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Yasmin-Karim S, Wood J, Wirtz J, Moreau M, Bih N, Swanson W, Muflam A, Ainsworth V, Ziberi B, Ngwa W. Optimizing In Situ Vaccination During Radiotherapy. Front Oncol 2021; 11:711078. [PMID: 34765538 PMCID: PMC8577814 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.711078] [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: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Effective in situ cancer vaccines require both a means of tumor cell death and a source of adjuvant to activate local dendritic cells. Studies have shown that the use of radiotherapy (RT) to induce tumor cell death and anti-CD40 to activate dendritic cells can result in in situ vaccination in animal models. Here, investigations are carried out on potential strategies to enhance such in situ vaccination. Strategies investigated include the use of smart immunogenic biomaterials (IBM) loaded with anti-CD40 in different tumor types including immunologically cold tumors like pancreatic and prostate tumors. The use of downstream checkpoint inhibitors to further boost such in situ vaccination is also examined. Results indicate that the use of IBM to deliver the anti-CD40 significantly enhances the effectiveness of in situ vaccination with anti-CD40 compared with direct injection in pancreatic and prostate cancers (p < 0.001 and p < 0.0001, respectively). This finding is consistent with significant increase in infiltration of antigen-presenting cells in the treated tumor, and significant increase in the infiltration of CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte into distant untreated tumors. Moreover, in situ vaccination with IBM is consistently observed across different tumor types. Meanwhile, the addition of downstream immune checkpoint inhibitors further enhances overall survival when using the IBM approach. Overall, the findings highlight potential avenues for enhancing in situ vaccination when combining radiotherapy with anti-CD40.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sayeda Yasmin-Karim
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jana Wood
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Veternary Medicine and Pharmacy in Kosice, Kosice, Slovakia
| | - Johanna Wirtz
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Medical Faculty, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Michele Moreau
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Physics and Applied Physics, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Noella Bih
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - William Swanson
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Physics and Applied Physics, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, United States
| | - Ashley Muflam
- Department of Library and Information Science, Rutgers University New Brunswick, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Victoria Ainsworth
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Physics and Applied Physics, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, United States
| | - Bashkim Ziberi
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Physics, University of Tetova, Tetova, North Macedonia
| | - Wilfred Ngwa
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Radiation Oncology and Molecular Radiation Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Daouk R, Bahmad HF, Saleh E, Monzer A, Ballout F, Kadara H, Abou-Kheir W. Genome-wide gene expression analysis of a murine model of prostate cancer progression: Deciphering the roles of IL-6 and p38 MAPK as potential therapeutic targets. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0237442. [PMID: 32790767 PMCID: PMC7425932 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2019] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among adult males globally. The poor prognosis of PCa is largely due to late diagnosis of the disease when it has already progressed to an advanced stage marked by androgen-independence, thus necessitating new strategies for early detection and treatment. We construe that these direly needed advances are limited by our poor understanding of early events in the progression of PCa and that would thus represent ideal targets for early intervention. To begin to fill this void, we interrogated molecular “oncophenotypes” that embody the transition of PCa from an androgen-dependent (AD) to–independent (AI) state. Methods To accomplish this aim, we used our previously established AD and AI murine PCa cell lines, PLum-AD and PLum-AI, respectively, which recapitulate primary and progressive PCa morphologically and molecularly. We statistically surveyed global gene expressions in these cell lines by microarray analysis. Differential profiles were functionally interrogated by pathways, gene set enrichment and topological gene network analyses. Results Gene expression analysis of PLum-AD and PLum-AI transcriptomes (n = 3 each), revealed 723 differentially expressed genes (392 upregulated and 331 downregulated) in PLum-AI compared to PLum-AD cells. Gene set analysis demonstrated enrichment of biological functions and pathways in PLum-AI cells that are central to tumor aggressiveness including cell migration and invasion facilitated by epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Further analysis demonstrated that the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) was predicted to be significantly activated in the PLum-AI cells, whereas gene sets previously associated with favorable response to the p38 inhibitor SB203580 were attenuated (i.e., inversely enriched) in the PLum-AI cells, suggesting that these aggressive cells may be therapeutically vulnerable to p38 inhibition. Gene set and gene-network analysis also alluded to activation of other signaling networks particularly those associated with enhanced EMT, inflammation and immune function/response including, but not limited to Tnf, IL-6, Mmp 2, Ctgf, and Ptges. Accordingly, we chose SB203580 and IL-6 to validate their effect on PLum-AD and PLum-AI. Some of the common genes identified in the gene-network analysis were validated at the molecular and functional level. Additionally, the vulnerability to SB203580 and the effect of IL-6 were also validated on the stem/progenitor cell population using the sphere formation assay. Conclusions In summary, our study highlights pathways associated with an augmented malignant phenotype in AI cells and presents new high-potential targets to constrain the aggressive malignancy seen in the castration-resistant PCa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reem Daouk
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Hisham F. Bahmad
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- Arkadi M. Rywlin M.D. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, FL, United States of America
- Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States of America
| | - Eman Saleh
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Alissar Monzer
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Farah Ballout
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Humam Kadara
- Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States of America
| | - Wassim Abou-Kheir
- Department of Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon
- * E-mail:
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Haj-Ahmad TA, Abdalla MA, Haj-Ahmad Y. Potential Urinary miRNA Biomarker Candidates for the Accurate Detection of Prostate Cancer among Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia Patients. J Cancer 2014; 5:182-91. [PMID: 24563673 PMCID: PMC3931266 DOI: 10.7150/jca.6799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2013] [Accepted: 11/22/2013] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of short (~22nt), single stranded RNA molecules that function as post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. MiRNAs can regulate a variety of important biological pathways, including: cellular proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. Profiling of miRNA expression patterns was shown to be more useful than the equivalent mRNA profiles for characterizing poorly differentiated tumours. As such, miRNA expression “signatures” are expected to offer serious potential for diagnosing and prognosing cancers of any provenance. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of using deregulation of urinary miRNAs in order to detect Prostate Cancer (PCa) among Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). To identify the miRNA signatures specific for PCa, miRNA expression profiling of 8 PCa patients, 12 BPH patients and 10 healthy males was carried out using whole genome expression profiling. Differential expression of two individual miRNAs between healthy males and BPH patients was detected and found to possibly target genes related to PCa development and progression. The sensitivity and specificity of miR-1825 for detecting PCa among BPH individuals was found to be 60% and 69%, respectively. Whereas, the sensitivity and specificity of miR-484 were 80% and 19%, respectively. Additionally, the sensitivity and specificity for miR-1825/484 in tandem were 45% and 75%, respectively. The proposed PCa miRNA signatures may therefore be of great value for the accurate diagnosis of PCa and BPH. This exploratory study has identified several possible targets that merit further investigation towards the development and validation of diagnostically useful, non-invasive, urine-based tests that might not only help diagnose PCa but also possibly help differentiate it from BPH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taha A Haj-Ahmad
- 1. Centre for Biotechnology, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON, L2S 3A1, Canada
| | - Moemen Ak Abdalla
- 2. Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Egypt
| | - Yousef Haj-Ahmad
- 1. Centre for Biotechnology, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON, L2S 3A1, Canada
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Hangalapura BN, Timares L, Oosterhoff D, Scheper RJ, Curiel DT, de Gruijl TD. CD40-targeted adenoviral cancer vaccines: the long and winding road to the clinic. J Gene Med 2012; 14:416-27. [PMID: 22228547 DOI: 10.1002/jgm.1648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability of dendritic cells (DCs) to orchestrate innate and adaptive immune responses has been exploited to develop potent anti-cancer immunotherapies. Recent clinical trials exploring the efficacy of ex vivo modified autologous DC-based vaccines have reported some promising results. However, in vitro generation of autologous DCs for clinical administration, their loading with tumor associated antigens (TAAs) and their activation, is laborious and expensive, and, as a result of inter-individual variability in the personalized vaccines, remains poorly standardized. An attractive alternative approach is to load resident DCs in vivo by targeted delivery of TAAs, using viral vectors and activating them simultaneously. To this end, we have constructed genetically-modified adenoviral (Ad) vectors and bispecific adaptor molecules to retarget Ad vectors encoding TAAs to the CD40 receptor on DCs. Pre-clinical human and murine studies conducted so far have clearly demonstrated the suitability of a 'two-component' (i.e. Ad and adaptor molecule) configuration for targeted modification of DCs in vivo for cancer immunotherapy. This review summarizes recent progress in the development of CD40-targeted Ad-based cancer vaccines and highlights pre-clinical issues in the clinical translation of this approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Basav N Hangalapura
- Department of Medical Oncology, VU University Medical Center, Cancer Center Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Yu W, Feng S, Dakhova O, Creighton CJ, Cai Y, Wang J, Li R, Frolov A, Ayala G, Ittmann M. FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ enhances prostate cancer progression via extracellular signal-related kinase and serum response factor signaling. Clin Cancer Res 2011; 17:4355-66. [PMID: 21622724 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-10-2858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Increased expression of FGFR-4 and its ligands have been linked to lethal prostate cancer (PCa). Furthermore, a germ line polymorphism in the FGFR-4 gene, resulting in arginine at codon 388 (Arg³⁸⁸) instead of glycine (Gly³⁸⁸), is associated with aggressive disease. The FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ variant results in increased receptor stability, sustained receptor activation, and increased motility and invasion compared with Gly³⁸⁸. However, the impact of sustained signaling on cellular signal transduction pathways is unknown. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Expression microarray analysis of immortalized prostatic epithelial cells lines expressing FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ or Gly³⁸⁸ was used to establish a gene signature associated with FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ expression. Transient transfection of reporters and inhibitors was used to establish the pathways activated by FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ expression. The impact of pathway knockdown in vitro and in an orthotopic model was assessed using inhibitors and/or short hairpin RNA (shRNA). RESULTS Expression of the FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ protein leads to increased activity of the extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) pathway, increased activity of serum response factor (SRF) and AP1, and transcription of multiple genes that are correlated with aggressive clinical behavior in PCa. Increased expression of SRF is associated with biochemical recurrence in men undergoing radical prostatectomy. Consistent with these observations, knockdown of FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ in PCa cells decreases proliferation and invasion in vitro and primary tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. CONCLUSIONS These studies define a signal transduction pathway downstream of FGFR-4 Arg³⁸⁸ that acts via ERK and SRF to promote PCa progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendong Yu
- Department of Pathology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
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Hsi ED, Steinle R, Balasa B, Szmania S, Draksharapu A, Shum BP, Huseni M, Powers D, Nanisetti A, Zhang Y, Rice AG, van Abbema A, Wong M, Liu G, Zhan F, Dillon M, Chen S, Rhodes S, Fuh F, Tsurushita N, Kumar S, Vexler V, Shaughnessy JD, Barlogie B, van Rhee F, Hussein M, Afar DEH, Williams MB. CS1, a potential new therapeutic antibody target for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Clin Cancer Res 2008; 14:2775-84. [PMID: 18451245 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-07-4246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 428] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE We generated a humanized antibody, HuLuc63, which specifically targets CS1 (CCND3 subset 1, CRACC, and SLAMF7), a cell surface glycoprotein not previously associated with multiple myeloma. To explore the therapeutic potential of HuLuc63 in multiple myeloma, we examined in detail the expression profile of CS1, the binding properties of HuLuc63 to normal and malignant cells, and the antimyeloma activity of HuLuc63 in preclinical models. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN CS1 was analyzed by gene expression profiling and immunohistochemistry of multiple myeloma samples and numerous normal tissues. HuLuc63-mediated antimyeloma activity was tested in vitro in antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) assays and in vivo using the human OPM2 xenograft model in mice. RESULTS CS1 mRNA was expressed in >90% of 532 multiple myeloma cases, regardless of cytogenetic abnormalities. Anti-CS1 antibody staining of tissues showed strong staining of myeloma cells in all plasmacytomas and bone marrow biopsies. Flow cytometric analysis of patient samples using HuLuc63 showed specific staining of CD138+ myeloma cells, natural killer (NK), NK-like T cells, and CD8+ T cells, with no binding detected on hematopoietic CD34+ stem cells. HuLuc63 exhibited significant in vitro ADCC using primary myeloma cells as targets and both allogeneic and autologous NK cells as effectors. HuLuc63 exerted significant in vivo antitumor activity, which depended on efficient Fc-CD16 interaction as well as the presence of NK cells in the mice. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that HuLuc63 eliminates myeloma cells, at least in part, via NK-mediated ADCC and shows the therapeutic potential of targeting CS1 with HuLuc63 for the treatment of multiple myeloma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric D Hsi
- Clinical Pathology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
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