors and to test for neutralization capability of drugs or biological samples. Our results indicate that cellular biosensors have broad utility as a tool to study protein-interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maximilian A Funk
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T cell activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T cell activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Marlene C Gerner
- Division of Biomedical Science, University of Applied Sciences FH Campus Wien, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jasmin M Hammerler
- Division of Biomedical Science, University of Applied Sciences FH Campus Wien, Vienna, Austria
| | - Benjamin Salzer
- St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute, Vienna, Austria
- Christian Doppler Laboratory for Next Generation CAR T Cells, Vienna, Austria
| | - Manfred Lehner
- St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute, Vienna, Austria
- Christian Doppler Laboratory for Next Generation CAR T Cells, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T cell activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Simon Gumpelmair
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T cell activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Karin Stiasny
- Center for Virology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Peter Steinberger
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Division for Immune Receptors and T cell activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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11
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Aigner-Radakovics K, De Sousa Linhares A, Salzer B, Lehner M, Izadi S, Castilho A, Pickl WF, Leitner J, Steinberger P. The ligand-dependent suppression of TCR signaling by the immune checkpoint receptor LAG3 depends on the cytoplasmic RRFSALE motif. Sci Signal 2023; 16:eadg2610. [PMID: 37788323 DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.adg2610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG3) is an inhibitory immune checkpoint receptor that restrains autoimmune and antitumor responses, but its evolutionarily conserved cytoplasmic tail lacks classical inhibitory motifs. Major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC class II) is an established LAG3 ligand, and fibrinogen-like protein 1 (FGL1), lymph node sinusoidal endothelial cell C-type lectin (LSECtin), and Galectin-3 have been proposed as alternative binding partners that play important roles in LAG3 function. Here, we used a fluorescent human T cell reporter system to study the function of LAG3. We found that LAG3 reduced the response to T cell receptor stimulation in the presence of MHC class II molecules to a lesser extent compared with the receptor programmed cell death protein 1. Analysis of deletion mutants demonstrated that the RRFSALE motif in the cytoplasmic tail of LAG3 was necessary and sufficient for LAG3-mediated inhibition. In this system, FGL1, but not LSECtin or Galectin-3, acted as a LAG3 ligand that weakly induced inhibition. LAG3-blocking antibodies attenuated LAG3-mediated inhibition in our reporter cells and enhanced reporter cell activation even in the absence of LAG3 ligands, indicating that they could potentially enhance T cell responses independently of their blocking effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Aigner-Radakovics
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Vienna, Austria
| | - Benjamin Salzer
- Christian Doppler Laboratory for Next Generation CAR T Cells, Vienna, Austria
- St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute, Vienna, Austria
| | - Manfred Lehner
- Christian Doppler Laboratory for Next Generation CAR T Cells, Vienna, Austria
- St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute, Vienna, Austria
| | - Shiva Izadi
- Institute of Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology (IPBT), Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology (DAGZ), University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU), Vienna, Austria
| | - Alexandra Castilho
- Institute of Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology (IPBT), Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology (DAGZ), University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU), Vienna, Austria
| | - Winfried F Pickl
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Vienna, Austria
- Karl Landsteiner University, Krems, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Vienna, Austria
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12
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Battin C, De Sousa Linhares A, Leitner J, Grossmann A, Lupinek D, Izadi S, Castilho A, Waidhofer-Söllner P, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Stritzker J, Steinberger P. Engineered soluble, trimerized 4-1BBL variants as potent immunomodulatory agents. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2023; 72:3029-3043. [PMID: 37310433 PMCID: PMC10412504 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-023-03474-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Targeting co-stimulatory receptors promotes the activation and effector functions of anti-tumor lymphocytes. 4-1BB (CD137/TNFSF9), a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily (TNFR-SF), is a potent co-stimulatory receptor that plays a prominent role in augmenting effector functions of CD8+ T cells, but also CD4+ T cells and NK cells. Agonistic antibodies against 4-1BB have entered clinical trials and shown signs of therapeutic efficacy. Here, we have used a T cell reporter system to evaluate various formats of 4-1BBL regarding their capacity to functionally engage its receptor. We found that a secreted 4-1BBL ectodomain harboring a trimerization domain derived from human collagen (s4-1BBL-TriXVIII) is a strong inducer of 4-1BB co-stimulation. Similar to the 4-1BB agonistic antibody urelumab, s4-1BBL-TriXVIII is very potent in inducing CD8+ and CD4+ T cell proliferation. We provide first evidence that s4-1BBL-TriXVIII can be used as an effective immunomodulatory payload in therapeutic viral vectors. Oncolytic measles viruses encoding s4-1BBL-TriXVIII significantly reduced tumor burden in a CD34+ humanized mouse model, whereas measles viruses lacking s4-1BBL-TriXVIII were not effective. Natural soluble 4-1BB ligand harboring a trimerization domain might have utility in tumor therapy especially when delivered to tumor tissue as systemic administration might induce liver toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Battin
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Anna Grossmann
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniela Lupinek
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Shiva Izadi
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute for Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alexandra Castilho
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute for Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Petra Waidhofer-Söllner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Jochen Stritzker
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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13
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Kuncewicz K, Bojko M, Battin C, Karczyńska A, Sieradzan A, Sikorska E, Węgrzyn K, Wojciechowicz K, Wardowska A, Steinberger P, Rodziewicz-Motowidło S, Spodzieja M. BTLA-derived peptides as inhibitors of BTLA/HVEM complex formation - design, synthesis and biological evaluation. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 165:115161. [PMID: 37473684 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune checkpoints can be divided into co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory molecules that regulate the activation and effector functions of T cells. The co-inhibitory pathways mediated by ICPs are used by cancer cells to escape from immune surveillance, and therefore the blockade of these receptor/ligand interactions is one of the strategies used in the treatment of cancer. The two main pathways currently under investigation are CTLA-4/CD80/CD86 and PD-1/PD-L1, and the monoclonal Abs targeting them have shown potent immunomodulatory effects and activity in clinical environments. Another interesting target in cancer treatment is the BTLA/HVEM complex. Binding of BTLA protein on T cells to HVEM on cancer cells leads to inhibition of T cell proliferation and cytokine production. In the presented work, we focused on blocking the HVEM protein using BTLA-derived peptides. Based on the crystal structure of the BTLA/HVEM complex and MM/GBSA analysis performed here, we designed and synthesized peptides, specifically fragments of BTLA protein. We subsequently checked the inhibitory capacities of these compounds using ELISA and a cellular reporter platform. Two of these peptides, namely BTLA(35-43) and BTLA(33-64)C58Abu displayed the most promising properties, and we therefore performed further studies to evaluate their affinity to HVEM protein, their stability in plasma and their effect on viability of human PBMCs. In addition, the 3D structure for the peptide BTLA(33-64)C58Abu was determined using NMR. Obtained data confirmed that the BTLA-derived peptides could be the basis for future drugs and their immunomodulatory potential merits further examination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna Kuncewicz
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Magdalena Bojko
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Claire Battin
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Lazarettgasse 19, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Agnieszka Karczyńska
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Adam Sieradzan
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Emilia Sikorska
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Węgrzyn
- University of Gdańsk, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology of the University of Gdańsk and the Medical University of Gdańsk, Abrahama 58, 80-307 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Karolina Wojciechowicz
- Medical University of Gdańsk, Department of Physiopathology, Dębinki 7, 80-210 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Anna Wardowska
- Medical University of Gdańsk, Department of Physiopathology, Dębinki 7, 80-210 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Lazarettgasse 19, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Marta Spodzieja
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, Wita Stwosza 63, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland.
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14
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Li K, Cardenas-Lizana P, Kellner AV, Yuan Z, Ahn E, Lyu J, Li Z, Salaita K, Ahmed R, Zhu C. Mechanical force regulates ligand binding and function of PD-1. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.13.553152. [PMID: 37645980 PMCID: PMC10462004 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.13.553152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Immune checkpoint blockade targeting PD-1 shows great success in cancer therapy. However, the mechanism of how ligand binding initiates PD-1 signaling remains unclear. As prognosis markers of multiple cancers, soluble PD-L1 is found in patient sera and can bind PD-1, but fails to suppress T cell function. This and our previous observations that T cells exert endogenous forces on PD-1-PD-L2 bonds prompt the hypothesis that mechanical force might be critical to PD-1 triggering, which is missing in the soluble ligand case due to the lack of mechanical support afforded by surface-anchored ligand. Here we show that PD-1 function is eliminated or reduced when mechanical support on ligand is removed or dampened, respectively. Force spectroscopic analysis reveals that PD-1 forms catch bonds with both PD-Ligands <7 pN where force prolongs bond lifetime, but slip bonds >8 pN where force accelerates dissociation. Steered molecular dynamics finds PD-1-PD-L2 complex very sensitive to force due to the two molecules' "side-to-side" binding via β sheets. Pulling causes relative rotation and translation between the two molecules by stretching and aligning the complex along the force direction, yielding new atomic contacts not observed in the crystal structure. Compared to wild-type, PD-1 mutants targeting the force-induced new interactions maintain the same binding affinity but display lower rupture force, shorter bond lifetime, reduced tension, and most importantly, impaired capacity to suppress T cell activation. Our results uncover a mechanism for cells to probe the mechanical support of PD-1-PD-Ligand bonds using endogenous forces to regulate PD-1 triggering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitao Li
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Paul Cardenas-Lizana
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Anna V. Kellner
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Zhou Yuan
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Eunseon Ahn
- Emory Vaccine Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322
| | - Jintian Lyu
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Zhenhai Li
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
| | - Khalid Salaita
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322
| | - Rafi Ahmed
- Emory Vaccine Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322
| | - Cheng Zhu
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
- George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
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15
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Álvarez Freile J, Qi Y, Jacob L, Lobo MF, Lourens HJ, Huls G, Bremer E. A luminescence-based method to assess antigen presentation and antigen-specific T cell responses for in vitro screening of immunomodulatory checkpoints and therapeutics. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1233113. [PMID: 37559730 PMCID: PMC10407562 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1233113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Investigations into the strength of antigen-specific responses in vitro is becoming increasingly relevant for decision making in early-phase research of novel immunotherapeutic approaches, including adoptive cell but also immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-based therapies. In the latter, antigen-specific rapid and high throughput tools to investigate MHC/antigen-specific T cell receptor (TCR) activation haven't been implemented yet. Here, we present a simple and rapid luminescence-based approach using the human papillomavirus 16 (HPV16) E711-20 peptide as model antigen and E7-TCR transgenic Jurkat.NFAT-luciferase reporter cells. Upon E7 peptide pulsing of HLA-A2+ cell lines and macrophages, an effector to target ratio dependent increase in luminescence compared to non-pulsed cells was observed after co-incubation with E7-TCR expressing Jurkat, but not with parental cells. Analogous experiments with cells expressing full-length HPV16 identified that E7-specific activation of Jurkat cells enabled detection of endogenous antigen processing and MHC-I presentation. As proof of concept, overexpression of established checkpoints/inhibitory molecules (e.g., PD-L1 or HLA-G) significantly reduced the E7-specific TCR-induced luminescence, an effect that could be restored after treatment with corresponding targeting antagonistic antibodies. Altogether, the luminescence-based method described here represents an alternative approach for the rapid evaluation of MHC-dependent antigen-specific T cell responses in vitro. It can be used as a rapid tool to evaluate the impact of the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment or novel ICI in triggering effective T cell responses, as well as speeding up the development of novel therapeutics within the immune-oncology field.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Edwin Bremer
- Department of Hematology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
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16
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Abdelaziz MO, Raftery MJ, Weihs J, Bielawski O, Edel R, Köppke J, Vladimirova D, Adler JM, Firsching T, Voß A, Gruber AD, Hummel LV, Fernandez Munoz I, Müller-Marquardt F, Willimsky G, Elleboudy NS, Trimpert J, Schönrich G. Early protective effect of a ("pan") coronavirus vaccine (PanCoVac) in Roborovski dwarf hamsters after single-low dose intranasal administration. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1166765. [PMID: 37520530 PMCID: PMC10372429 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1166765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has highlighted the danger posed by human coronaviruses. Rapid emergence of immunoevasive variants and waning antiviral immunity decrease the effect of the currently available vaccines, which aim at induction of neutralizing antibodies. In contrast, T cells are marginally affected by antigen evolution although they represent the major mediators of virus control and vaccine protection against virus-induced disease. Materials and methods We generated a multi-epitope vaccine (PanCoVac) that encodes the conserved T cell epitopes from all structural proteins of coronaviruses. PanCoVac contains elements that facilitate efficient processing and presentation of PanCoVac-encoded T cell epitopes and can be uploaded to any available vaccine platform. For proof of principle, we cloned PanCoVac into a non-integrating lentivirus vector (NILV-PanCoVac). We chose Roborovski dwarf hamsters for a first step in evaluating PanCoVac in vivo. Unlike mice, they are naturally susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, Roborovski dwarf hamsters develop COVID-19-like disease after infection with SARS-CoV-2 enabling us to look at pathology and clinical symptoms. Results Using HLA-A*0201-restricted reporter T cells and U251 cells expressing a tagged version of PanCoVac, we confirmed in vitro that PanCoVac is processed and presented by HLA-A*0201. As mucosal immunity in the respiratory tract is crucial for protection against respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, we tested the protective effect of single-low dose of NILV-PanCoVac administered via the intranasal (i.n.) route in the Roborovski dwarf hamster model of COVID-19. After infection with ancestral SARS-CoV-2, animals immunized with a single-low dose of NILV-PanCoVac i.n. did not show symptoms and had significantly decreased viral loads in the lung tissue. This protective effect was observed in the early phase (2 days post infection) after challenge and was not dependent on neutralizing antibodies. Conclusion PanCoVac, a multi-epitope vaccine covering conserved T cell epitopes from all structural proteins of coronaviruses, might protect from severe disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 variants and future pathogenic coronaviruses. The use of (HLA-) humanized animal models will allow for further efficacy studies of PanCoVac-based vaccines in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed O. Abdelaziz
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martin J. Raftery
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Hematology, Oncology and Tumor Immunology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Julian Weihs
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Gastroenterology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Olivia Bielawski
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Richard Edel
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Julia Köppke
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Julia M. Adler
- Institute of Virology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Theresa Firsching
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Anne Voß
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Achim D. Gruber
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Luca V. Hummel
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ivan Fernandez Munoz
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Francesca Müller-Marquardt
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Gerald Willimsky
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium, Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nooran S. Elleboudy
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Jakob Trimpert
- Institute of Virology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Günther Schönrich
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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17
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Tauber PA, Kratzer B, Schatzlmaier P, Smole U, Köhler C, Rausch L, Kranich J, Trapin D, Neunkirchner A, Zabel M, Jutz S, Steinberger P, Gadermaier G, Brocker T, Stockinger H, Derdak S, Pickl WF. The small molecule inhibitor BX-795 uncouples IL-2 production from inhibition of Th2 inflammation and induces CD4 + T cells resembling iTreg. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1094694. [PMID: 37090735 PMCID: PMC10117943 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1094694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Treg cells have been shown to be an important part of immune-homeostasis and IL-2 which is produced upon T cell receptor (TCR)-dependent activation of T lymphocytes has been demonstrated to critically participate in Treg development. Objective To evaluate small molecule inhibitors (SMI) for the identification of novel IL-2/Treg enhancing compounds. Materials and methods We used TCR-dependent and allergen-specific cytokine secretion of human and mouse T cells, next generation messenger ribonucleic acid sequencing (RNA-Seq) and two different models of allergic airway inflammation to examine lead SMI-compounds. Results We show here that the reported 3-phosphoinositide dependent kinase-1 (PDK1) SMI BX-795 increased IL-2 in culture supernatants of Jurkat E6-1 T cells, human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (hPBMC) and allergen-specific mouse T cells upon TCR-dependent and allergen-specific stimulation while concomitantly inhibiting Th2 cytokine secretion. RNA-Seq revealed that the presence of BX-795 during allergen-specific activation of T cells induces a bona fide Treg cell type highly similar to iTreg but lacking Foxp3 expression. When applied in mugwort pollen and house dust mite extract-based models of airway inflammation, BX-795 significantly inhibited Th2 inflammation including expression of Th2 signature transcription factors and cytokines and influx into the lungs of type 2-associated inflammatory cells such as eosinophils. Conclusions BX-795 potently uncouples IL-2 production from Th2 inflammation and induces Th-IL-2 cells, which highly resemble induced (i)Tregs. Thus, BX-795 may be a useful new compound for the treatment of allergic diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter A. Tauber
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Bernhard Kratzer
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Philipp Schatzlmaier
- Institute of Hygiene and Applied Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ursula Smole
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Cordula Köhler
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lisa Rausch
- Institute for Immunology, Biomedical Center (BMC), Faculty of Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Jan Kranich
- Institute for Immunology, Biomedical Center (BMC), Faculty of Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Doris Trapin
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alina Neunkirchner
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Maja Zabel
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sabrina Jutz
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Thomas Brocker
- Institute for Immunology, Biomedical Center (BMC), Faculty of Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Hannes Stockinger
- Institute of Hygiene and Applied Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sophia Derdak
- Core Facilities, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Winfried F. Pickl
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Karl Landsteiner University of Healthcare, Krems, Austria
- *Correspondence: Winfried F. Pickl,
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18
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Fellermeyer M, Anzilotti C, Paluch C, Cornall RJ, Davis SJ, Gileadi U. Combination CD200R/PD-1 blockade in a humanised mouse model. IMMUNOTHERAPY ADVANCES 2023; 3:ltad006. [PMID: 37082107 PMCID: PMC10112683 DOI: 10.1093/immadv/ltad006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
There is an increasing number of immune-checkpoint inhibitors being developed and approved for cancer immunotherapy. Most of the new therapies aim to reactivate tumour-infiltrating T cells, which are responsible for tumour killing. However, in many tumours, the most abundant infiltrating immune cells are macrophages and myeloid cells, which can be tumour-promoting as well as tumouricidal. CD200R was initially identified as a myeloid-restricted, inhibitory immune receptor, but was subsequently also found to be expressed within the lymphoid lineage. Using a mouse model humanised for CD200R and PD-1, we investigated the potential of a combination therapy comprising nivolumab, a clinically approved PD-1 blocking antibody, and OX108, a CD200R antagonist. We produced nivolumab as a murine IgG1 antibody and validated its binding activity in vitro as well as ex vivo. We then tested the combination therapy in the immunogenic colorectal cancer model MC38 as well as the PD-1 blockade-resistant lung cancer model LLC1, which is characterised by a large number of infiltrating myeloid cells, making it an attractive target for CD200R blockade. No significant improvement of overall survival was found in either model, compared to nivolumab mIgG1 monotherapy. There was a trend for more complete responses in the MC38 model, but investigation of the infiltrating immune cells failed to account for this. Importantly, MC38 cells expressed low levels of CD200, whereas LLC1 cells were CD200-negative. Further investigation of CD200R-blocking antibodies in tumours expressing high levels of CD200 could be warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Fellermeyer
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Radcliffe Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Consuelo Anzilotti
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Radcliffe Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Henry Wellcome Building for Molecular Physiology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Christopher Paluch
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Radcliffe Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Henry Wellcome Building for Molecular Physiology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Richard J Cornall
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Henry Wellcome Building for Molecular Physiology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- CAMS Oxford Institute, Henry Wellcome Building for Molecular Physiology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Simon J Davis
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Radcliffe Department of Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Uzi Gileadi
- Correspondence: MRC Human Immunology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
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19
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Combined Vaccination with B Cell Peptides Targeting Her-2/neu and Immune Checkpoints as Emerging Treatment Option in Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14225678. [PMID: 36428769 PMCID: PMC9688220 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14225678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 11/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The application of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), targeting tumor-associated (TAAs) or tumor-specific antigens or immune checkpoints (ICs), has shown tremendous success in cancer therapy. However, the application of mAbs suffers from a series of limitations, including the necessity of frequent administration, the limited duration of clinical response and the emergence of frequently pronounced immune-related adverse events. However, the introduction of mAbs has also resulted in a multitude of novel developments for the treatment of cancers, including vaccinations against various tumor cell-associated epitopes. Here, we reviewed recent clinical trials involving combination therapies with mAbs targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis and Her-2/neu, which was chosen as a paradigm for a clinically highly relevant TAA. Our recent findings from murine immunizations against the PD-1 pathway and Her-2/neu with peptides representing the mimotopes/B cell peptides of therapeutic antibodies targeting these molecules are an important focus of the present review. Moreover, concerns regarding the safety of vaccination approaches targeting PD-1, in the context of the continuing immune response, as a result of induced immunological memory, are also addressed. Hence, we describe a new frontier of cancer treatment by active immunization using combined mimotopes/B cell peptides aimed at various targets relevant to cancer biology.
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20
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Darweesh M, Younis S, Hajikhezri Z, Ali A, Jin C, Punga T, Gupta S, Essand M, Andersson L, Akusjärvi G. ZC3H11A loss of function enhances NF-κB signaling through defective IκBα protein expression. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1002823. [PMID: 36439101 PMCID: PMC9681899 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1002823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
ZC3H11A is a cellular protein associated with the transcription export (TREX) complex that is induced during heat-shock. Several nuclear-replicating viruses exploit the mRNA export mechanism of ZC3H11A protein for their efficient replication. Here we show that ZC3H11A protein plays a role in regulation of NF-κB signal transduction. Depletion of ZC3H11A resulted in enhanced NF-κB mediated signaling, with upregulation of numerous innate immune related mRNAs, including IL-6 and a large group of interferon-stimulated genes. IL-6 upregulation in the absence of the ZC3H11A protein correlated with an increased NF-κB transcription factor binding to the IL-6 promoter and decreased IL-6 mRNA decay. The enhanced NF-κB signaling pathway in ZC3H11A deficient cells correlated with a defect in IκBα inhibitory mRNA and protein accumulation. Upon ZC3H11A depletion The IκBα mRNA was retained in the cell nucleus resulting in failure to maintain normal levels of the cytoplasmic IκBα mRNA and protein that is essential for its inhibitory feedback loop on NF-κB activity. These findings indicate towards a previously unknown mechanism of ZC3H11A in regulating the NF-κB pathway at the level of IkBα mRNA export.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahmoud Darweesh
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alazhr University, Assiut, Egypt
| | - Shady Younis
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Division of Immunology and Rheumatology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Zamaneh Hajikhezri
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Arwa Ali
- Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Chuan Jin
- Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Tanel Punga
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Soham Gupta
- Division of Clinical Microbiology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Magnus Essand
- Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Leif Andersson
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Göran Akusjärvi
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
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21
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Limited T-Cell-Stimulating Effect of Cytochalasin-B-Induced Membrane Vesicles Isolated from Artificial Antigen-Presenting Cells. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 10:vaccines10111877. [DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10111877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2022] [Revised: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Artificial antigen-presenting cells (aAPCs) that stably express particular HLA and co-stimulatory molecules by gene transfer have been developed to effectively stimulate T cells. To investigate whether cytochalsin-B-induced membrane vesicles derived from aAPCs (AP-CIMVs) have similar antigen-presenting functions as a cell-free system, T cell responses to different types of antigen presentation were measured using Jurkat reporter cells. First, the aggregation of AP-CIMV, which affects the measurement of function, was inhibited by nuclease treatment to produce uniform AP-CIMVs. The Green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression in Jurkat reporter cells was induced in a dose-dependent manner in groups stimulated with anti-CD3 antibody-coated AP-CIMVs and aAPCs, and anti-CD3/CD28 Dynabead. When Jurkat reporter cells expressing specific T cell receptors were stimulated by AP-CIMVs and aAPCs loaded with CMV pp65 peptide, AP-CIMVs showed similar stimulatory effects to that by aAPC. However, when these Jurkat reporter cells were stimulated by aAPCs endogenously expressing CMV pp65 antigen and their AP-CIMVs, the GFP expression rate by AP-CIMVs was 8.4%, which was significantly lower than 53.2% by aAPCs. Although this study showed a limited T-cell-stimulating effect of AP-CIMVs on endogenously processed antigen presentation, these results provide useful information for the development of improved cell-free systems for T cell stimulation in the future.
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22
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Martínez-Vicente P, Poblador F, Leitner J, Farré D, Steinberger P, Engel P, Angulo A. Discovery of the first PD-1 ligand encoded by a pathogen. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1007334. [PMID: 36177035 PMCID: PMC9514091 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1007334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Large double-stranded DNA viruses deploy multiple strategies to subvert host immune defenses. Some of these tactics are mediated by viral gene products acquired by horizontal gene transfer from the corresponding hosts and shaped throughout evolution. The programmed death-1 (PD-1) receptor and its ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2, play a pivotal role attenuating T-cell responses and regulating immune tolerance. In this study, we report the first functional PD-L1 homolog gene (De2) found in a pathogen. De2, captured by a γ-herpesvirus from its host during co-evolution around 50 million years ago, encodes a cell-surface glycoprotein that interacts with high affinity and stability with host PD-1. We also find that mutations evolved by the viral protein result in a significant loss of its ability to interact in cis with CD80, an interaction that for PD-L1:CD80 has been reported to block PD-1 inhibitory pathways. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the viral protein strongly inhibits T-cell signaling. Our observations suggest that PD-L1 homologs may enable viruses to evade T cell responses, favor their replication, and prevent excessive tissue damage. Altogether, our findings reveal a novel viral immunosuppressive strategy and highlight the importance of the modulation of the PD-1/PD-L1 axis during viral infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Martínez-Vicente
- Unitat d’Immunologia, Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Francesc Poblador
- Unitat d’Immunologia, Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptor and T-Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Domènec Farré
- Unitat d’Immunologia, Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptor and T-Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Pablo Engel
- Unitat d’Immunologia, Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ana Angulo
- Unitat d’Immunologia, Departament de Biomedicina, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
- *Correspondence: Ana Angulo,
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23
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Battin C, Leitner J, Waidhofer-Söllner P, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Olive D, Steinberger P. BTLA inhibition has a dominant role in the cis-complex of BTLA and HVEM. Front Immunol 2022; 13:956694. [PMID: 36081508 PMCID: PMC9446882 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.956694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The engagement of the herpesvirus entry mediator (HVEM, TNFRSF14) by the B and T lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA) represents a unique interaction between an activating receptor of the TNFR-superfamily and an inhibitory receptor of the Ig-superfamily. BTLA and HVEM have both been implicated in the regulation of human T cell responses, but their role is complex and incompletely understood. Here, we have used T cell reporter systems to dissect the complex interplay of HVEM with BTLA and its additional ligands LIGHT and CD160. Co-expression with LIGHT or CD160, but not with BTLA, induced strong constitutive signaling via HVEM. In line with earlier reports, we observed that in cis interaction of BTLA and HVEM prevented HVEM co-stimulation by ligands on surrounding cells. Intriguingly, our data indicate that BTLA mediated inhibition is not impaired in this heterodimeric complex, suggesting a dominant role of BTLA co-inhibition. Stimulation of primary human T cells in presence of HVEM ligands indicated a weak costimulatory capacity of HVEM potentially owed to its in cis engagement by BTLA. Furthermore, experiments with T cell reporter cells and primary T cells demonstrate that HVEM antibodies can augment T cell responses by concomitantly acting as checkpoint inhibitors and co-stimulation agonists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Petra Waidhofer-Söllner
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Daniel Olive
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille (CRCM), Inserm, U1068; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), UMR7258; Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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24
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Battin C, Kaufmann G, Leitner J, Tobias J, Wiedermann U, Rölle A, Meyer M, Momburg F, Steinberger P. NKG2A-checkpoint inhibition and its blockade critically depends on peptides presented by its ligand HLA-E. Immunology 2022; 166:507-521. [PMID: 35596615 PMCID: PMC9426624 DOI: 10.1111/imm.13515] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
NKG2A has emerged as a new immunotherapy target and its blockade with the novel immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) monalizumab can boost both NK cell and CD8+ T cell responses. NKG2A forms heterodimers with CD94 and binds to the human non-classical MHC class I molecule HLA-E. HLA-E forms complexes with a limited set of peptides mainly derived from the leader sequences of the classical MHC class I molecules (HLA-A, HLA-B and HLA-C) and the non-classical class I paralogue HLA-G, and it is well established that the interaction between CD94/NKG2x receptors and its ligand HLA-E is peptide-sensitive. Here, we have evaluated peptide dependence of NKG2A-mediated inhibition and the efficiency of interference by monalizumab in a transcriptional T cell reporter system. NKG2A inhibition was mediated by cell-expressed HLA-E molecules stably presenting disulfate-trapped peptide ligands. We show that different HLA-class I leader peptides mediate varying levels of inhibition. We have used NKG2A/NKG2C chimeric receptors to map the binding site of NKG2A and NKG2C blocking antibodies. Furthermore, we determined the functional EC50 values of blocking NKG2A antibodies and show that they greatly depend on the HLA-leader peptide presented by HLA-E. Monalizumab was less effective in augmenting NK cell-mediated killing of target cells displaying HLA-G peptide on HLA-E, than cells expressing HLA-E complexed with HLA-A, HLA-B and HLA-C peptides. Our results indicate that peptides displayed by HLA-E molecules on tumour cells might influence the effectivity of NKG2A-ICI therapy and potentially suggest novel approaches for patient stratification, for example, based on tumoral HLA-G levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Gabriel Kaufmann
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Joshua Tobias
- Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Ursula Wiedermann
- Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Alexander Rölle
- Clinical Cooperation Unit “Applied Tumor Immunity”German Cancer Research CenterHeidelbergGermany
- Department of Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor DiseasesUniversity Hospital HeidelbergHeidelbergGermany
| | - Marten Meyer
- Clinical Cooperation Unit “Applied Tumor Immunity”German Cancer Research CenterHeidelbergGermany
- Antigen Presentation and T/NK Cell Activation GroupDKFZHeidelbergGermany
| | - Frank Momburg
- Clinical Cooperation Unit “Applied Tumor Immunity”German Cancer Research CenterHeidelbergGermany
- Antigen Presentation and T/NK Cell Activation GroupDKFZHeidelbergGermany
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and ImmunologyMedical University of ViennaViennaAustria
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25
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Deng J, Zhang Q, Lv L, Ma P, Zhang Y, Zhao N, Zhang Y. Identification of an autophagy-related gene signature for predicting prognosis and immune activity in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Sci Rep 2022; 12:7006. [PMID: 35488119 PMCID: PMC9054801 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-11050-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Adenocarcinoma of the pancreas (PAAD) is a cancerous growth that deteriorates rapidly and has a poor prognosis. Researchers are investigating autophagy in PAAD to identify a new biomarker and treatment target. An autophagy-related gene (ARG) model for overall survival (OS) was constructed using multivariate Cox regression analyses. A cohort of the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-PAAD was used as the training group as a basis for model construction. This prediction model was validated with several external datasets. To evaluate model performance, the analysis with receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC) was performed. The Human Protein Atlas (HPA) and Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE) were investigated to validate the effects of ARGs expression on cancer cells. Comparing the levels of immune infiltration between high-risk and low-risk groups was finished through the use of CIBERSORT. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the low-/high-risk groups were analyzed further via Gene Ontology biological process (GO-BP) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses, which were used to identify potential small-molecule compounds in Connectivity Map (CMap), followed by half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) examination with PANC-1 cells. The risk score was finally calculated as follows: BAK1 × 0.34 + ITGA3 × 0.38 + BAG3 × 0.35 + APOL1 × 0.26-RAB24 × 0.67519. ITGA3 and RAB24 both emerged as independent prognostic factors in multivariate Cox regression. Each PAAD cohort had a significantly shorter OS in the high-risk group than in the low-risk group. The high-risk group exhibited infiltration of several immune cell types, including naive B cells (p = 0.003), plasma cells (p = 0.044), and CD8 T cells (nearly significant, p = 0.080). Higher infiltration levels of NK cells (p = 0.025), resting macrophages (p = 0.020), and mast cells (p = 0.007) were found in the high-risk group than the low-risk group. The in vitro and in vivo expression of signature ARGs was consistent in the CCLE and HPA databases. The top 3 enriched Gene Ontology biological processes (GO-BPs) were signal release, regulation of transsynaptic signaling, and modulation of chemical synaptic transmission, and the top 3 enriched Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways were MAPK, cAMP, and cell adhesion molecules. Four potential small-molecule compounds (piperacetazine, vinburnine, withaferin A and hecogenin) that target ARGs were also identified. Taking the results together, our research shows that the ARG signature may serve as a useful prognostic indicator and reveal potential therapeutic targets in patients with PAAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiang Deng
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Qian Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Liping Lv
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Ma
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Yangyang Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Ning Zhao
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China
| | - Yanyu Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China.
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, 100850, People's Republic of China.
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26
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Kuncewicz K, Battin C, Węgrzyn K, Sieradzan A, Wardowska A, Sikorska E, Giedrojć I, Smardz P, Pikuła M, Steinberger P, Rodziewicz-Motowidło S, Spodzieja M. Targeting the HVEM protein using a fragment of glycoprotein D to inhibit formation of the BTLA/HVEM complex. Bioorg Chem 2022; 122:105748. [PMID: 35325694 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2022.105748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2021] [Revised: 01/26/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy using blockade of immune checkpoints is mainly based on monoclonal antibodies. Despite the tremendous success achieved by using those molecules to block immune checkpoint proteins, antibodies possess some weaknesses, which means that there is still a need to search for new compounds as alternatives to antibodies. Many current approaches are focused on use of peptides/peptidomimetics to destroy receptor/ligand interactions. Our studies concern blockade of the BTLA/HVEM complex, which generates an inhibitory effect on the immune response resulting in tolerance to cancer cells. To design inhibitors of such proteins binding we based our work on the amino acid sequence and structure of a ligand of HVEM protein, namely glycoprotein D, which possesses the same binding site on HVEM as BTLA protein. To disrupt the BTLA and HVEM interaction we designed several peptides, all fragments of glycoprotein D, and tested their binding to HVEM using SPR and their ability to inhibit the BTLA/HVEM complex formation using ELISA tests and cellular reporter platforms. That led to identification of two peptides, namely gD(1-36)(K10C-D30C) and gD(1-36)(A12C-L25C), which interact with HVEM and possess blocking capacities. Both peptides are not cytotoxic to human PBMCs, and show stability in human plasma. We also studied the 3D structure of the gD(1-36)(K10C-D30C) peptide using NMR and molecular modeling methods. The obtained data reveal that it possesses an unstructured conformation and binds to HVEM in the same location as gD and BTLA. All these results suggest that peptides based on the binding fragment of gD protein represent promising immunomodulation agents for future cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Claire Battin
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Katarzyna Węgrzyn
- University of Gdańsk, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology of University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk, 80-307 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Adam Sieradzan
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Anna Wardowska
- Medical University of Gdańsk, Department of Physiopathology, 80-210 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Emilia Sikorska
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Irma Giedrojć
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Pamela Smardz
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Michał Pikuła
- Medical University of Gdańsk, Department of Embryology, Laboratory of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, 80-210 Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Marta Spodzieja
- University of Gdańsk, Faculty of Chemistry, 80-308 Gdańsk, Poland.
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Radakovics K, Battin C, Leitner J, Geiselhart S, Paster W, Stöckl J, Hoffmann-Sommergruber K, Steinberger P. A Highly Sensitive Cell-Based TLR Reporter Platform for the Specific Detection of Bacterial TLR Ligands. Front Immunol 2022; 12:817604. [PMID: 35087538 PMCID: PMC8786796 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.817604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are primary pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), which recognize conserved microbial components. They play important roles in innate immunity but also in the initiation of adaptive immune responses. Impurities containing TLR ligands are a frequent problem in research but also for the production of therapeutics since TLR ligands can exert strong immunomodulatory properties even in minute amounts. Consequently, there is a need for sensitive tools to detect TLR ligands with high sensitivity and specificity. Here we describe the development of a platform based on a highly sensitive NF-κB::eGFP reporter Jurkat JE6-1 T cell line for the detection of TLR ligands. Ectopic expression of TLRs and their coreceptors and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion of endogenously expressed TLRs was deployed to generate reporter cell lines selectively expressing functional human TLR2/1, TLR2/6, TLR4 or TLR5 complexes. Using well-defined agonists for the respective TLR complexes we could demonstrate high specificity and sensitivity of the individual reporter lines. The limit of detection for LPS was below 1 pg/mL and ligands for TLR2/1 (Pam3CSK4), TLR2/6 (Fsl-1) and TLR5 (flagellin) were detected at concentrations as low as 1.0 ng/mL, 0.2 ng/mL and 10 pg/mL, respectively. We showed that the JE6-1 TLR reporter cells have the utility to characterize different commercially available TLR ligands as well as more complex samples like bacterially expressed proteins or allergen extracts. Impurities in preparations of microbial compounds as well as the lack of specificity of detection systems can lead to erroneous results and currently there is no consensus regarding the involvement of TLRs in the recognition of several molecules with proposed immunostimulatory functions. This reporter system represents a highly suitable tool for the definition of structural requirements for agonists of distinct TLR complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Radakovics
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sabine Geiselhart
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Paster
- Clinical Cell Biology and FACS Core Unit, St. Anna Children´s Cancer Research Institute (CCRI), Vienna, Austria
| | - Johannes Stöckl
- Division Regulation of the Immune System, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Karin Hoffmann-Sommergruber
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Sriram G, Milling LE, Chen JK, Kong YW, Joughin BA, Abraham W, Swartwout S, Handly ED, Irvine DJ, Yaffe MB. The injury response to DNA damage in live tumor cells promotes antitumor immunity. Sci Signal 2021; 14:eabc4764. [PMID: 34665642 PMCID: PMC8791539 DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.abc4764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Although immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) has strong clinical benefit for treating some tumor types, it fails in others, indicating a need for additional modalities to enhance the ICB effect. Here, we identified one such modality by using DNA damage to create a live, injured tumor cell adjuvant. Using an optimized ex vivo coculture system, we found that treating tumor cells with specific concentrations of etoposide, mitoxantrone, or doxorubicin markedly enhanced dendritic cell–mediated T cell activation. These immune-enhancing effects of DNA damage did not correlate with immunogenic cell death markers or with the extent of apoptosis or necroptosis; instead, these effects were mediated by live injured cells with activation of the DNA-PK, ATR, NF-κB, p38 MAPK, and RIPK1 signaling pathways. In mice, intratumoral injection of ex vivo etoposide–treated tumor cells in combination with systemic ICB (by anti-PD-1 and anti-CTLA4 antibodies) increased the number of intratumoral CD103+ dendritic cells and circulating tumor-antigen–specific CD8+ T cells, decreased tumor growth, and improved survival. These effects were absent in Batf3−/− mice and in mice in which the DNA-damaging drug was injected directly into the tumor, due to DNA damage in the immune cells. The combination treatment induced complete tumor regression in a subset of mice that were then able to reject tumor rechallenge, indicating that the injured cell adjuvant treatment induced durable antitumor immunological memory. These results provide a strategy for enhancing the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibition in tumor types that do not respond to this treatment modality by itself.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ganapathy Sriram
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Lauren E. Milling
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Jung-Kuei Chen
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Yi Wen Kong
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Brian A. Joughin
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Wuhbet Abraham
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Susanne Swartwout
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Erika D. Handly
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Darrell J. Irvine
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD 20815, USA
| | - Michael B. Yaffe
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- David. H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Divisions of Acute Care Surgery, Trauma, and Surgical Critical Care and Surgical Oncology, Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215
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Puck A, Künig S, Modak M, May L, Fritz P, Battin C, Radakovics K, Steinberger P, Reipert BM, Crowe BA, Stöckl J. The soluble cytoplasmic tail of CD45 regulates T-cell activation via TLR4 signaling. Eur J Immunol 2021; 51:3176-3185. [PMID: 34626426 DOI: 10.1002/eji.202149227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Revised: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 10/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The soluble cytoplasmic tail of CD45 (ct-CD45) is a cleavage fragment of CD45, that is generated during the activation of human phagocytes. Upon release to the extracellular space, ct-CD45 binds to human T cells and inhibits their activation in vitro. Here, we studied the potential role of TLR4 as a receptor for ct-CD45. Treatment of Jurkat TLR4/CD14 reporter cells with ct-CD45 induced the upregulation of the reporter gene NFκB-eGFP and could be blocked by inhibitors of TLR4 signaling. Conversely, ct-CD45 did not promote the NFκB-controlled eGFP induction in reporter cells expressing TLR1, TLR2, and TLR6 transgenes and did not lead to the activation of the transcription factors NFκB, AP-1, and NFAT in a Jurkat reporter cell line expressing endogenous TLR5. Moreover, ct-CD45 binds to recombinant TLR4 in an in vitro assay and this association was reduced in the presence of oxidized 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphorylcholine. Blockade of TLR4 with mAb HTA125 partially reversed the ct-CD45-mediated inhibition of T-cell proliferation. Interestingly, targeting of TLR4 with mAb W7C11 also suppressed T-cell proliferation. In summary, the results of this study demonstrate that ct-CD45 acts via a noncanonical TLR4 activation pathway on T cells, which modulates TCR signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Puck
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sarojinidevi Künig
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Madhura Modak
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lara May
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Pia Fritz
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katharina Radakovics
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Birgit M Reipert
- Department of Immunology, Drug Discovery Austria, Baxalta Innovations GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Brian A Crowe
- Department of Immunology, Drug Discovery Austria, Baxalta Innovations GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Johannes Stöckl
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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30
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Meng Q, Fu Y, Li S, Yan Y, Duan D, Anthony DD, Zhu Y, Wu X, Qian F, Wu C. Rapid, sensitive and cost-effective determination of immune checkpoint inhibitor activity using a magnetic bead-based binding assay. J Immunol Methods 2021; 498:113134. [PMID: 34464606 DOI: 10.1016/j.jim.2021.113134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2021] [Revised: 07/12/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Immune checkpoint Inhibitors (ICIs) are effective immunno-therapeutic agents for cancer. Rapid and sensitive determination of the blocking activity of ICIs is important for ICIs development and immunological research. Among various immune checkpoint (IC) binding assays, cell-based binding assays are widely regarded, and the functional ELISA is a convenient alternative. However, these methodologies are limited by time-consuming preparation of cell lines stably expressing IC molecules, or long turnaround time with high cost. In this study, two magnetic bead based binding assays were developed to evaluate activity of ICIs, which was determined by a soluble ligand/bead immobilized receptor based binding assay (sL/bR binding assay) that assessed efficacy to block binding of one soluble IC ligand on its cognate receptor immobilized beads, or by a soluble receptor/bead immobilized ligand based binding assay (sR/bL binding assay) that assessed efficacy to block binding of soluble IC receptor on its cognate ligand immobilized beads. Half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of ICIs were calculated to determine ICIs activity. The sL/bR binding assay accurately determined the activity of two TIGIT blocking antibodies, since the relative blocking activity of two TIGIT antibodies determined by the sL/bR binding assay established in this study and that by the cell based binding assay were almost identical. In contrast, the sR/bL binding assay showed significantly improved sensitivity to determine activity of two PD-1 blocking antibodies than the sL/bR binding assay that was tested in this study and previous reports. Moreover, both amount of the used recombinant protein of ICI receptor/ligand and turnaround time of the two binding assays were more than 10 times less than those of the functional ELISA. These data indicate that the two magnetic bead based binding assays are sensitive, rapid and cost-effective methods to determine blocking activity of ICIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinglai Meng
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, The Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Molecular Engineering of National Ministry of Education, Shanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Cell Biology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province 030006, China.
| | - Yujia Fu
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, The Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Molecular Engineering of National Ministry of Education, Shanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Cell Biology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province 030006, China
| | - Shenzhi Li
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, The Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Molecular Engineering of National Ministry of Education, Shanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Cell Biology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province 030006, China
| | - Yujuan Yan
- Department of Infectious diseases, Affiliated Infectious Diseases Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province 215013, China
| | - Danli Duan
- Chengdu Newgenegle Clinical Diagnosis Lab, Chengdu, Sichuan Province 610041, China
| | - Donald D Anthony
- Departments of Medicine and Pathology, Divisions of Infectious and Rheumatic Diseases, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System and MetroHealth Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | - Yueping Zhu
- Department of Infectious diseases, Affiliated Infectious Diseases Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province 215013, China
| | - Xuehua Wu
- Department of Infectious diseases, Affiliated Infectious Diseases Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province 215013, China
| | - Feng Qian
- Department of Infectious diseases, Affiliated Infectious Diseases Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province 215013, China.
| | - Changxin Wu
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, The Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Molecular Engineering of National Ministry of Education, Shanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Cell Biology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province 030006, China.
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31
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Lalle G, Twardowski J, Grinberg-Bleyer Y. NF-κB in Cancer Immunity: Friend or Foe? Cells 2021; 10:355. [PMID: 33572260 PMCID: PMC7914614 DOI: 10.3390/cells10020355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Revised: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The emergence of immunotherapies has definitely proven the tight relationship between malignant and immune cells, its impact on cancer outcome and its therapeutic potential. In this context, it is undoubtedly critical to decipher the transcriptional regulation of these complex interactions. Following early observations demonstrating the roles of NF-κB in cancer initiation and progression, a series of studies converge to establish NF-κB as a master regulator of immune responses to cancer. Importantly, NF-κB is a family of transcriptional activators and repressors that can act at different stages of cancer immunity. In this review, we provide an overview of the selective cell-intrinsic contributions of NF-κB to the distinct cell types that compose the tumor immune environment. We also propose a new view of NF-κB targeting drugs as a new class of immunotherapies for cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Yenkel Grinberg-Bleyer
- Cancer Research Center of Lyon, UMR INSERM 1052, CNRS 5286, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre Léon Bérard, 69008 Lyon, France; (G.L.); (J.T.)
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Zhang Q, Lv L, Ma P, Zhang Y, Deng J, Zhang Y. Identification of an Autophagy-Related Pair Signature for Predicting Prognoses and Immune Activity in Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma. Front Immunol 2021; 12:743938. [PMID: 34956177 PMCID: PMC8695429 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.743938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) spreads quickly and has a poor prognosis. Autophagy research on PAAD could reveal new biomarkers and targets for diagnosis and treatment. METHODS Autophagy-related genes were translated into autophagy-related gene pairs, and univariate Cox regression was performed to obtain overall survival (OS)-related IRGPs (P<0.001). LASSO Cox regression analyses were performed to construct an autophagy-related gene pair (ARGP) model for predicting OS. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-PAAD cohort was set as the training group for model construction. The model predictive value was validated in multiple external datasets. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate model performance. Tumor microenvironments and immune infiltration were compared between low- and high-risk groups with ESTIMATE and CIBERSORT. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the groups were further analyzed by Gene Ontology biological process (GO-BP) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses and used to identify potential small-molecule compounds in L1000FWD. RESULTS Risk scores were calculated as follows: ATG4B|CHMP4C×(-0.31) + CHMP2B|MAP1LC3B×(0.30) + CHMP6|RIPK2 ×(-0.33) + LRSAM1|TRIM5×(-0.26) + MAP1LC3A|PAFAH1B2×(-0.15) + MAP1LC3A|TRIM21×(-0.08) + MET|MFN2×(0.38) + MET|MTDH×(0.47) + RASIP1|TRIM5×(-0.23) + RB1CC1|TPCN1×(0.22). OS was significantly shorter in the high-risk group than the low-risk group in each PAAD cohort. The ESTIMATE analysis showed no difference in stromal scores but a significant difference in immune scores (p=0.0045) and ESTIMATE scores (p=0.014) between the groups. CIBERSORT analysis showed higher naive B cell, Treg cell, CD8 T cell, and plasma cell levels in the low-risk group and higher M1 and M2 macrophage levels in the high-risk group. In addition, the results showed that naive B cells (r=-0.32, p<0.001), Treg cells (r=-0.31, p<0.001), CD8 T cells (r=-0.24, p=0.0092), and plasma cells (r=-0.2, p<0.026) were statistically correlated with the ARGP risk score. The top 3 enriched GO-BPs were signal release, regulation of transsynaptic signaling, and modulation of chemical synaptic transmission, and the top 3 enriched KEGG pathways were the insulin secretion, dopaminergic synapse, and NF-kappa B signaling pathways. Several potential small-molecule compounds targeting ARGs were also identified. CONCLUSION Our results demonstrate that the ARGP-based model may be a promising prognostic indicator for identifying drug targets in patients with PAAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
| | - Liping Lv
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
| | - Ping Ma
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
| | - Yangyang Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
| | - Jiang Deng
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Jiang Deng, ; Yanyu Zhang,
| | - Yanyu Zhang
- Institute of Health Service and Transfusion Medicine, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Blood Safety and Supply Technologies, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Jiang Deng, ; Yanyu Zhang,
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Reithofer M, Rosskopf S, Leitner J, Battin C, Bohle B, Steinberger P, Jahn-Schmid B. 4-1BB costimulation promotes bystander activation of human CD8 T cells. Eur J Immunol 2020; 51:721-733. [PMID: 33180337 PMCID: PMC7986150 DOI: 10.1002/eji.202048762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 11/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Costimulatory signals potently promote T‐cell proliferation and effector function. Agonistic antibodies targeting costimulatory receptors of the TNFR family, such as 4‐1BB and CD27, have entered clinical trials in cancer patients. Currently there is limited information how costimulatory signals regulate antigen‐specific but also bystander activation of human CD8 T cells. Engineered antigen presenting cells (eAPC) efficiently presenting several common viral epitopes on HLA‐A2 in combination with MHC class I tetramer staining were used to investigate the impact of costimulatory signals on human CD8 T‐cell responses. CD28 costimulation potently augmented the percentage and number of antigen‐reactive CD8 T cells, whereas eAPC expressing 4‐1BB‐ligand induced bystander proliferation of CD8 T cells and massive expansion of NK cells. Moreover, the 4‐1BB agonist urelumab similarly induced bystander proliferation of CD8 T cells and NK cells in a dose‐dependent manner. However, the promotion of bystander CD8 T‐cell responses is not a general attribute of costimulatory TNF receptor superfamily (TNFRSF) members, since CD27 signals enhanced antigen‐specific CD8 T cells responses without promoting significant bystander activation. Thus, the differential effects of costimulatory signals on the activation of human bystander CD8 T cells should be taken into account when costimulatory pathways are harnessed for cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel Reithofer
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sandra Rosskopf
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Barbara Bohle
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Beatrice Jahn-Schmid
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Fragments of gD Protein as Inhibitors of BTLA/HVEM Complex Formation-Design, Synthesis, and Cellular Studies. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21228876. [PMID: 33238640 PMCID: PMC7700651 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21228876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the major current trends in cancer immunotherapy is the blockade of immune checkpoint proteins that negatively regulate the immune response. This has been achieved through antibodies blocking PD-1/PD-L1 and CTLA-4/CD80/CD86 interactions. Such antibodies have revolutionized oncological therapy and shown a new way to fight cancer. Additional (negative) immune checkpoints are also promising targets in cancer therapy and there is a demand for inhibitors for these molecules. Our studies are focused on BTLA/HVEM complex, which inhibits T-cell proliferation and cytokine production and therefore has great potential as a new target for cancer treatment. The goal of the presented studies was the design and synthesis of compounds able to block BTLA/HVEM interactions. For that purpose, the N-terminal fragment of glycoprotein D (gD), which interacts with HVEM, was used. Based on the crystal structure of the gD/HVEM complex and MM/GBSA analysis performed on it, several peptides were designed and synthesized as potential inhibitors of the BTLA/HVEM interaction. Affinity tests, ELISA tests, and cellular-based reporter assays were performed on these compounds to check their ability to bind to HVEM and to inhibit BTLA/HVEM complex formation. For leading peptides candidates, all-atom and subsequent docking simulations with a coarse-grained force field were performed to determine their binding modes. To further evaluate their potential as drug candidates, their stability in plasma and their cytotoxicity effects on PBMCs were assessed. Our data indicate that the peptide gD(1-36)(K10C-T29C) is the best candidate as a future drug. It interacts with HVEM protein, blocks the BTLA/HVEM interaction, and is nontoxic to cells. The present study provides a new perspective on the development of BTLA/HVEM inhibitors that disrupt protein interactions.
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Stéphan P, Lautraite R, Voisin A, Grinberg-Bleyer Y. Transcriptional Control of Regulatory T Cells in Cancer: Toward Therapeutic Targeting? Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E3194. [PMID: 33143070 PMCID: PMC7693300 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12113194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2020] [Revised: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Extensive research in the past decades has highlighted the tight link between immunity and cancer, leading to the development of immunotherapies that have revolutionized cancer care. However, only a fraction of patients display durable responses to these treatments, and a deeper understanding of the cellular and mechanisms orchestrating immune responses to tumors is mandatory for the discovery of novel therapeutic targets. Among the most scrutinized immune cells, Forkhead Box Protein P3 (Foxp3)+ Regulatory T cells (Treg cells) are central inhibitors of protective anti-tumor immunity. These tumor-promoting functions render Treg cells attractive immunotherapy targets, and multiple strategies are being developed to inhibit their recruitment, survival, and function in the tumor microenvironment. In this context, it is critical to decipher the complex and multi-layered molecular mechanisms that shape and stabilize the Treg cell transcriptome. Here, we provide a global view of the transcription factors, and their upstream signaling pathways, involved in the programming of Treg cell homeostasis and functions in cancer. We also evaluate the feasibility and safety of novel therapeutic approaches aiming at targeting specific transcriptional regulators.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Yenkel Grinberg-Bleyer
- Cancer Research Center of Lyon, UMR INSERM 1052, CNRS 5286, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Centre Léon Bérard, 69008 Lyon, France; (P.S.); (R.L.); (A.V.)
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Geraud A, Gougis P, Vozy A, Anquetil C, Allenbach Y, Romano E, Funck-Brentano E, Moslehi JJ, Johnson DB, Salem JE. Clinical Pharmacology and Interplay of Immune Checkpoint Agents: A Yin-Yang Balance. Annu Rev Pharmacol Toxicol 2020; 61:85-112. [PMID: 32871087 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-pharmtox-022820-093805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
T cells have a central role in immune system balance. When activated, they may lead to autoimmune diseases. When too anergic, they contribute to infection spread and cancer proliferation. Immune checkpoint proteins regulate T cell function, including cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) and programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) and its ligand (PD-L1). These nodes of self-tolerance may be exploited pharmacologically to downregulate (CTLA-4 agonists) and activate [CTLA-4 and PD-1/PD-L1 antagonists, also called immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs)] the immune system.CTLA-4 agonists are used to treat rheumatologic immune disorders and graft rejection. CTLA-4, PD-1, and PD-L1 antagonists are approved for multiple cancer types and are being investigated for chronic viral infections. Notably, ICIs may be associated with immune-related adverse events (irAEs), which can be highly morbid or fatal. CTLA-4 agonism has been a promising method to reverse such life-threatening irAEs. Herein, we review the clinical pharmacology of these immune checkpoint agents with a focus on their interplay in human diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arthur Geraud
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CIC-1901 Paris-Est, CLIP² Galilée, UNICO-GRECO Cardio-oncology Program, and Department of Pharmacology, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France; .,Department of Drug Development (DITEP), Gustave Roussy, 94805 Villejuif, France
| | - Paul Gougis
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CIC-1901 Paris-Est, CLIP² Galilée, UNICO-GRECO Cardio-oncology Program, and Department of Pharmacology, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France;
| | - Aurore Vozy
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CIC-1901 Paris-Est, CLIP² Galilée, UNICO-GRECO Cardio-oncology Program, and Department of Pharmacology, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France;
| | - Celine Anquetil
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, Department of Internal Medicine, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France
| | - Yves Allenbach
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, Department of Internal Medicine, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France
| | - Emanuela Romano
- Center for Cancer Immunotherapy, INSERM U932, Institut Curie, 75248 Paris Cedex 05, France
| | - Elisa Funck-Brentano
- Department of General and Oncologic Dermatology, Ambroise-Paré Hospital, AP-HP, EA 4340, Université Paris-Saclay, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, France
| | - Javid J Moslehi
- Department of Medicine, Cardio-Oncology Program, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA
| | - Douglas B Johnson
- Department of Medicine, Cardio-Oncology Program, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA
| | - Joe-Elie Salem
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CIC-1901 Paris-Est, CLIP² Galilée, UNICO-GRECO Cardio-oncology Program, and Department of Pharmacology, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, F-75013 Paris, France; .,Department of Medicine, Cardio-Oncology Program, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA
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A conformation-specific ON-switch for controlling CAR T cells with an orally available drug. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:14926-14935. [PMID: 32554495 PMCID: PMC7334647 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1911154117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular ON-switches in which a chemical compound induces protein-protein interactions can allow cellular function to be controlled with small molecules. ON-switches based on clinically applicable compounds and human proteins would greatly facilitate their therapeutic use. Here, we developed an ON-switch system in which the human retinol binding protein 4 (hRBP4) of the lipocalin family interacts with engineered hRBP4 binders in a small molecule-dependent manner. Two different protein scaffolds were engineered to bind to hRBP4 when loaded with the orally available small molecule A1120. The crystal structure of an assembled ON-switch shows that the engineered binder specifically recognizes the conformational changes induced by A1120 in two loop regions of hRBP4. We demonstrate that this conformation-specific ON-switch is highly dependent on the presence of A1120, as demonstrated by an ∼500-fold increase in affinity upon addition of the small molecule drug. Furthermore, the ON-switch successfully regulated the activity of primary human CAR T cells in vitro. We anticipate that lipocalin-based ON-switches have the potential to be broadly applied for the safe pharmacological control of cellular therapeutics.
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Tobias J, Battin C, De Sousa Linhares A, Lebens M, Baier K, Ambroz K, Drinić M, Högler S, Inic-Kanada A, Garner-Spitzer E, Preusser M, Kenner L, Kundi M, Zielinski CC, Steinberger P, Wiedermann U. A New Strategy Toward B Cell-Based Cancer Vaccines by Active Immunization With Mimotopes of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors. Front Immunol 2020; 11:895. [PMID: 32528470 PMCID: PMC7266955 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), targeting tumor antigens, or immune checkpoints, have demonstrated a remarkable anti-tumor effect against various malignancies. However, high costs for mono- or combination therapies, associated with adverse effects or possible development of resistance in some patients, warrant further development and modification to gain more flexibility for this immunotherapy approach. An attractive alternative to passive immunization with therapeutic antibodies might be active immunization with mimotopes (B-cell peptides) representing the mAbs' binding epitopes, to activate the patient's own anti-tumor immune response following immunization. Here, we identified and examined the feasibility of inducing anti-tumor effects in vivo following active immunization with a mimotope of the immune checkpoint programmed cell death 1 (PD1), alone or in combination with a Her-2/neu B-cell peptide vaccine. Overlapping peptides spanning the extracellular domains of human PD1 (hPD1) were used to identify hPD1-derived mimotopes, using the therapeutic mAb Nivolumab as a proof of concept. Additionally, for in vivo evaluation in a tumor mouse model, a mouse PD1 (mPD1)-derived mimotope was identified using an anti-mPD1 mAb with mPD1/mPDL-1 blocking capacity. The identified mimotopes were characterized by in vitro assays, including a reporter cell-based assay, and their anti-tumor effects were evaluated in a syngeneic tumor mouse model stably expressing human Her-2/neu. The identified PD1-derived mimotopes were shown to significantly block the mAbs' capacity in inhibiting the respective PD1/PD-L1 interactions. A significant reduction in tumor growth in vivo was observed following active immunization with the mPD1-derived mimotope, associated with a significant reduction in proliferation and increased apoptotic rates in the tumors. Particularly, combined vaccination with the mPD1-derived mimotope and a multiple B-cell epitope Her-2/neu vaccine potentiated the vaccine's anti-tumor effect. Our results suggest active immunization with mimotopes of immune checkpoint inhibitors either as monotherapy or as combination therapy with tumor-specific vaccines, as a new strategy for cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Tobias
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Lebens
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg Vaccine Research Institute (GUVAX), University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Karin Baier
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katharina Ambroz
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Mirjana Drinić
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sandra Högler
- Unit of Laboratory Animal Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Aleksandra Inic-Kanada
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Erika Garner-Spitzer
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Matthias Preusser
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine I, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lukas Kenner
- Unit of Laboratory Animal Pathology, Institute of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Experimental Pathology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Kundi
- Department of Environmental Health, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christoph C Zielinski
- Vienna Cancer Center (VCC), Medical University Vienna, and Vienna Hospital Association, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ursula Wiedermann
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Denham EM, Barton MI, Black SM, Bridge MJ, de Wet B, Paterson RL, van der Merwe PA, Goyette J. A generic cell surface ligand system for studying cell-cell recognition. PLoS Biol 2019; 17:e3000549. [PMID: 31815943 PMCID: PMC6922461 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2019] [Revised: 12/19/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Dose-response experiments are a mainstay of receptor biology studies and can reveal valuable insights into receptor function. Such studies of receptors that bind cell surface ligands are currently limited by the difficulty in manipulating the surface density of ligands at a cell–cell interface. Here, we describe a generic cell surface ligand system that allows precise manipulation of cell surface ligand densities over several orders of magnitude. These densities are robustly quantifiable, a major advance over previous studies. We validate the system for a range of immunoreceptors, including the T-cell receptor (TCR), and show that this generic ligand stimulates via the TCR at a similar surface density as its native ligand. We also extend our work to the activation of chimeric antigen receptors. This novel system allows the effect of varying the surface density, valency, dimensions, and affinity of the ligand to be investigated. It can be readily broadened to other receptor–cell surface ligand interactions and will facilitate investigation into the activation of, and signal integration between, cell surface receptors. This study describes a generic cell-surface ligand system that allows precise manipulation of ligand densities, valency, dimensions, and affinity. The system is validated for a range of immunoreceptors, including the T-cell receptor, and can be readily broadened to other cell-surface receptor-ligand interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor M. Denham
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Michael I. Barton
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Susannah M. Black
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Marcus J. Bridge
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Ben de Wet
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Rachel L. Paterson
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - P. Anton van der Merwe
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
- * E-mail: (JG); (PAvdM)
| | - Jesse Goyette
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
- EMBL Australia Node in Single Molecule Science, School of Medical Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- * E-mail: (JG); (PAvdM)
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40
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Battin C, De Sousa Linhares A, Paster W, Isenman DE, Wahrmann M, Leitner J, Zlabinger GJ, Steinberger P, Hofer J. Neuropilin-1 Acts as a Receptor for Complement Split Products. Front Immunol 2019; 10:2209. [PMID: 31572401 PMCID: PMC6753332 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2019] [Accepted: 09/02/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Complement split products (CSPs), such as the fragments C4d and C3d, which are generated as a consequence of complement regulatory processes, are established markers for disease activity in autoimmunity or antibody-mediated graft rejection. Since immunoglobulin-like transcript 4 (ILT4) was previously shown to interact with soluble CSPs, but not with CSPs covalently-bound to target surfaces following classical complement activation, the present study aimed to identify novel cellular receptors interacting with covalently-deposited CSPs. By applying an unbiased screening approach using a cDNA mammalian expression library generated from human monocyte-derived dendritic cells and probed with recombinant human C4d, we identified neuropilin-1 (NRP1) as a novel receptor for C4d, C3d, and iC3b. NRP1, a highly conserved type 1 transmembrane protein, plays important roles in the development of the nervous and cardiovascular system as well as in tumorigenesis through interaction with its established binding partners, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and semaphorin 3A (Sema3A). NRP1 is also expressed on immune cells and serves as a marker for murine Tregs. Although NRP1 contains domains homologous to ones found in some complement proteins, it has not been linked to the complement system. We demonstrate that binding of C4d to NRP1 expressing cells was dose-dependent and saturable, and had a KD value of 0.71 μM. Importantly, and in contrast to ILT4, NRP1 interacted with CSPs that were covalently bound to target surfaces in the course of complement activation, therefore representing a classical complement receptor. The binding site of CSPs was mapped to the b1 domain of the coagulation factor V/VIII homology domain of NRP1. Taken together, our results demonstrate a novel role for NRP1 as a receptor for CSPs deposited on surfaces during complement activation. Further work is required to elucidate the functional consequences of the NRP1-CSP interactions in immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Paster
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Clinical Cell Biology and FACS Core Unit, Children's Cancer Research Institute (CCRI), Vienna, Austria
| | - David E Isenman
- Departments of Biochemistry and Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Markus Wahrmann
- Division of Nephrology and Dialysis, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gerhard J Zlabinger
- Division of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Johannes Hofer
- Division of Nephrology and Dialysis, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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41
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Griss J, Bauer W, Wagner C, Simon M, Chen M, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Maurer-Granofszky M, Roka F, Penz T, Bock C, Zhang G, Herlyn M, Glatz K, Läubli H, Mertz KD, Petzelbauer P, Wiesner T, Hartl M, Pickl WF, Somasundaram R, Steinberger P, Wagner SN. B cells sustain inflammation and predict response to immune checkpoint blockade in human melanoma. Nat Commun 2019; 10:4186. [PMID: 31519915 PMCID: PMC6744450 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12160-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 230] [Impact Index Per Article: 46.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Tumor associated inflammation predicts response to immune checkpoint blockade in human melanoma. Current theories on regulation of inflammation center on anti-tumor T cell responses. Here we show that tumor associated B cells are vital to melanoma associated inflammation. Human B cells express pro- and anti-inflammatory factors and differentiate into plasmablast-like cells when exposed to autologous melanoma secretomes in vitro. This plasmablast-like phenotype can be reconciled in human melanomas where plasmablast-like cells also express T cell-recruiting chemokines CCL3, CCL4, CCL5. Depletion of B cells in melanoma patients by anti-CD20 immunotherapy decreases tumor associated inflammation and CD8+ T cell numbers. Plasmablast-like cells also increase PD-1+ T cell activation through anti-PD-1 blockade in vitro and their frequency in pretherapy melanomas predicts response and survival to immune checkpoint blockade. Tumor associated B cells therefore orchestrate and sustain melanoma inflammation and may represent a predictor for survival and response to immune checkpoint blockade therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Griss
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
- EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, CB10 1SD Hinxton, Cambridge, UK.
| | - Wolfgang Bauer
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christine Wagner
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martin Simon
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Minyi Chen
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katharina Grabmeier-Pfistershammer
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Margarita Maurer-Granofszky
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Children's Cancer Research Institute, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Florian Roka
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Penz
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christoph Bock
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gao Zhang
- Molecular & Cellular Oncogenesis Program and Melanoma Research Center, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-4265, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery & The Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Meenhard Herlyn
- Molecular & Cellular Oncogenesis Program and Melanoma Research Center, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-4265, USA
| | - Katharina Glatz
- Institute of Pathology, University Hospital Basel, 4031, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Heinz Läubli
- Division of Medical Oncology, University Hospital Basel, 4031, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Kirsten D Mertz
- Institute of Pathology, Cantonal Hospital Baselland, 4410, Liestal, Switzerland
| | - Peter Petzelbauer
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Wiesner
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Markus Hartl
- Mass Spectrometry Facility, Max F. Perutz Laboratories (MFPL), University of Vienna, Vienna BioCenter (VBC), 1030, Vienna, Austria
| | - Winfried F Pickl
- Division of Cellular Immunology and Immunohematology, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rajasekharan Somasundaram
- Molecular & Cellular Oncogenesis Program and Melanoma Research Center, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-4265, USA
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stephan N Wagner
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
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42
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De Sousa Linhares A, Battin C, Jutz S, Leitner J, Hafner C, Tobias J, Wiedermann U, Kundi M, Zlabinger GJ, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Steinberger P. Therapeutic PD-L1 antibodies are more effective than PD-1 antibodies in blocking PD-1/PD-L1 signaling. Sci Rep 2019; 9:11472. [PMID: 31391510 PMCID: PMC6685986 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-47910-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Inhibitors of PD-1 signaling have revolutionized cancer therapy. PD-1 and PD-L1 antibodies have been approved for the treatment of cancer. To date, therapeutic PD-1 inhibitors have not been compared in a functional assay. We used an efficient T cell reporter platform to evaluate the efficacy of five clinically used PD-1 inhibitors to block PD-1 signaling. The half maximal effective concentrations (EC50) for nivolumab and pembrolizumab were 76.17 ng/ml (95% CI 64.95-89.34 ng/ml) and 39.90 ng/ml (34.01-46.80 ng/ml), respectively. The EC50 values of the PD-L1 inhibitors were 6.46 ng/ml (5.48-7.61 ng/ml), 6.15 ng/ml (5.24-7.21 ng/ml) and 7.64 ng/ml (6.52-8.96 ng/ml) for atezolizumab, avelumab, and durvalumab, respectively. In conclusion, a functional assay evaluating antibodies targeting PD-1 inhibition in vitro revealed that pembrolizumab is a slightly more effective PD-1 blocker than nivolumab, and that PD-L1 antibodies are superior to PD-1 antibodies in reverting PD-1 signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sabrina Jutz
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christine Hafner
- Department of Dermatology, University Hospital St. Pölten, Karl Landsteiner University of Health Sciences, St. Pölten, Austria
- Karl Landsteiner Institute of Dermatological Research, Karl Landsteiner Gesellschaft, St. Pölten, Austria
| | - Joshua Tobias
- Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ursula Wiedermann
- Institute of Specific Prophylaxis and Tropical Medicine, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Kundi
- Institute of Environmental Health, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gerhard J Zlabinger
- Division of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katharina Grabmeier-Pfistershammer
- Division of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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43
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Abdelaziz MO, Ossmann S, Kaufmann AM, Leitner J, Steinberger P, Willimsky G, Raftery MJ, Schönrich G. Development of a Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-Based Therapeutic Cancer Vaccine Uncovers a Previously Unsuspected Viral Block of MHC Class I Antigen Presentation. Front Immunol 2019; 10:1776. [PMID: 31417555 PMCID: PMC6682651 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.01776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) induces a uniquely high frequency of virus-specific effector/memory CD8+ T-cells, a phenomenon termed “memory inflation”. Thus, HCMV-based vaccines are particularly interesting in order to stimulate a sustained and strong cellular immune response against cancer. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive primary brain tumor with high lethality and inevitable relapse. The current standard treatment does not significantly improve the desperate situation underlining the urgent need to develop novel approaches. Although HCMV is highly fastidious with regard to species and cell type, GBM cell lines are susceptible to HCMV. In order to generate HCMV-based therapeutic vaccine candidates, we deleted all HCMV-encoded proteins (immunoevasins) that interfere with MHC class I presentation. The aim being to use the viral vector as an adjuvant for presentation of endogenous tumor antigens, the presentation of high levels of vector-encoded neoantigens and finally the repurposing of bystander HCMV-specific CD8+ T cells to fight the tumor. As neoantigen, we exemplarily used the E6 and E7 proteins of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) as a non-transforming fusion protein (E6/E7) that covers all relevant antigenic peptides. Surprisingly, GBM cells infected with E6/E7-expressing HCMV-vectors failed to stimulate E6-specific T cells despite high level expression of E6/E7 protein. Further experiments revealed that MHC class I presentation of E6/E7 is impaired by the HCMV-vector although it lacks all known immunoevasins. We also generated HCMV-based vectors that express E6-derived peptide fused to HCMV proteins. GBM cells infected with these vectors efficiently stimulated E6-specific T cells. Thus, fusion of antigenic sequences to HCMV proteins is required for efficient presentation via MHC class I molecules during infection. Taken together, these results provide the preclinical basis for development of HCMV-based vaccines and also reveal a novel HCMV-encoded block of MHC class I presentation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed O Abdelaziz
- Institute of Virology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sophia Ossmann
- Clinic for Gynecology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Andreas M Kaufmann
- Clinic for Gynecology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gerald Willimsky
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany.,German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany.,German Cancer Consortium, Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martin J Raftery
- Institute of Virology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Günther Schönrich
- Institute of Virology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
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Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy has recently emerged as one of the hot research field since clinical successes achieved by antibody drugs of immune checkpoints, among which PD-1 and its ligand PD-L1 are the well established molecules. PD-1/PD-L1 pathway induces immune tolerance and immune evasion, especially in tumor microenvironment, cancer cell is capable to escape the immune surveillance by up-regulating the expression level of PD-1 or PD-L1. Blockade of PD-1/PD-L1 can unleash the anti-tumor activity, and the strategy shows great successes in the treatment of various cancer types in the late stage. Beside antibody drugs, many other molecules such as peptides, high affinity PD(L)-1 mutants, chemical compounds, and DNA aptamers are designed for inhibitors of PD-1/PD-L1 pathway. Each modulators show their pros and cons based on their own physiochemical properties. Here we introduced the methods for identifying low molecular weight inhibitors of PD-1/PD-L1 and mainly discussed the cell-based blocking test.
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45
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Humeniuk P, Geiselhart S, Battin C, Webb T, Steinberger P, Paster W, Hoffmann-Sommergruber K. Generation of a Jurkat-based fluorescent reporter cell line to evaluate lipid antigen interaction with the human iNKT cell receptor. Sci Rep 2019; 9:7426. [PMID: 31092850 PMCID: PMC6520406 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-43529-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2019] [Accepted: 04/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are a specialized subset of T cells contributing to both, the innate and adaptive immune responses. In contrast to conventional T lymphocytes they recognize lipid antigens. The aim of the project is to establish a novel model system, to study iNKT-TCR - ligand interaction. An iNKT reporter cell line (JE6-1REP-iNKT) was engineered by introducing the human iNKT-TCR into a human leukemic T cell line carrying an NF-κB-driven fluorescent transcriptional reporter construct. Antigen presenting BWSTIM cells expressing human CD1d and CD80 were generated. Reporter induction in JE6-1REP-iNKT cells was assessed by flow cytometry. CRISPR/Cas9 was used for β2M knock out in JE6-1REP-iNKT cells to abrogate CD1d expression and thus excluding antigen self-presentation. Reporter cells were shown to specifically react with iNKT antigens presented via CD1d. Their sensitivity towards α-GalCer was comparable to a murine iNKT hybridoma cell line. In conclusion, we created a novel iNKT reporter platform which, compared to traditional iNKT cell assays, is characterized by a shorter turnaround time and lower costs. It thus facilitates the identification of antigenic structures that drive the activation of iNKT cells in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Piotr Humeniuk
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sabine Geiselhart
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claire Battin
- Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Tonya Webb
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Paster
- Institute of Immunology, Division of Immune Receptors and T cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Children's Cancer Research Institute, St. Anna Kinderkrebsforschung, Vienna, Austria.
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46
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Rydzek J, Nerreter T, Peng H, Jutz S, Leitner J, Steinberger P, Einsele H, Rader C, Hudecek M. Chimeric Antigen Receptor Library Screening Using a Novel NF-κB/NFAT Reporter Cell Platform. Mol Ther 2019; 27:287-299. [PMID: 30573301 PMCID: PMC6369451 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2018.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2018] [Revised: 11/12/2018] [Accepted: 11/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell immunotherapy is under intense preclinical and clinical investigation, and it involves a rapidly increasing portfolio of novel target antigens and CAR designs. We established a platform that enables rapid and high-throughput CAR-screening campaigns with reporter cells derived from the T cell lymphoma line Jurkat. Reporter cells were equipped with nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) reporter genes that generate a duplex output of enhanced CFP (ECFP) and EGFP, respectively. As a proof of concept, we modified reporter cells with CD19-specific and ROR1-specific CARs, and we detected high-level reporter signals that allowed distinguishing functional from non-functional CAR constructs. The reporter data were highly reproducible, and the time required for completing each testing campaign was substantially shorter with reporter cells (6 days) compared to primary CAR-T cells (21 days). We challenged the reporter platform to a large-scale screening campaign on a ROR1-CAR library, and we showed that reporter cells retrieved a functional CAR variant that was present with a frequency of only 6 in 1.05 × 106. The data illustrate the potential to implement this reporter platform into the preclinical development path of novel CAR-T cell products and to inform and accelerate the selection of lead CAR candidates for clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Rydzek
- Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik II, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Thomas Nerreter
- Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik II, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Haiyong Peng
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA
| | - Sabrina Jutz
- Institut für Immunologie, Medizinische Universität Wien, Wien, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Institut für Immunologie, Medizinische Universität Wien, Wien, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institut für Immunologie, Medizinische Universität Wien, Wien, Austria
| | - Hermann Einsele
- Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik II, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Christoph Rader
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA
| | - Michael Hudecek
- Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik II, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.
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47
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Rosskopf S, Leitner J, Zlabinger GJ, Steinberger P. CTLA-4 antibody ipilimumab negatively affects CD4 + T-cell responses in vitro. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2019; 68:1359-1368. [PMID: 31332464 PMCID: PMC6683241 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-019-02369-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2018] [Accepted: 07/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting coinhibitory pathways in T cells possess efficacy in combating cancer. In addition to PD-1/PD-L1 and CTLA-4 antibodies which are already established in tumor immunotherapy, immune checkpoints such as LAG-3 or BTLA are emerging, which may have the potential to enhance T-cell responses alone or in combination with PD-1 blockers. CD4+ T cells play a central role in the immune system and contribute to productive immune responses in multiple ways. The effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors on this cell subset may thus critically influence therapeutic outcomes. Here, we have used in vitro responses to tetanus toxoid (TT) as a model system to study the effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors on CD4+ T-cell responses. CFSE-labeled PBMCs of 65 donors were stimulated with TT in the presence of blocking antibodies to PD-L1, CTLA-4, LAG-3, or BTLA for 7 days. We found that the PD-L1 antibody greatly enhanced cytokine production and antigen-specific CD4+ T-cell proliferation, whereas blocking antibodies to BTLA or LAG-3 did not augment responses to TT. Surprisingly, the presence of the therapeutic CTLA-4 antibody ipilimumab resulted in a significant reduction of CD4+ T-cell proliferation and cytokine production. Stimulation experiments with an IgG4 variant of ipilimumab indicated that the inhibitory effect of ipilimumab was dependent on its IgG1 isotype. Our results indicate that the therapeutic CTLA-4 antibody ipilimumab can impair CD4+ effector T-cell responses and that this activity is mediated by its Fc part and CD16-expressing cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Rosskopf
- 0000 0000 9259 8492grid.22937.3dDivision of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Lazarettgasse 19, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- 0000 0000 9259 8492grid.22937.3dDivision of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Lazarettgasse 19, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gerhard J. Zlabinger
- 0000 0000 9259 8492grid.22937.3dDivision of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- 0000 0000 9259 8492grid.22937.3dDivision of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Lazarettgasse 19, Vienna, Austria
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48
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De Sousa Linhares A, Leitner J, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Steinberger P. Not All Immune Checkpoints Are Created Equal. Front Immunol 2018; 9:1909. [PMID: 30233564 PMCID: PMC6127213 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.01909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Antibodies that block T cell inhibition via the immune checkpoints CTLA-4 and PD-1 have revolutionized cancer therapy during the last 15 years. T cells express additional inhibitory surface receptors that are considered to have potential as targets in cancer immunotherapy. Antibodies against LAG-3 and TIM-3 are currently clinically tested to evaluate their effectiveness in patients suffering from advanced solid tumors or hematologic malignancies. In addition, blockade of the inhibitory BTLA receptors on human T cells may have potential to unleash T cells to effectively combat cancer cells. Much research on these immune checkpoints has focused on mouse models. The analysis of animals that lack individual inhibitory receptors has shed some light on the role of these molecules in regulating T cells, but also immune responses in general. There are current intensive efforts to gauge the efficacy of antibodies targeting these molecules called immune checkpoint inhibitors alone or in different combinations in preclinical models of cancer. Differences between mouse and human immunology warrant studies on human immune cells to appreciate the potential of individual pathways in enhancing T cell responses. Results from clinical studies are not only highlighting the great benefit of immune checkpoint inhibitors for treating cancer but also yield precious information on their role in regulating T cells and other cells of the immune system. However, despite the clinical relevance of CTLA-4 and PD-1 and the high potential of the emerging immune checkpoints, there are still substantial gaps in our understanding of the biology of these molecules, which might prevent the full realization of their therapeutic potential. This review addresses PD-1, CTLA-4, BTLA, LAG-3, and TIM-3, which are considered major inhibitory immune checkpoints expressed on T cells. It provides summaries of our current conception of the role of these molecules in regulating T cell responses, and discussions about major ambiguities and gaps in our knowledge. We emphasize that each of these molecules harbors unique properties that set it apart from the others. Their distinct functional profiles should be taken into account in therapeutic strategies that aim to exploit these pathways to enhance immune responses to combat cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katharina Grabmeier-Pfistershammer
- Division of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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49
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Rosskopf S, Leitner J, Paster W, Morton LT, Hagedoorn RS, Steinberger P, Heemskerk MHM. A Jurkat 76 based triple parameter reporter system to evaluate TCR functions and adoptive T cell strategies. Oncotarget 2018; 9:17608-17619. [PMID: 29707134 PMCID: PMC5915142 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.24807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2017] [Accepted: 02/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Adoptive T cell therapy using TCR transgenic autologous T cells has shown great potential for the treatment of tumor patients. Thorough characterization of genetically reprogrammed T cells is necessary to optimize treatment success. Here, we describe the generation of triple parameter reporter T cells based on the Jurkat 76 T cell line for the evaluation of TCR and chimeric antigen receptor functions as well as adoptive T cell strategies. This Jurkat subline is devoid of endogenous TCR alpha and TCR beta chains, thereby circumventing the problem of TCR miss-pairing and unexpected specificities. The resultant reporter cells allow simultaneous determination of the activity of the transcription factors NF-κB, NFAT and AP-1 that play key roles in T cell activation. Human TCRs directed against tumor and virus antigens were introduced and reporter responses were determined using tumor cell lines endogenously expressing the antigens of interest or via addition of antigenic peptides. Finally, we demonstrate that coexpression of adhesion molecules like CD2 and CD226 as well as CD28 chimeric receptors represents an effective strategy to augment the response of TCR-transgenic reporters to cells presenting cognate antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Rosskopf
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Paster
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Laura T Morton
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Renate S Hagedoorn
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Institute of Immunology, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Mirjam H M Heemskerk
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
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