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Palecki J, Bhasin A, Bernstein A, Mille PJ, Tester WJ, Kelly WK, Zarrabi KK. T-Cell redirecting bispecific antibodies: a review of a novel class of immuno-oncology for advanced prostate cancer. Cancer Biol Ther 2024; 25:2356820. [PMID: 38801069 PMCID: PMC11135853 DOI: 10.1080/15384047.2024.2356820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2024] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Novel T-cell immunotherapies such as bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs) are emerging as promising therapeutic strategies for prostate cancer. BiTEs are engineered bispecific antibodies containing two distinct binding domains that allow for concurrent binding to tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) as well as immune effector cells, thus promoting an immune response against cancer cells. Prostate cancer is rich in tumor associated antigens such as, but not limited to, PSMA, PSCA, hK2, and STEAP1 and there is strong biologic rationale for employment of T-cell redirecting BiTEs within the prostate cancer disease space. Early generation BiTE constructs employed in clinical study have demonstrated meaningful antitumor activity, but challenges related to drug delivery, immunogenicity, and treatment-associated adverse effects limited their success. The ongoing development of novel BiTE constructs continues to address these barriers and to yield promising results in terms of efficacy and safety. This review will highlight some of most recent developments of BiTE therapies for patients with advanced prostate cancer and the evolving data surrounding BiTE constructs undergoing clinical evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Palecki
- Department of Internal Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Amman Bhasin
- Department of Internal Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Andrew Bernstein
- Department of Internal Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Patrick J. Mille
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - William J. Tester
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Wm. Kevin Kelly
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kevin K. Zarrabi
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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2
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Choudhury AD, Kwak L, Cheung A, Allaire KM, Marquez J, Yang DD, Tripathi A, Kilar JM, Flynn M, Maynard B, Reichel R, Pace AF, Chen BK, Van Allen EM, Kilbridge K, Wei XX, McGregor BA, Pomerantz MM, Bhatt RS, Sweeney CJ, Bubley GJ, Jacene HA, Taplin ME, Huang FW, Harshman LC, Fong L. Randomized Phase II Study Evaluating the Addition of Pembrolizumab to Radium-223 in Metastatic Castration-resistant Prostate Cancer. Cancer Immunol Res 2024; 12:704-718. [PMID: 38552171 PMCID: PMC11148544 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-22-0306] [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: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
The checkpoint immunotherapeutic pembrolizumab induces responses in a small minority of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Radium-223 (R223) may increase immunogenicity of bone metastases and increase pembrolizumab (P) activity. In a randomized phase II study, we assessed the effect of R223+P compared with R223 on tumor immune infiltration, safety, and clinical outcomes in patients with mCRPC. The primary endpoint was differences in CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell infiltrate in 8-week versus baseline bone metastasis biopsies; secondary endpoints were safety, radiographic progression-free survival (rPFS), and overall survival (OS). Of the 42 treated patients (29 R223+P, 13 R223), 18 R223+P and 8 R223 patients had evaluable paired tumor biopsies. Median fold-change of CD4+ T cells was -0.7 (range: -9.3 to 4.7) with R223+P and 0.1 (-11.1 to 3.7) with R223 (P = 0.66); for CD8+ T cells, median fold-change was -0.6 (-7.4 to 5.3) with R223+P and -1.3 (-3.1 to 4.8) with R223 (P = 0.66). Median rPFS and OS was 6.1 (95% confidence interval: 2.7-11.0) and 16.9 months [12.7-not reached (NR)], respectively, with R223+P and 5.7 (2.6-NR) and 16.0 (9.0-NR), respectively, with R223. Although R223+P was well tolerated with no unexpected toxicity, the combination did not improve efficacy. High-dimensional flow cytometry demonstrated minimal immune modulation with R223, whereas R223+P induced CTLA-4 expression on circulating CD4+ T cells. Clinical responders possessed lower circulating frequencies of Ki67+ T and myeloid cells at baseline and higher circulating frequencies of TIM-3+ T and myeloid cells by week 9. Although R223+P did not induce T-cell infiltration into the tumor microenvironment, exhaustion of induced peripheral T-cell immune responses may dampen the combination's clinical activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atish D Choudhury
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Lucia Kwak
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Alexander Cheung
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
| | - Kathryn M Allaire
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
| | - Jaqueline Marquez
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
| | - David D Yang
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | | | | | | | - Rebecca Reichel
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts
| | | | - Brandon K Chen
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
| | - Eliezer M Van Allen
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Kerry Kilbridge
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Xiao X Wei
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Bradley A McGregor
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Mark M Pomerantz
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Rupal S Bhatt
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
- Beth-Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | - Glenn J Bubley
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
- Beth-Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Heather A Jacene
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Mary-Ellen Taplin
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Franklin W Huang
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
| | | | - Lawrence Fong
- University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, California
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3
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Desai N, Chavda V, Singh TRR, Thorat ND, Vora LK. Cancer Nanovaccines: Nanomaterials and Clinical Perspectives. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024:e2401631. [PMID: 38693099 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202401631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2024] [Revised: 03/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024]
Abstract
Cancer nanovaccines represent a promising frontier in cancer immunotherapy, utilizing nanotechnology to augment traditional vaccine efficacy. This review comprehensively examines the current state-of-the-art in cancer nanovaccine development, elucidating innovative strategies and technologies employed in their design. It explores both preclinical and clinical advancements, emphasizing key studies demonstrating their potential to elicit robust anti-tumor immune responses. The study encompasses various facets, including integrating biomaterial-based nanocarriers for antigen delivery, adjuvant selection, and the impact of nanoscale properties on vaccine performance. Detailed insights into the complex interplay between the tumor microenvironment and nanovaccine responses are provided, highlighting challenges and opportunities in optimizing therapeutic outcomes. Additionally, the study presents a thorough analysis of ongoing clinical trials, presenting a snapshot of the current clinical landscape. By curating the latest scientific findings and clinical developments, this study aims to serve as a comprehensive resource for researchers and clinicians engaged in advancing cancer immunotherapy. Integrating nanotechnology into vaccine design holds immense promise for revolutionizing cancer treatment paradigms, and this review provides a timely update on the evolving landscape of cancer nanovaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nimeet Desai
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Kandi, Telangana, 502285, India
| | - Vivek Chavda
- Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Technology, L M College of Pharmacy, Ahmedabad, 380009, India
| | | | - Nanasaheb D Thorat
- Limerick Digital Cancer Research Centre (LDCRC), University of Limerick, Castletroy, Limerick, V94T9PX, Ireland
- Department of Physics, Bernal Institute, Castletroy, Limerick, V94T9PX, Ireland
- Nuffield Department of Women's & Reproductive Health, Medical Science Division, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Lalitkumar K Vora
- School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL, UK
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4
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Montalvo MJ, Bandey IN, Rezvan A, Wu KL, Saeedi A, Kulkarni R, Li Y, An X, Sefat KMSR, Varadarajan N. Decoding the mechanisms of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell-mediated killing of tumors: insights from granzyme and Fas inhibition. Cell Death Dis 2024; 15:109. [PMID: 38307835 PMCID: PMC10837176 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-024-06461-8] [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: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell show promise in cancer treatments, but their mechanism of action is not well understood. Decoding the mechanisms used by individual T cells can help improve the efficacy of T cells while also identifying mechanisms of T cell failure leading to tumor escape. Here, we used a suite of assays including dynamic single-cell imaging of cell-cell interactions, dynamic imaging of fluorescent reporters to directly track cytotoxin activity in tumor cells, and scRNA-seq on patient infusion products to investigate the cytotoxic mechanisms used by individual CAR T cells in killing tumor cells. We show that surprisingly, overexpression of the Granzyme B (GZMB) inhibitor, protease inhibitor-9 (PI9), does not alter the cytotoxicity mediated by CD19-specific CAR T cells against either the leukemic cell line, NALM6; or the ovarian cancer cell line, SkOV3-CD19. We designed and validated reporters to directly assay T cell delivered GZMB activity in tumor cells and confirmed that while PI9 overexpression inhibits GZMB activity at the molecular level, this is not sufficient to impact the kinetics or magnitude of killing mediated by the CAR T cells. Altering cytotoxicity mediated by CAR T cells required combined inhibition of multiple pathways that are tumor cell specific: (a) B-cell lines like NALM6, Raji and Daudi were sensitive to combined GZMB and granzyme A (GZMA) inhibition; whereas (b) solid tumor targets like SkOV3-CD19 and A375-CD19 (melanoma) were sensitive to combined GZMB and Fas ligand inhibition. We realized the translational relevance of these findings by examining the scRNA-seq profiles of Tisa-cel and Axi-cel infusion products and show a significant correlation between GZMB and GZMA expression at the single-cell level in a T cell subset-dependent manner. Our findings highlight the importance of the redundancy in killing mechanisms of CAR T cells and how this redundancy is important for efficacious T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melisa J Montalvo
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Irfan N Bandey
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Ali Rezvan
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Kwan-Ling Wu
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Arash Saeedi
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Rohan Kulkarni
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Yongshuai Li
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Xingyue An
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - K M Samiur Rahman Sefat
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Navin Varadarajan
- William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
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5
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Gurunathan S, Thangaraj P, Wang L, Cao Q, Kim JH. Nanovaccines: An effective therapeutic approach for cancer therapy. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 170:115992. [PMID: 38070247 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2023] [Revised: 11/23/2023] [Accepted: 12/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Cancer vaccines hold considerable promise for the immunotherapy of solid tumors. Nanomedicine offers several strategies for enhancing vaccine effectiveness. In particular, molecular or (sub) cellular vaccines can be delivered to the target lymphoid tissues and cells by nanocarriers and nanoplatforms to increase the potency and durability of antitumor immunity and minimize negative side effects. Nanovaccines use nanoparticles (NPs) as carriers and/or adjuvants, offering the advantages of optimal nanoscale size, high stability, ample antigen loading, high immunogenicity, tunable antigen presentation, increased retention in lymph nodes, and immunity promotion. To induce antitumor immunity, cancer vaccines rely on tumor antigens, which are administered in the form of entire cells, peptides, nucleic acids, extracellular vesicles (EVs), or cell membrane-encapsulated NPs. Ideal cancer vaccines stimulate both humoral and cellular immunity while overcoming tumor-induced immune suppression. Herein, we review the key properties of nanovaccines for cancer immunotherapy and highlight the recent advances in their development based on the structure and composition of various (including synthetic and semi (biogenic) nanocarriers. Moreover, we discuss tumor cell-derived vaccines (including those based on whole-tumor-cell components, EVs, cell membrane-encapsulated NPs, and hybrid membrane-coated NPs), nanovaccine action mechanisms, and the challenges of immunocancer therapy and their translation to clinical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sangiliyandi Gurunathan
- Department of Biotechnology, Rathinam College of Arts and Science, Eachanari, Coimbatore 641 021, Tamil Nadu, India.
| | - Pratheep Thangaraj
- Department of Biotechnology, Rathinam College of Arts and Science, Eachanari, Coimbatore 641 021, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Lin Wang
- Research and Development Department, Qingdao Haier Biotech Co., Ltd., Qingdao, China
| | - Qilong Cao
- Research and Development Department, Qingdao Haier Biotech Co., Ltd., Qingdao, China
| | - Jin-Hoi Kim
- Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biotechnology, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea.
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6
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Laureano RS, Vanmeerbeek I, Sprooten J, Govaerts J, Naulaerts S, Garg AD. The cell stress and immunity cycle in cancer: Toward next generation of cancer immunotherapy. Immunol Rev 2024; 321:71-93. [PMID: 37937803 DOI: 10.1111/imr.13287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2023] [Revised: 10/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/09/2023]
Abstract
The cellular stress and immunity cycle is a cornerstone of organismal homeostasis. Stress activates intracellular and intercellular communications within a tissue or organ to initiate adaptive responses aiming to resolve the origin of this stress. If such local measures are unable to ameliorate this stress, then intercellular communications expand toward immune activation with the aim of recruiting immune cells to effectively resolve the situation while executing tissue repair to ameliorate any damage and facilitate homeostasis. This cellular stress-immunity cycle is severely dysregulated in diseased contexts like cancer. On one hand, cancer cells dysregulate the normal cellular stress responses to reorient them toward upholding growth at all costs, even at the expense of organismal integrity and homeostasis. On the other hand, the tumors severely dysregulate or inhibit various components of organismal immunity, for example, by facilitating immunosuppressive tumor landscape, lowering antigenicity, and increasing T-cell dysfunction. In this review we aim to comprehensively discuss the basis behind tumoral dysregulation of cellular stress-immunity cycle. We also offer insights into current understanding of the regulators and deregulators of this cycle and how they can be targeted for conceptualizing successful cancer immunotherapy regimen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel S Laureano
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Isaure Vanmeerbeek
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jenny Sprooten
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jannes Govaerts
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Stefan Naulaerts
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Abhishek D Garg
- Cell Stress & Immunity (CSI) Lab, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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7
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Shah RK, Cygan E, Kozlik T, Colina A, Zamora AE. Utilizing immunogenomic approaches to prioritize targetable neoantigens for personalized cancer immunotherapy. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1301100. [PMID: 38149253 PMCID: PMC10749952 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1301100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Advancements in sequencing technologies and bioinformatics algorithms have expanded our ability to identify tumor-specific somatic mutation-derived antigens (neoantigens). While recent studies have shown neoantigens to be compelling targets for cancer immunotherapy due to their foreign nature and high immunogenicity, the need for increasingly accurate and cost-effective approaches to rapidly identify neoantigens remains a challenging task, but essential for successful cancer immunotherapy. Currently, gene expression analysis and algorithms for variant calling can be used to generate lists of mutational profiles across patients, but more care is needed to curate these lists and prioritize the candidate neoantigens most capable of inducing an immune response. A growing amount of evidence suggests that only a handful of somatic mutations predicted by mutational profiling approaches act as immunogenic neoantigens. Hence, unbiased screening of all candidate neoantigens predicted by Whole Genome Sequencing/Whole Exome Sequencing may be necessary to more comprehensively access the full spectrum of immunogenic neoepitopes. Once putative cancer neoantigens are identified, one of the largest bottlenecks in translating these neoantigens into actionable targets for cell-based therapies is identifying the cognate T cell receptors (TCRs) capable of recognizing these neoantigens. While many TCR-directed screening and validation assays have utilized bulk samples in the past, there has been a recent surge in the number of single-cell assays that provide a more granular understanding of the factors governing TCR-pMHC interactions. The goal of this review is to provide an overview of existing strategies to identify candidate neoantigens using genomics-based approaches and methods for assessing neoantigen immunogenicity. Additionally, applications, prospects, and limitations of some of the current single-cell technologies will be discussed. Finally, we will briefly summarize some of the recent models that have been used to predict TCR antigen specificity and analyze the TCR receptor repertoire.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ravi K. Shah
- Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Erin Cygan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Tanya Kozlik
- Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Alfredo Colina
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
| | - Anthony E. Zamora
- Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
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Han K, Cho YS, Moon JJ. Antibiotic nanoparticles boost antitumor immunity. Nat Biotechnol 2023:10.1038/s41587-023-02046-6. [PMID: 37974012 PMCID: PMC11096259 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-023-02046-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Liposomes loaded with antibiotics eliminate intracellular bacteria in a colorectal cancer model, unleashing antitumor T cell immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Han
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, Department of Pharmaceutics, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Young Seok Cho
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - James J Moon
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
- Biointerfaces Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
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9
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Tang L, Huang ZP, Mei H, Hu Y. Insights gained from single-cell analysis of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell immunotherapy in cancer. Mil Med Res 2023; 10:52. [PMID: 37941075 PMCID: PMC10631149 DOI: 10.1186/s40779-023-00486-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Advances in chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy have significantly improved clinical outcomes of patients with relapsed or refractory hematologic malignancies. However, progress is still hindered as clinical benefit is only available for a fraction of patients. A lack of understanding of CAR-T cell behaviors in vivo at the single-cell level impedes their more extensive application in clinical practice. Mounting evidence suggests that single-cell sequencing techniques can help perfect the receptor design, guide gene-based T cell modification, and optimize the CAR-T manufacturing conditions, and all of them are essential for long-term immunosurveillance and more favorable clinical outcomes. The information generated by employing these methods also potentially informs our understanding of the numerous complex factors that dictate therapeutic efficacy and toxicities. In this review, we discuss the reasons why CAR-T immunotherapy fails in clinical practice and what this field has learned since the milestone of single-cell sequencing technologies. We further outline recent advances in the application of single-cell analyses in CAR-T immunotherapy. Specifically, we provide an overview of single-cell studies focusing on target antigens, CAR-transgene integration, and preclinical research and clinical applications, and then discuss how it will affect the future of CAR-T cell therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Tang
- Institute of Hematology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China
- Hubei Clinical Medical Center of Cell Therapy for Neoplastic Disease, Wuhan, 430022, China
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, The Ministry of Education, Wuhan, 430022, China
| | - Zhong-Pei Huang
- Institute of Hematology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China
- Hubei Clinical Medical Center of Cell Therapy for Neoplastic Disease, Wuhan, 430022, China
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, The Ministry of Education, Wuhan, 430022, China
| | - Heng Mei
- Institute of Hematology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Hubei Clinical Medical Center of Cell Therapy for Neoplastic Disease, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, The Ministry of Education, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China.
| | - Yu Hu
- Institute of Hematology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Hubei Clinical Medical Center of Cell Therapy for Neoplastic Disease, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, The Ministry of Education, Wuhan, 430022, China.
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Biological Targeted Therapy, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China.
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10
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Shi H, Tsang Y, Yang Y, Chin HL. Identification of ONECUT3 as a stemness-related transcription factor regulating NK cell-mediated immune evasion in pancreatic cancer. Sci Rep 2023; 13:18133. [PMID: 37875589 PMCID: PMC10598193 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-45560-y] [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: 07/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has a dismal response to the current T cell-based immunotherapies, which is attributed to intratumoral heterogeneity caused by PDAC stem cells and lack of major histocompatibility complex class I required for neoantigen presentation. Although this scenario makes natural killer (NK) cells attractive candidates for immunotherapeutic agents targeting MHC-I-deficient cancer stem cells in heterogeneous PDACs, little is known about PDAC stem cell immunology. In our study, PDAC-specific datasets from public databases were collected for in-depth bioinformatic analysis. We found that the abundance of PDAC stemness negatively influenced the infiltration of NK cells and identified the transcription factor ONECUT3 enriched in PDACs with high stemness index scores and Pan-cancer Stemness Signature levels. A series of NK cell-targeted inhibitory immune checkpoints were highly expressed in ONECUT3high PDACs. The patient group with high levels of ONECUT3 expression had a high risk of poor overall survival, even if accompanied by high infiltration of NK cells. Furthermore, the prostanoid metabolic process was enriched in ONECUT3high PDACs with high levels of NK cell-targeted inhibitory immune checkpoints. ONECUT3 enriched in high-stemness PDACs possessed the potential to transcriptionally regulate the prostanoid metabolism-related genes. Our study reveals ONECUT3 as a candidate stemness-related transcription factor regulating NK cell-targeted inhibitory immune checkpoints in PDAC. ONECUT3-mediated prostanoid metabolism may regulate cancer stemness and immune evasion in PDAC. Synergistic inhibition of prostanoid metabolism may improve the efficacy of NK cell-based immunotherapies targeting intratumoral heterogeneity caused by PDAC stem cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haojun Shi
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
- Shanghai Institute for Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
| | - Yiusing Tsang
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yisi Yang
- Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hok Leong Chin
- Department of Pediatrics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
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Morisaki S, Onishi H, Morisaki T, Kubo M, Umebayashi M, Tanaka H, Koya N, Nakagawa S, Tsujimura K, Yoshimura S, Yew PY, Kiyotani K, Nakamura Y, Nakamura M, Kitazono T, Morisaki T. Immunological analysis of hybrid neoantigen peptide encompassing class I/II neoepitope-pulsed dendritic cell vaccine. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1223331. [PMID: 37881436 PMCID: PMC10595142 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1223331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Neoantigens/ are tumor-specific antigens that evade central immune tolerance mechanisms in the thymus. Long-term tumor-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity maintenance requires class II antigen-reactive CD4+ T cells. We had previously shown that intranodal vaccination with class I neoantigen peptide-pulsed dendritic cells (DCs) induced a robust immune response in a subset of patients with metastatic cancer. The present study aimed to perform a detailed ex vivo analysis of immune responses in four patients receiving an intranodal hybrid human leukocyte antigen class II neoantigen peptide encompassing a class I neoantigen epitope (hybrid neoantigen)-pulsed DC vaccine. After vaccination, strong T-cell reactions against the hybrid class II peptide and the class I-binding neoantigen peptide were observed in all four patients. We found that hybrid class II neoantigen peptide-pulsed DCs stimulated CD4+ T cells via direct antigen presentation and CD8+ T cells via cross-presentation. Further, we demonstrated that hybrid class II peptides encompassing multiple class I neoantigen epitope-pulsed DCs could present multiple class I peptides to CD8+ T cells via cross-presentation. Our findings provide insight into the mechanisms underlying hybrid neoantigen-pulsed DC vaccine therapy and suggest future neoantigen vaccine design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinji Morisaki
- Fukuoka General Cancer Clinic, Fukuoka, Japan
- Department of Cancer Therapy and Research, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Hideya Onishi
- Department of Cancer Therapy and Research, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Takafumi Morisaki
- Department of Surgery and Oncology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Makoto Kubo
- Department of Surgery and Oncology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Sachiko Yoshimura
- Corporate Headquarters, Cancer Precision Medicine Inc., Kawasaki, Japan
| | - Poh Yin Yew
- Corporate Headquarters, Cancer Precision Medicine Inc., Kawasaki, Japan
| | - Kazuma Kiyotani
- National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
| | - Yusuke Nakamura
- National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, Ibaraki, Osaka, Japan
| | - Masafumi Nakamura
- Department of Surgery and Oncology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Takanari Kitazono
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
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12
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Guan J, Li GM. DNA mismatch repair in cancer immunotherapy. NAR Cancer 2023; 5:zcad031. [PMID: 37325548 PMCID: PMC10262306 DOI: 10.1093/narcan/zcad031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 06/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Tumors defective in DNA mismatch repair (dMMR) exhibit microsatellite instability (MSI). Currently, patients with dMMR tumors are benefitted from anti-PD-1/PDL1-based immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy. Over the past several years, great progress has been made in understanding the mechanisms by which dMMR tumors respond to ICI, including the identification of mutator phenotype-generated neoantigens, cytosolic DNA-mediated activation of the cGAS-STING pathway, type-I interferon signaling and high tumor-infiltration of lymphocytes in dMMR tumors. Although ICI therapy shows great clinical benefits, ∼50% of dMMR tumors are eventually not responsive. Here we review the discovery, development and molecular basis of dMMR-mediated immunotherapy, as well as tumor resistant problems and potential therapeutic interventions to overcome the resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junhong Guan
- Cuiying Biomedical Research Center, Lanzhou University Second Hospital, Lanzhou, Gansu 730030, China
| | - Guo-Min Li
- Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
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13
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Yiong CS, Lin TP, Lim VY, Toh TB, Yang VS. Biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibition in sarcomas - are we close to clinical implementation? Biomark Res 2023; 11:75. [PMID: 37612756 PMCID: PMC10463641 DOI: 10.1186/s40364-023-00513-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Sarcomas are a group of diverse and complex cancers of mesenchymal origin that remains poorly understood. Recent developments in cancer immunotherapy have demonstrated a potential for better outcomes with immune checkpoint inhibition in some sarcomas compared to conventional chemotherapy. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are key agents in cancer immunotherapy, demonstrating improved outcomes in many tumor types. However, most patients with sarcoma do not benefit from treatment, highlighting the need for identification and development of predictive biomarkers for response to ICIs. In this review, we first discuss United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved and European Medicines Agency (EMA)-approved biomarkers, as well as the limitations of their use in sarcomas. We then review eight potential predictive biomarkers and rationalize their utility in sarcomas. These include gene expression signatures (GES), circulating neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG-3), T cell immunoglobin and mucin domain-containing protein 3 (TIM-3), TP53 mutation status, B cells, and tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS). Finally, we discuss the potential for TLS as both a predictive and prognostic biomarker for ICI response in sarcomas to be implemented in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chin Sern Yiong
- Translational Precision Oncology Laboratory, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, 138673, Singapore
- Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117544, Singapore
| | - Tzu Ping Lin
- Translational Precision Oncology Laboratory, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, 138673, Singapore
- Department of Pharmacy, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117544, Singapore
| | - Vivian Yujing Lim
- Translational Precision Oncology Laboratory, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, 138673, Singapore
| | - Tan Boon Toh
- The N.1 Institute for Health, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM), National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Valerie Shiwen Yang
- Translational Precision Oncology Laboratory, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, 138673, Singapore.
- Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore, 169610, Singapore.
- Duke-NUS Medical School, Oncology Academic Clinical Program, Singapore, 169857, Singapore.
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14
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Charoenkwan P, Schaduangrat N, Shoombuatong W. StackTTCA: a stacking ensemble learning-based framework for accurate and high-throughput identification of tumor T cell antigens. BMC Bioinformatics 2023; 24:301. [PMID: 37507654 PMCID: PMC10386778 DOI: 10.1186/s12859-023-05421-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The identification of tumor T cell antigens (TTCAs) is crucial for providing insights into their functional mechanisms and utilizing their potential in anticancer vaccines development. In this context, TTCAs are highly promising. Meanwhile, experimental technologies for discovering and characterizing new TTCAs are expensive and time-consuming. Although many machine learning (ML)-based models have been proposed for identifying new TTCAs, there is still a need to develop a robust model that can achieve higher rates of accuracy and precision. RESULTS In this study, we propose a new stacking ensemble learning-based framework, termed StackTTCA, for accurate and large-scale identification of TTCAs. Firstly, we constructed 156 different baseline models by using 12 different feature encoding schemes and 13 popular ML algorithms. Secondly, these baseline models were trained and employed to create a new probabilistic feature vector. Finally, the optimal probabilistic feature vector was determined based the feature selection strategy and then used for the construction of our stacked model. Comparative benchmarking experiments indicated that StackTTCA clearly outperformed several ML classifiers and the existing methods in terms of the independent test, with an accuracy of 0.932 and Matthew's correlation coefficient of 0.866. CONCLUSIONS In summary, the proposed stacking ensemble learning-based framework of StackTTCA could help to precisely and rapidly identify true TTCAs for follow-up experimental verification. In addition, we developed an online web server ( http://2pmlab.camt.cmu.ac.th/StackTTCA ) to maximize user convenience for high-throughput screening of novel TTCAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phasit Charoenkwan
- Modern Management and Information Technology, College of Arts, Media and Technology, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand
| | - Nalini Schaduangrat
- Center for Research Innovation and Biomedical Informatics, Faculty of Medical Technology, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand
| | - Watshara Shoombuatong
- Center for Research Innovation and Biomedical Informatics, Faculty of Medical Technology, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10700, Thailand.
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15
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Man QW, Li RF, Zhong NN, Liu B. Prognostic value of CD8-to-EGFR ratio in salivary microvesicles of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. Oral Dis 2023; 29:1480-1486. [PMID: 35029008 DOI: 10.1111/odi.14131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Revised: 12/27/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Qi-Wen Man
- The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) & Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Head Neck Surgery, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Rui-Fang Li
- The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) & Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Nian-Nian Zhong
- The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) & Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Bing Liu
- The State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Basic Science of Stomatology (Hubei-MOST) & Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedicine Ministry of Education, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Head Neck Surgery, School & Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
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16
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Brancati VU, Minutoli L, Marini HR, Puzzolo D, Allegra A. Identification and Targeting of Mutant Neoantigens in Multiple Myeloma Treatment. Curr Oncol 2023; 30:4603-4617. [PMID: 37232806 PMCID: PMC10217221 DOI: 10.3390/curroncol30050348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Multiple myeloma (MM) is malignant disease characterized by the clonal proliferation of plasma cells in the bone marrow, leading to anemia, immunosuppression, and other symptoms, that is generally hard to treat. In MM, the immune system is likely exposed to neoplasia-associated neoantigens for several years before the tumor onset. Different types of neoantigens have been identified. Public or shared neoantigens derive from tumor-specific modifications often reported in several patients or across diverse tumors. They are intriguing therapeutic targets because they are frequently observed, and they have an oncogenic effect. Only a small number of public neoantigens have been recognized. Most of the neoantigens that have been identified are patient-specific or "private", necessitating a personalized approach for adaptive cell treatment. It was demonstrated that the targeting of a single greatly immunogenic neoantigen may be appropriate for tumor control. The purpose of this review was to analyze the neoantigens present in patients with MM, and to evaluate the possibility of using their presence as a prognostic factor or as a therapeutic target. We reviewed the most recent literature on neoantigen treatment strategies and on the use of bispecific, trispecific, and conjugated antibodies for the treatment of MM. Finally, a section was dedicated to the use of CAR-T in relapsed and refractory patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Urzì Brancati
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy; (V.U.B.); (H.R.M.)
| | - Letteria Minutoli
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy; (V.U.B.); (H.R.M.)
| | - Herbert Ryan Marini
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy; (V.U.B.); (H.R.M.)
| | - Domenico Puzzolo
- Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy;
| | - Alessandro Allegra
- Division of Haematology, Department of Human Pathology in Adulthood and Childhood, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy;
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17
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Lee SHR, Li Z, Lim EHZ, Chin WHN, Jiang N, Chiew KH, Chen Z, Oh BLZ, Tan AM, Ariffin H, Yang JJ, Yeoh AEJ. Associations of T-Cell Receptor Repertoire Diversity with L-Asparaginase Allergy in Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:cancers15061829. [PMID: 36980715 PMCID: PMC10047007 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15061829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Asparaginase is a critical component of therapy for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), but it is commonly associated with allergy, which results in morbidity and poorer outcomes. The underlying basis of this allergy is undoubtedly immune-mediated, but the exact components of T-cell immunity have yet to be characterized. We performed longitudinal TCR sequencing of 180 bone marrow samples from 67 children with B-ALL treated as part of the Ma-Spore-ALL-2010 trial, and we evaluated the associations of TCR profile with asparaginase hypersensitivity, with functional validation of asparaginase activity in a separate cohort of 113 children. We found that a more diverse and dynamically changing TCR repertoire was associated with increased risk of clinical hypersensitivity and decreased L-asp activity. Allergic patients had a higher proportion of infrequent clonotypes, as well as a significantly lower degree of shared clonotypes amongst the cohort. Allergic patients also had significantly higher longitudinal variability of clonotypes across timepoints, where a higher dissimilarity between diagnosis and week 5 represented an 8.1-fold increased risk of an allergic event. After an allergy had occurred, there was shaping and convergence of the TCR repertoire towards a common antigen. Understanding the immunological basis of T-cell responses in allergy lays the groundwork for developing predictive biomarkers or strategies to mediate this common toxicity in childhood ALL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shawn H R Lee
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
- Khoo Teck Puat-National University Children's Medical Institute, National University Health System, Singapore 119074, Singapore
| | - Zhenhua Li
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Evelyn H Z Lim
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Winnie H N Chin
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Nan Jiang
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Kean Hui Chiew
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Zhiwei Chen
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
| | - Bernice L Z Oh
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
- Khoo Teck Puat-National University Children's Medical Institute, National University Health System, Singapore 119074, Singapore
| | - Ah Moy Tan
- Department of Pediatrics, KK Women and Children's Hospital, Singapore 229899, Singapore
| | - Hany Ariffin
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Malaya Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur 59100, Malaysia
| | - Jun J Yang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Allen E J Yeoh
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 1E Lower Kent Ridge Road, Tower Block Level 12, Singapore 119228, Singapore
- Khoo Teck Puat-National University Children's Medical Institute, National University Health System, Singapore 119074, Singapore
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18
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Les I, Martínez M, Pérez-Francisco I, Cabero M, Teijeira L, Arrazubi V, Torrego N, Campillo-Calatayud A, Elejalde I, Kochan G, Escors D. Predictive Biomarkers for Checkpoint Inhibitor Immune-Related Adverse Events. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:cancers15051629. [PMID: 36900420 PMCID: PMC10000735 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15051629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are antagonists of inhibitory receptors in the immune system, such as the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4, the programmed cell death protein-1 and its ligand PD-L1, and they are increasingly used in cancer treatment. By blocking certain suppressive pathways, ICIs promote T-cell activation and antitumor activity but may induce so-called immune-related adverse events (irAEs), which mimic traditional autoimmune disorders. With the approval of more ICIs, irAE prediction has become a key factor in improving patient survival and quality of life. Several biomarkers have been described as potential irAE predictors, some of them are already available for clinical use and others are under development; examples include circulating blood cell counts and ratios, T-cell expansion and diversification, cytokines, autoantibodies and autoantigens, serum and other biological fluid proteins, human leucocyte antigen genotypes, genetic variations and gene profiles, microRNAs, and the gastrointestinal microbiome. Nevertheless, it is difficult to generalize the application of irAE biomarkers based on the current evidence because most studies have been retrospective, time-limited and restricted to a specific type of cancer, irAE or ICI. Long-term prospective cohorts and real-life studies are needed to assess the predictive capacity of different potential irAE biomarkers, regardless of the ICI type, organ involved or cancer site.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iñigo Les
- Internal Medicine Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Autoimmune Diseases Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Inflammatory and Immune-Mediated Diseases Group, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdISNA), Navarrabiomed-Public University of Navarre, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Correspondence: (I.L.); (D.E.); Tel.: +34-84-842-9516 (I.L.)
| | - Mireia Martínez
- Osakidetza Basque Health Service, Department of Medical Oncology, Araba University Hospital, 01009 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
- Lung Cancer Research Group, Bioaraba Health Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Inés Pérez-Francisco
- Breast Cancer Research Group, Bioaraba Health Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - María Cabero
- Clinical Trials Platform, Bioaraba Health Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Lucía Teijeira
- Medical Oncology Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
| | - Virginia Arrazubi
- Medical Oncology Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
| | - Nuria Torrego
- Osakidetza Basque Health Service, Department of Medical Oncology, Araba University Hospital, 01009 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
- Lung Cancer Research Group, Bioaraba Health Research Institute, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Ana Campillo-Calatayud
- Inflammatory and Immune-Mediated Diseases Group, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdISNA), Navarrabiomed-Public University of Navarre, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
| | - Iñaki Elejalde
- Internal Medicine Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Autoimmune Diseases Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Navarre University Hospital, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Inflammatory and Immune-Mediated Diseases Group, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdISNA), Navarrabiomed-Public University of Navarre, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
| | - Grazyna Kochan
- Oncoimmunology Group, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdISNA), Navarrabiomed-Public University of Navarre, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
| | - David Escors
- Oncoimmunology Group, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdISNA), Navarrabiomed-Public University of Navarre, 31008 Pamplona, Spain
- Correspondence: (I.L.); (D.E.); Tel.: +34-84-842-9516 (I.L.)
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19
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PSRTTCA: A new approach for improving the prediction and characterization of tumor T cell antigens using propensity score representation learning. Comput Biol Med 2023; 152:106368. [PMID: 36481763 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2022.106368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Despite the arsenal of existing cancer therapies, the ongoing recurrence and new cases of cancer pose a serious health concern that necessitates the development of new and effective treatments. Cancer immunotherapy, which uses the body's immune system to combat cancer, is a promising treatment option. As a result, in silico methods for identifying and characterizing tumor T cell antigens (TTCAs) would be useful for better understanding their functional mechanisms. Although few computational methods for TTCA identification have been developed, their lack of model interpretability is a major drawback. Thus, developing computational methods for the effective identification and characterization of TTCAs is a critical endeavor. PSRTTCA, a new machine learning (ML)-based approach for improving the identification and characterization of TTCAs based on their primary sequences, is proposed in this study. Specifically, we introduce a new propensity score representation learning algorithm that allows one to generate various sets of propensity scores of amino acids, dipeptides, and g-gap dipeptides to be TTCAs. To enhance the predictive performance, optimal sets of variant propensity scores were determined and fed into the final meta-predictor (PSRTTCA). Benchmarking results revealed that PSRTTCA was a more precise and promising tool for the identification and characterization of TTCAs than conventional ML classifiers and existing methods. Furthermore, PSR-derived propensities of amino acids in becoming TTCAs are used to reveal the relationship between TTCAs and their informative physicochemical properties in order to provide insights into TTCA characteristics. Finally, a user-friendly online computational platform of PSRTTCA is publicly available at http://pmlabstack.pythonanywhere.com/PSRTTCA. The PSRTTCA predictor is anticipated to facilitate community-wide efforts in accelerating the discovery of novel TTCAs for cancer immunotherapy and other clinical applications.
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20
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Karizak AZ, Salmasi Z, Gheibihayat SM, Asadi M, Ghasemi Y, Tajbakhsh A, Savardashtaki A. Understanding the regulation of "Don't Eat-Me" signals by inflammatory signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment for more effective therapy. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 2023; 149:511-529. [PMID: 36342520 DOI: 10.1007/s00432-022-04452-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Receptor/ligand pair immune checkpoints are inhibitors that regulate immunity as vital "Don't Find-Me" signals to the adaptive immune system, additionally, the essential goals of anti-cancer therapy. Moreover, the immune checkpoints are involved in treatment resistance in cancer therapy. The immune checkpoints as a signal from "self" and their expression on healthy cells prevent phagocytosis. Cells (e.g., senescent and/or apoptotic cells) with low immune checkpoints, such as low CD47 and/or PD-L1, are phagocytosed, which is necessary for tissue integrity and homeostasis maintenance. In other words, cancer cells induce increased CD47 expression in the tumor microenvironment (TME), avoiding their clearance by immune cells. PD-L1 and/or CD47 expression tumors have also been employed as biomarkers to guide cure prospects. Thus, targeting innate and adaptive immune checkpoints might improve the influence of the treatments on tumor cells. However, the CD47 regulation in the TME stands intricate, so much of this process has stayed a riddle. In this line, less attention has been paid to cytokines in TME. Cytokines are significant regulators of tumor immune surveillance, and they do this by controlling the actions of the immune cell. Recently, it has been suggested that different types of cytokines at TME might cooperate with others that contribute to the regulation of CD47 and/or PD-L1. MATERIALS AND METHODS The data were searched in available databases and a Web Search engine (PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar) using related keywords in the title, abstract, and keywords. CONCLUSION Given the significant role of pro/anti-inflammatory signaling in the TME, we discuss the present understanding of pro/anti-inflammatory signaling implications in "Don't Eat-Me" regulation signals, particularly CD47, in the pathophysiology of cancers and come up with innovative opinions for the clinical transformation and personalized medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashkan Zare Karizak
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Zahra Salmasi
- Nanotechnology Research Center, Pharmaceutical Technology Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.,Department of Pharmaceutical Nanotechnology, School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Seyed Mohammad Gheibihayat
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Medicine, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran
| | - Marzieh Asadi
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Advanced Medical Sciences and Technologies, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, 71362 81407, Iran
| | - Younes Ghasemi
- Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box 71345-1583, Shiraz, Iran.,Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
| | - Amir Tajbakhsh
- Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box 71345-1583, Shiraz, Iran. .,Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Advanced Medical Sciences and Technologies, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
| | - Amir Savardashtaki
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Advanced Medical Sciences and Technologies, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, 71362 81407, Iran. .,Infertility Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
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21
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Wahida A, Buschhorn L, Fröhling S, Jost PJ, Schneeweiss A, Lichter P, Kurzrock R. The coming decade in precision oncology: six riddles. Nat Rev Cancer 2023; 23:43-54. [PMID: 36434139 DOI: 10.1038/s41568-022-00529-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 57.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
High-throughput methods to investigate tumour omic landscapes have quickly catapulted cancer specialists into the precision oncology era. The singular lesson of precision oncology might be that, for it to be precise, treatment must be personalized, as each cancer's complex molecular and immune landscape differs from patient to patient. Transformative therapies include those that are targeted at the sequelae of molecular abnormalities or at immune mechanisms, and, increasingly, pathways previously thought to be undruggable have become druggable. Critical to applying precision medicine is the concept that the right combination of drugs must be chosen for each patient and used at the right stage of the disease. Multiple puzzles remain that complicate therapy choice, including evidence that deleterious mutations are common in normal tissues and non-malignant conditions. The host's role is also likely to be key in determining treatment response, especially for immunotherapy. Indeed, maximizing the impact of immunotherapy will require omic analyses to match the right immune-targeted drugs to the individualized patient and tumour setting. In this Perspective, we discuss six key riddles that must be solved to optimize the application of precision oncology to otherwise lethal malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Wahida
- Institute of Metabolism and Cell Death, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany.
- Medical Department III for Hematology and Oncology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, TUM School of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Division of Molecular Genetics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.
- Division of Gynecological Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Lars Buschhorn
- Division of Molecular Genetics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.
- Division of Gynecological Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Stefan Fröhling
- Division of Translational Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Philipp J Jost
- Division of Clinical Oncology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Andreas Schneeweiss
- Division of Gynecological Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Peter Lichter
- Division of Molecular Genetics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Heidelberg, Germany
- National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Razelle Kurzrock
- WIN Consortium, Paris, France.
- Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
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22
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Mendes MFDA, de Souza Bragatte M, Vianna P, de Freitas MV, Pöhner I, Richter S, Wade RC, Salzano FM, Vieira GF. MatchTope: A tool to predict the cross reactivity of peptides complexed with Major Histocompatibility Complex I. Front Immunol 2022; 13:930590. [PMID: 36389840 PMCID: PMC9650389 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.930590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 10/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The therapeutic targeting of the immune system, for example in vaccinology and cancer treatment, is a challenging task and the subject of active research. Several in silico tools used for predicting immunogenicity are based on the analysis of peptide sequences binding to the Major Histocompatibility Complex (pMHC). However, few of these bioinformatics tools take into account the pMHC three-dimensional structure. Here, we describe a new bioinformatics tool, MatchTope, developed for predicting peptide similarity, which can trigger cross-reactivity events, by computing and analyzing the electrostatic potentials of pMHC complexes. We validated MatchTope by using previously published data from in vitro assays. We thereby demonstrate the strength of MatchTope for similarity prediction between targets derived from several pathogens as well as for indicating possible cross responses between self and tumor peptides. Our results suggest that MatchTope can enhance and speed up future studies in the fields of vaccinology and cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Fabiano de Almeida Mendes
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Marcelo de Souza Bragatte
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Priscila Vianna
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Martiela Vaz de Freitas
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Ina Pöhner
- Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Stefan Richter
- Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Rebecca C. Wade
- Molecular and Cellular Modeling Group, Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS), Heidelberg, Germany
- Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH), DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance and Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Francisco Mauro Salzano
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Gustavo Fioravanti Vieira
- Bioinformatic Core, Immunogenetics Laboratory, Genetics Department, Biosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
- Post-Graduation Program in Health and Human Development, Universidade La Salle Canoas, Canoas, Brazil
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23
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Sobhani N, Scaggiante B, Morris R, Chai D, Catalano M, Tardiel-Cyril DR, Neeli P, Roviello G, Mondani G, Li Y. Therapeutic cancer vaccines: From biological mechanisms and engineering to ongoing clinical trials. Cancer Treat Rev 2022; 109:102429. [PMID: 35759856 PMCID: PMC9217071 DOI: 10.1016/j.ctrv.2022.102429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 06/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Therapeutic vaccines are currently at the forefront of medical innovation. Various endeavors have been made to develop more consolidated approaches to producing nucleic acid-based vaccines, both DNA and mRNA vaccines. These innovations have continued to propel therapeutic platforms forward, especially for mRNA vaccines, after the successes that drove emergency FDA approval of two mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. These vaccines use modified mRNAs and lipid nanoparticles to improve stability, antigen translation, and delivery by evading innate immune activation. Simple alterations of mRNA structure- such as non-replicating, modified, or self-amplifying mRNAs- can provide flexibility for future vaccine development. For protein vaccines, the use of long synthetic peptides of tumor antigens instead of short peptides has further enhanced antigen delivery success and peptide stability. Efforts to identify and target neoantigens instead of antigens shared between tumor cells and normal cells have also improved protein-based vaccines. Other approaches use inactivated patient-derived tumor cells to elicit immune responses, or purified tumor antigens are given to patient-derived dendritic cells that are activated in vitro prior to reinjection. This review will discuss recent developments in therapeutic cancer vaccines such as, mode of action and engineering new types of anticancer vaccines, in order to summarize the latest preclinical and clinical data for further discussion of ongoing clinical endeavors in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Navid Sobhani
- Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Bruna Scaggiante
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste 34127, Italy.
| | - Rachel Morris
- Thunder Biotech, 395 Cougar Blvd, Provo, UT 84604, USA.
| | - Dafei Chai
- Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Cancer Institute, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221002, PR China.
| | - Martina Catalano
- School of Human Health Sciences, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla 3, Florence 50134, Italy.
| | - Dana Rae Tardiel-Cyril
- Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Praveen Neeli
- Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Giandomenico Roviello
- Department of Health Sciences, Section of Clinical Pharmacology and Oncology, University of Florence, Viale Pieraccini 6, Florence 50139, Italy.
| | - Giuseppina Mondani
- Royal Infirmary Hospital, Foresterhill Health Campus, Foresterhill Rd, Aberdeen AB25 2ZN, United Kingdom.
| | - Yong Li
- Department of Medicine, Section of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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24
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Singh V, Khan N, Jayandharan GR. Vector engineering, strategies and targets in cancer gene therapy. Cancer Gene Ther 2022; 29:402-417. [PMID: 33859378 DOI: 10.1038/s41417-021-00331-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2020] [Revised: 02/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the molecular basis of disease and the design of rationally designed molecular therapies has been the holy grail in the management of human cancers. Gene-based therapies are an important avenue for achieving a possible cure. Focused research in the last three decades has provided significant clues to optimize the potential of cancer gene therapy. The development of gene therapies with a high potential to kill the target cells at the lowest effective dose possible, the development of vectors with significant ability to target cancer-associated antigen, the application of adjunct therapies to target dysregulated microRNA, and embracing a hybrid strategy with a combination of gene therapy and low-dose chemotherapy in a disease-specific manner will be pivotal. This article outlines the advances and challenges in the field with emphasis on the biology and scope of vectors used for gene transfer, newer targets identified, and their outcome in preclinical and clinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vijayata Singh
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, UP, India
| | - Nusrat Khan
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, UP, India
| | - Giridhara R Jayandharan
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, UP, India. .,The Mehta Family Centre for Engineering in Medicine, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, UP, India.
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25
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Seaver K, Kourko O, Gee K, Greer PA, Basta S. IL-27 Improves Prophylactic Protection Provided by a Dead Tumor Cell Vaccine in a Mouse Melanoma Model. Front Immunol 2022; 13:884827. [PMID: 35529885 PMCID: PMC9069009 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.884827] [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: 02/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The protocol used to induce cell death for generating vaccines from whole tumor cells is a critical consideration that impacts vaccine efficacy. Here we compared how different protocols used to induce cell death impacted protection provided by a prophylactic whole tumor cell vaccine in a mouse melanoma model. We found that melanoma cells exposed to γ-irradiation or lysis combined with UV-irradiation (LyUV) provided better protection against tumor challenge than lysis only or cells exposed to UV-irradiation. Furthermore, we found that the immunoregulatory cytokine, IL-27 enhanced protection against tumor growth in a dose-dependent manner when combined with either LyUV or γ-irradiated whole tumor cell vaccine preparations. Taken together, this data supports the use of LyUV as a potential protocol for developing whole tumor cell prophylactic cancer vaccines. We also showed that IL-27 can be used at low doses as a potent adjuvant in combination with LyUV or γ-irradiation treated cancer cells to improve the protection provided by a prophylactic cancer vaccine in a mouse melanoma model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle Seaver
- Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Olena Kourko
- Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Katrina Gee
- Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Peter A. Greer
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Sameh Basta
- Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada
- *Correspondence: Sameh Basta,
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26
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Liu L, Chen J, Zhang H, Ye J, Moore C, Lu C, Fang Y, Fu YX, Li B. Concurrent delivery of immune checkpoint blockade modulates T cell dynamics to enhance neoantigen vaccine-generated antitumor immunity. NATURE CANCER 2022; 3:437-452. [PMID: 35393580 PMCID: PMC9050907 DOI: 10.1038/s43018-022-00352-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Neoantigen vaccines aiming to induce tumor-specific T cell responses have achieved promising antitumor effects in early clinical trials. However, the underlying mechanism regarding response or resistance to this treatment is unclear. Here we observe that neoantigen vaccine-generated T cells can synergize with the immune checkpoint blockade for effective tumor control. Specifically, we performed single-cell sequencing on over 100,000 T cells and uncovered that combined therapy induces an antigen-specific CD8 T cell population with active chemokine signaling (Cxcr3+/Ccl5+), lower co-inhibitory receptor expression (Lag3-/Havcr2-) and higher cytotoxicity (Fasl+/Gzma+). Furthermore, generation of neoantigen-specific T cells in the draining lymph node is required for combination treatment. Signature genes of this unique population are associated with T cell clonal frequency and better survival in humans. Our study profiles the dynamics of tumor-infiltrating T cells during neoantigen vaccine and immune checkpoint blockade treatments and high-dimensionally identifies neoantigen-reactive T cell signatures for future development of therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Longchao Liu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Jiahui Chen
- Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Hongyi Zhang
- Lyda Hill Department of Bioinformatics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Jianfeng Ye
- Lyda Hill Department of Bioinformatics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Casey Moore
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Changzheng Lu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Yan Fang
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Yang-Xin Fu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Bo Li
- Lyda Hill Department of Bioinformatics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
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27
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Aran A, Garrigós L, Curigliano G, Cortés J, Martí M. Evaluation of the TCR Repertoire as a Predictive and Prognostic Biomarker in Cancer: Diversity or Clonality? Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14071771. [PMID: 35406543 PMCID: PMC8996954 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14071771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 03/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary The TCR is the T cell antigen receptor, and it is responsible of the T cell activation, through the HLA-antigen complex recognition. Studying the TCR repertoire in patients with cancer can help to better understand the anti-tumoural responses and it has been suggested to have predictive and or/prognostic values, both for the disease and in response to treatments. The aim of this review is to summarize TCR repertoire studies performed in patients with cancer found in the literature, thoroughly analyse the different factors that can be involved in shaping the TCR repertoire, and draw the current conclusions in this field, especially focusing on whether the TCR diversity—or its opposite, the clonality—can be used as predictors or prognostic biomarkers of the disease. Abstract T cells play a vital role in the anti-tumoural response, and the presence of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes has shown to be directly correlated with a good prognosis in several cancer types. Nevertheless, some patients presenting tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes do not have favourable outcomes. The TCR determines the specificities of T cells, so the analysis of the TCR repertoire has been recently considered to be a potential biomarker for patients’ progression and response to therapies with immune checkpoint inhibitors. The TCR repertoire is one of the multiple elements comprising the immune system and is conditioned by several factors, including tissue type, tumour mutational burden, and patients’ immunogenetics. Its study is crucial to understanding the anti-tumoural response, how to beneficially modulate the immune response with current or new treatments, and how to better predict the prognosis. Here, we present a critical review including essential studies on TCR repertoire conducted in patients with cancer with the aim to draw the current conclusions and try to elucidate whether it is better to encounter higher clonality with few TCRs at higher frequencies, or higher diversity with many different TCRs at lower frequencies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Aran
- Immunology Unit, Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Institut de Biotecnologia I Biomedicina (IBB), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra, Spain;
| | - Laia Garrigós
- International Breast Cancer Center (IBCC), 08017 Barcelona, Spain; (L.G.); (J.C.)
| | - Giuseppe Curigliano
- Division of Early Drug Development, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, 20141 Milano, Italy;
- Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology, University of Milano, 20122 Milano, Italy
| | - Javier Cortés
- International Breast Cancer Center (IBCC), 08017 Barcelona, Spain; (L.G.); (J.C.)
- Medica Scientia Innovation Research (MedSIR), 08018 Barcelona, Spain
- Medica Scientia Innovation Research (MedSIR), Ridgewood, NJ 07450, USA
- Department of Medicine, Faculty of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Universidad Europea de Madrid, 28670 Madrid, Spain
| | - Mercè Martí
- Immunology Unit, Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Institut de Biotecnologia I Biomedicina (IBB), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra, Spain;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-935812409
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28
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Jin S, Sun Y, Liang X, Gu X, Ning J, Xu Y, Chen S, Pan L. Emerging new therapeutic antibody derivatives for cancer treatment. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2022; 7:39. [PMID: 35132063 PMCID: PMC8821599 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-021-00868-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 160] [Impact Index Per Article: 80.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Monoclonal antibodies constitute a promising class of targeted anticancer agents that enhance natural immune system functions to suppress cancer cell activity and eliminate cancer cells. The successful application of IgG monoclonal antibodies has inspired the development of various types of therapeutic antibodies, such as antibody fragments, bispecific antibodies, and antibody derivatives (e.g., antibody–drug conjugates and immunocytokines). The miniaturization and multifunctionalization of antibodies are flexible and viable strategies for diagnosing or treating malignant tumors in a complex tumor environment. In this review, we summarize antibodies of various molecular types, antibody applications in cancer therapy, and details of clinical study advances. We also discuss the rationale and mechanism of action of various antibody formats, including antibody–drug conjugates, antibody–oligonucleotide conjugates, bispecific/multispecific antibodies, immunocytokines, antibody fragments, and scaffold proteins. With advances in modern biotechnology, well-designed novel antibodies are finally paving the way for successful treatments of various cancers, including precise tumor immunotherapy, in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shijie Jin
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yanping Sun
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xiao Liang
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xinyu Gu
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jiangtao Ning
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yingchun Xu
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shuqing Chen
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China. .,Department of Precision Medicine on Tumor Therapeutics, ZJU-Hangzhou Global Scientific and Technological Innovation Center, 311200, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Liqiang Pan
- Institute of Drug Metabolism and Pharmaceutical Analysis, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, 310058, Hangzhou, China. .,The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310003, Hangzhou, China. .,Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease of Zhejiang Province, 310003, Hangzhou, China.
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29
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Lee H, Park SJ, Hong S, Lim SW, Kim S. Deletion of IP6K1 in mice accelerates tumor growth by dysregulating the tumor-immune microenvironment. Anim Cells Syst (Seoul) 2022; 26:19-27. [PMID: 35308129 PMCID: PMC8928833 DOI: 10.1080/19768354.2022.2029560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
A family of inositol hexakisphosphate kinases (IP6Ks) catalyzes the production of inositol pyrophosphate IP7 (5-diphosphoinositolpentakisphosphate) which is known to modulate various biological events such as cell growth. While targeting IP6K1 in various cancer cells has been well reported to control cancer cell motility and invasiveness, the role of host IP6K1 in tumor progression remains unknown. By using a syngeneic MC38 murine mouse colon carcinoma model, here we examined how host IP6K1 in the tumor microenvironment influences tumor growth. In IP6K1 knockout (KO) mice, the growth of MC38 tumor cells was markedly accelerated and host survival was significantly shortened compared with wild-type (WT). Our flow cytometric analysis revealed that tumors grown in IP6K1 KO mice had lower immune suppressive myeloid cells and M1 polarized macrophages. Notably, infiltration of both antigen-presenting dendritic cells and CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes into the tumor tissues was remarkably abrogated in IP6K1 KO condition. These studies suggest that enhanced tumor growth in IP6K1 KO mice resulted from reduced anti-tumor immunity due to disturbed immune cell actions in the tumor microenvironment. In conclusion, we demonstrate that host IP6K1 acts as a tumor suppressor, most likely by fine-tuning diverse tumor-immune cell interactions, which might have implications for improving the host response against cancer progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haein Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung Ju Park
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Sehoon Hong
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Seol-Wa Lim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Seyun Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Republic of Korea
- KAIST Institute for the BioCentury, KAIST, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
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30
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Deng Y, Xia X, Zhao Y, Zhao Z, Martinez C, Yin W, Yao J, Hang Q, Wu W, Zhang J, Yu Y, Xia W, Yao F, Zhao D, Sun Y, Ying H, Hung MC, Ma L. Glucocorticoid receptor regulates PD-L1 and MHC-I in pancreatic cancer cells to promote immune evasion and immunotherapy resistance. Nat Commun 2021; 12:7041. [PMID: 34873175 PMCID: PMC8649069 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27349-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite unprecedented responses of some cancers to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies, the application of checkpoint inhibitors in pancreatic cancer has been unsuccessful. Glucocorticoids and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) signaling are long thought to suppress immunity by acting on immune cells. Here we demonstrate a previously undescribed tumor cell-intrinsic role for GR in activating PD-L1 expression and repressing the major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) expression in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells through transcriptional regulation. In mouse models of PDAC, either tumor cell-specific depletion or pharmacologic inhibition of GR leads to PD-L1 downregulation and MHC-I upregulation in tumor cells, which in turn promotes the infiltration and activity of cytotoxic T cells, enhances anti-tumor immunity, and overcomes resistance to ICB therapy. In patients with PDAC, GR expression correlates with high PD-L1 expression, low MHC-I expression, and poor survival. Our results reveal GR signaling in cancer cells as a tumor-intrinsic mechanism of immunosuppression and suggest that therapeutic targeting of GR is a promising way to sensitize pancreatic cancer to immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yalan Deng
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Xianghou Xia
- Department of Breast Surgery, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 310022, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yang Zhao
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Zilong Zhao
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Consuelo Martinez
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Wenjuan Yin
- Department of Pathology, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 310022, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jun Yao
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Qinglei Hang
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Weiche Wu
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Jie Zhang
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Yang Yu
- Department of Breast Surgery, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 310022, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Weiya Xia
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Fan Yao
- Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, College of Life Science and Technology, College of Biomedicine and Health, Huazhong Agricultural University, 430070, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Di Zhao
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- The University of Texas MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Yutong Sun
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Haoqiang Ying
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
- The University of Texas MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Mien-Chie Hung
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Center for Molecular Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, 404, Taiwan.
- Department of Biotechnology, Asia University, Taichung, 413, Taiwan.
| | - Li Ma
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
- The University of Texas MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
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Jiménez-Morales S, Aranda-Uribe IS, Pérez-Amado CJ, Ramírez-Bello J, Hidalgo-Miranda A. Mechanisms of Immunosuppressive Tumor Evasion: Focus on Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Front Immunol 2021; 12:737340. [PMID: 34867958 PMCID: PMC8636671 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.737340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [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: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a malignancy with high heterogeneity in its biological features and treatments. Although the overall survival (OS) of patients with ALL has recently improved considerably, owing to the application of conventional chemo-therapeutic agents, approximately 20% of the pediatric cases and 40-50% of the adult patients relapse during and after the treatment period. The potential mechanisms that cause relapse involve clonal evolution, innate and acquired chemoresistance, and the ability of ALL cells to escape the immune-suppressive tumor response. Currently, immunotherapy in combination with conventional treatment is used to enhance the immune response against tumor cells, thereby significantly improving the OS in patients with ALL. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms of immune evasion by leukemia cells could be useful for developing novel therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Jiménez-Morales
- Laboratorio de Genómica del Cáncer, Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Ivan Sammir Aranda-Uribe
- Laboratorio de Genómica del Cáncer, Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica, Mexico City, Mexico
- Departamento de Farmacología, División de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Quintana Roo, Quintana Roo, Mexico
| | - Carlos Jhovani Pérez-Amado
- Laboratorio de Genómica del Cáncer, Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica, Mexico City, Mexico
- Programa de Doctorado en Ciencias Bioquímicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Julian Ramírez-Bello
- Departamento de Endocrinología, Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Alfredo Hidalgo-Miranda
- Laboratorio de Genómica del Cáncer, Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica, Mexico City, Mexico
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32
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Dapash M, Castro B, Hou D, Lee-Chang C. Current Immunotherapeutic Strategies for the Treatment of Glioblastoma. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:4548. [PMID: 34572775 PMCID: PMC8467991 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13184548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Glioblastoma (GBM) is a lethal primary brain tumor. Despite extensive effort in basic, translational, and clinical research, the treatment outcomes for patients with GBM are virtually unchanged over the past 15 years. GBM is one of the most immunologically "cold" tumors, in which cytotoxic T-cell infiltration is minimal, and myeloid infiltration predominates. This is due to the profound immunosuppressive nature of GBM, a tumor microenvironment that is metabolically challenging for immune cells, and the low mutational burden of GBMs. Together, these GBM characteristics contribute to the poor results obtained from immunotherapy. However, as indicated by an ongoing and expanding number of clinical trials, and despite the mostly disappointing results to date, immunotherapy remains a conceptually attractive approach for treating GBM. Checkpoint inhibitors, various vaccination strategies, and CAR T-cell therapy serve as some of the most investigated immunotherapeutic strategies. This review article aims to provide a general overview of the current state of glioblastoma immunotherapy. Information was compiled through a literature search conducted on PubMed and clinical trials between 1961 to 2021.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Dapash
- Pritzker School of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA;
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; (B.C.); (D.H.)
| | - Brandyn Castro
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; (B.C.); (D.H.)
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - David Hou
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; (B.C.); (D.H.)
| | - Catalina Lee-Chang
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; (B.C.); (D.H.)
- Northwestern Medicine Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
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33
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Heumann T, Azad N. Next-generation immunotherapy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: navigating pathways of immune resistance. Cancer Metastasis Rev 2021; 40:837-862. [PMID: 34591243 PMCID: PMC9804001 DOI: 10.1007/s10555-021-09981-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
To date, the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors has proven largely ineffective in patients with advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. A combination of low tumor antigenicity, deficits in immune activation along with an exclusive and suppressive tumor microenvironment result in resistance to host defensives. However, a deepening understanding of these immune escape and suppressive mechanisms has led to the discovery of novel molecular targets and treatment strategies that may hold the key to a long-awaited therapeutic breakthrough. In this review, we describe the tumor-intrinsic and microenvironmental barriers to modern immunotherapy, examine novel immune-based and targeted modalities, summarize relevant pre-clinical findings and human experience, and, finally, discuss novel synergistic approaches to overcome immune-resistance in pancreatic cancer. Beyond checkpoint inhibition, immune agonists and anti-tumor vaccines represent promising strategies to stimulate host response via activation and expansion of anti-tumor immune effectors. Off-the-shelf natural killer cell therapies may offer an effective method for bypassing downregulated tumor antigen presentation. In parallel with this, sophisticated targeting of crosstalk between tumor and tumor-associated immune cells may lead to enhanced immune infiltration and survival of anti-tumor lymphocytes. A future multimodal treatment strategy involving immune priming/activation, tumor microenvironment reprogramming, and immune checkpoint blockade may help transform pancreatic cancer into an immunogenic tumor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thatcher Heumann
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nilofer Azad
- Department of Medical Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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34
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Koşaloğlu-Yalçın Z, Blazeska N, Carter H, Nielsen M, Cohen E, Kufe D, Conejo-Garcia J, Robbins P, Schoenberger SP, Peters B, Sette A. The Cancer Epitope Database and Analysis Resource: A Blueprint for the Establishment of a New Bioinformatics Resource for Use by the Cancer Immunology Community. Front Immunol 2021; 12:735609. [PMID: 34504503 PMCID: PMC8421848 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.735609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent years have witnessed a dramatic rise in interest towards cancer epitopes in general and particularly neoepitopes, antigens that are encoded by somatic mutations that arise as a consequence of tumorigenesis. There is also an interest in the specific T cell and B cell receptors recognizing these epitopes, as they have therapeutic applications. They can also aid in basic studies to infer the specificity of T cells or B cells characterized in bulk and single-cell sequencing data. The resurgence of interest in T cell and B cell epitopes emphasizes the need to catalog all cancer epitope-related data linked to the biological, immunological, and clinical contexts, and most importantly, making this information freely available to the scientific community in a user-friendly format. In parallel, there is also a need to develop resources for epitope prediction and analysis tools that provide researchers access to predictive strategies and provide objective evaluations of their performance. For example, such tools should enable researchers to identify epitopes that can be effectively used for immunotherapy or in defining biomarkers to predict the outcome of checkpoint blockade therapies. We present here a detailed vision, blueprint, and work plan for the development of a new resource, the Cancer Epitope Database and Analysis Resource (CEDAR). CEDAR will provide a freely accessible, comprehensive collection of cancer epitope and receptor data curated from the literature and provide easily accessible epitope and T cell/B cell target prediction and analysis tools. The curated cancer epitope data will provide a transparent benchmark dataset that can be used to assess how well prediction tools perform and to develop new prediction tools relevant to the cancer research community.
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MESH Headings
- Antigens, Neoplasm/genetics
- Antigens, Neoplasm/immunology
- Computational Biology
- Databases, Genetic
- Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte
- Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte
- Humans
- Immunotherapy
- Mutation
- Neoplasms/genetics
- Neoplasms/immunology
- Neoplasms/therapy
- Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell/genetics
- Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell/immunology
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology
- Tumor Microenvironment
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Affiliation(s)
- Zeynep Koşaloğlu-Yalçın
- Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccine Research, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Nina Blazeska
- Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccine Research, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Hannah Carter
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
- Moore’s Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Morten Nielsen
- Department of Bio and Health Informatics, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
- Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas, Universidad Nacional de San Martín, San Martín, Argentina
| | - Ezra Cohen
- Moore’s Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Donald Kufe
- Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jose Conejo-Garcia
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, United States
- Department of Immunology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, United States
| | - Paul Robbins
- National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Stephen P. Schoenberger
- Laboratory of Cellular Immunology, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Bjoern Peters
- Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccine Research, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, La Jolla, CA, United States
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Alessandro Sette
- Center for Infectious Disease and Vaccine Research, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, La Jolla, CA, United States
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
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35
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Murtadha AH, Azahar IIM, Sharudin NA, Has ATC, Mokhtar NF. Influence of nNav1.5 on MHC class I expression in breast cancer. J Biosci 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s12038-021-00196-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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36
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Abstract
Next-generation sequencing technologies have revolutionized our ability to catalog the landscape of somatic mutations in tumor genomes. These mutations can sometimes create so-called neoantigens, which allow the immune system to detect and eliminate tumor cells. However, efforts that stimulate the immune system to eliminate tumors based on their molecular differences have had less success than has been hoped for, and there are conflicting reports about the role of neoantigens in the success of this approach. Here we review some of the conflicting evidence in the literature and highlight key aspects of the tumor-immune interface that are emerging as major determinants of whether mutation-derived neoantigens will contribute to an immunotherapy response. Accounting for these factors is expected to improve success rates of future immunotherapy approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Castro
- Biomedical Informatics Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA;
| | - Maurizio Zanetti
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
- The Laboratory of Immunology, Moores Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
| | - Hannah Carter
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA;
- The Laboratory of Immunology, Moores Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
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37
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Bode D, Cull AH, Rubio-Lara JA, Kent DG. Exploiting Single-Cell Tools in Gene and Cell Therapy. Front Immunol 2021; 12:702636. [PMID: 34322133 PMCID: PMC8312222 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.702636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Single-cell molecular tools have been developed at an incredible pace over the last five years as sequencing costs continue to drop and numerous molecular assays have been coupled to sequencing readouts. This rapid period of technological development has facilitated the delineation of individual molecular characteristics including the genome, transcriptome, epigenome, and proteome of individual cells, leading to an unprecedented resolution of the molecular networks governing complex biological systems. The immense power of single-cell molecular screens has been particularly highlighted through work in systems where cellular heterogeneity is a key feature, such as stem cell biology, immunology, and tumor cell biology. Single-cell-omics technologies have already contributed to the identification of novel disease biomarkers, cellular subsets, therapeutic targets and diagnostics, many of which would have been undetectable by bulk sequencing approaches. More recently, efforts to integrate single-cell multi-omics with single cell functional output and/or physical location have been challenging but have led to substantial advances. Perhaps most excitingly, there are emerging opportunities to reach beyond the description of static cellular states with recent advances in modulation of cells through CRISPR technology, in particular with the development of base editors which greatly raises the prospect of cell and gene therapies. In this review, we provide a brief overview of emerging single-cell technologies and discuss current developments in integrating single-cell molecular screens and performing single-cell multi-omics for clinical applications. We also discuss how single-cell molecular assays can be usefully combined with functional data to unpick the mechanism of cellular decision-making. Finally, we reflect upon the introduction of spatial transcriptomics and proteomics, its complementary role with single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and potential application in cellular and gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Bode
- Wellcome Medical Research Council (MRC) Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Alyssa H. Cull
- York Biomedical Research Institute, Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Juan A. Rubio-Lara
- York Biomedical Research Institute, Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - David G. Kent
- York Biomedical Research Institute, Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
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38
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da Luz JCDS, Antunes F, Clavijo-Salomon MA, Signori E, Tessarollo NG, Strauss BE. Clinical Applications and Immunological Aspects of Electroporation-Based Therapies. Vaccines (Basel) 2021; 9:727. [PMID: 34358144 PMCID: PMC8310106 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9070727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Reversible electropermeabilization (RE) is an ultrastructural phenomenon that transiently increases the permeability of the cell membrane upon application of electrical pulses. The technique was described in 1972 by Neumann and Rosenheck and is currently used in a variety of applications, from medicine to food processing. In oncology, RE is applied for the intracellular transport of chemotherapeutic drugs as well as the delivery of genetic material in gene therapies and vaccinations. This review summarizes the physical changes of the membrane, the particularities of bleomycin, and the immunological aspects involved in electrochemotherapy and gene electrotransfer, two important EP-based cancer therapies in human and veterinary oncology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Carlos dos Santos da Luz
- Viral Vector Laboratory, Cancer Institute of São Paulo, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 01246-000, Brazil; (J.C.d.S.d.L.); (F.A.); (N.G.T.)
| | - Fernanda Antunes
- Viral Vector Laboratory, Cancer Institute of São Paulo, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 01246-000, Brazil; (J.C.d.S.d.L.); (F.A.); (N.G.T.)
| | | | - Emanuela Signori
- Institute of Translational Pharmacology, CNR, 00133 Rome, Italy;
| | - Nayara Gusmão Tessarollo
- Viral Vector Laboratory, Cancer Institute of São Paulo, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 01246-000, Brazil; (J.C.d.S.d.L.); (F.A.); (N.G.T.)
| | - Bryan E. Strauss
- Viral Vector Laboratory, Cancer Institute of São Paulo, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 01246-000, Brazil; (J.C.d.S.d.L.); (F.A.); (N.G.T.)
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39
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Darwish M, Wichner S, Li J, Chang JC, Tam C, Franke Y, Li H, Chan P, Blanchette C. High-throughput identification of conditional MHCI ligands and scaled-up production of conditional MHCI complexes. Protein Sci 2021; 30:1169-1183. [PMID: 33840137 PMCID: PMC8138534 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Revised: 04/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Despite the need to monitor the impact of Cancer Immunotherapy (CI)/Immuno-Oncology (IO) therapeutics on neoantigen-specific T-cell responses, very few clinical programs incorporate this aspect of immune monitoring due to the challenges in high-throughput (HTP) generation of Major Histocompatibility Complex Class I (MHCI) tetramers across a wide range of HLA alleles. This limitation was recently addressed through the development of MHCI complexes with peptides containing a nonnatural UV cleavable amino acid (conditional MHCI ligands) that enabled HTP peptide exchange upon UV exposure. Despite this advancement, the number of alleles with known conditional MHCI ligands is limited. We developed a novel workflow to enable identification and validation of conditional MHCI ligands across a range of HLA alleles. First, known peptide binders were screened via an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assay. Conditional MHCI ligands were designed using the highest-performing peptides and evaluated in the same ELISA assay. The top performers were then selected for scale-up production. Next-generation analytical techniques (LC/MS, SEC-MALS, and 2D LC/MS) were used to characterize the complex after refolding with the conditional MHCI ligands. Finally, we used 2D LC/MS to evaluate peptide exchange with these scaled-up conditional MHCI complexes after UV exposure with validated peptide binders. Successful peptide exchange was observed for all conditional MHCI ligands upon UV exposure, validating our screening approach. This approach has the potential to be broadly applied and enable HTP generation of MHCI monomers and tetramers across a wider range of HLA alleles, which could be critical to enabling the use of MHCI tetramers to monitor neoantigen-specific T-cells in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sara Wichner
- Protein ChemistryGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
| | - Jenny Li
- Biochemical and Cellular PharmacologyGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
| | | | - Christine Tam
- BioMolecular ResourcesGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
| | - Yvonne Franke
- BioMolecular ResourcesGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
| | - Hong Li
- Protein ChemistryGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
| | - Pamela Chan
- Biochemical and Cellular PharmacologyGenentech IncSan FranciscoCaliforniaUSA
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40
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Rausch M, Blanc L, De Souza Silva O, Dormond O, Griffioen AW, Nowak-Sliwinska P. Characterization of Renal Cell Carcinoma Heterotypic 3D Co-Cultures with Immune Cell Subsets. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:2551. [PMID: 34067456 PMCID: PMC8197009 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13112551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Revised: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Two-dimensional cell culture-based platforms are easy and reproducible, however, they do not resemble the heterotypic cell-cell interactions or the complex tumor microenvironment. These parameters influence the treatment response and the cancer cell fate. Platforms to study the efficacy of anti-cancer treatments and their impact on the tumor microenvironment are currently being developed. In this study, we established robust, reproducible, and easy-to-use short-term spheroid cultures to mimic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). These 3D co-cultures included human endothelial cells, fibroblasts, immune cell subsets, and ccRCC cell lines, both parental and sunitinib-resistant. During spheroid formation, cells induce the production and secretion of the extracellular matrix. We monitored immune cell infiltration, surface protein expression, and the response to a treatment showing that the immune cells infiltrated the spheroid co-cultures within 6 h. Treatment with an optimized drug combination or the small molecule-based targeted drug sunitinib increased immune cell infiltration significantly. Assessing the therapeutic potential of this drug combination in this platform, we revealed that the expression of PD-L1 increased in 3D co-cultures. The cost- and time-effective establishment of our 3D co-culture model and its application as a pre-clinical drug screening platform can facilitate the treatment validation and clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Rausch
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland; (M.R.); (L.B.)
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Western Switzerland, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
- Translational Research Center in Oncohaematology, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Léa Blanc
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland; (M.R.); (L.B.)
| | - Olga De Souza Silva
- Department of Visceral Surgery, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland; (O.D.S.S.); (O.D.)
| | - Olivier Dormond
- Department of Visceral Surgery, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland; (O.D.S.S.); (O.D.)
| | - Arjan W. Griffioen
- Angiogenesis Laboratory, Department of Medical Oncology, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Medical Oncology, Cancer Center Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands;
| | - Patrycja Nowak-Sliwinska
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland; (M.R.); (L.B.)
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Western Switzerland, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
- Translational Research Center in Oncohaematology, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
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41
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Xun X, Zhang C, Wang S, Hu S, Xiang X, Cheng Q, Li Z, Wang Y, Zhu J. Cyclooxygenase-2 expressed hepatocellular carcinoma induces cytotoxic T lymphocytes exhaustion through M2 macrophage polarization. Am J Transl Res 2021; 13:4360-4375. [PMID: 34150019 PMCID: PMC8205841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Due to the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) complexity and cancer heterogeneity, the clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are barely elicited from the conventional treatment options, even from the promising anti-cancer immunotherapy. As a suppressive TIME-related marker, the role played by cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in HCC TIME, and its potential effects on anti-cancer T cell immune response remains unknown. In our study, to investigate the COX-2-dependent immune regulation pathway, we verified that the macrophages phenotypes were correlated to COX-2/PGE2 expressions among HCC patients. A multi-cellular co-culture platform containing HCC cells, macrophages, and T cells were established to mimic HCC TIME in vitro and in animal model. M2 macrophage polarization and activated CD8+ T cells exhaustion were observed under high COX-2 levels in HCC cells, with further evaluation using CRISPR/Cas9-based PTGS2 knocking out and COX-2 blockade (celecoxib) treatment controls. PGE2, TGF-β, Granzyme B, and IFN-γ levels were testified by flow cytometry and ELISA to fully understand the mechanism of COX-2 suppressive effects on T cell-based anti-HCC responses. The activation of the TGF-β pathway evaluated by auto-western blot in T cells was confirmed which increased the level of phosphorylated Smad3, phosphorylated Samd2, and FoxP1, leading to T cell de-lymphotoxin. In conclusion, high COX-2-expressing HCC cell lines can induce anti-tumor abilities exhaustion in activated CD8+ T cell through M2 TAMs polarization and TGF beta pathway. COX-2 inhibitors may reduce the inhibitory effect on CD8+ T cells through regulating TAMs in TIME, thus enhance the T cell-based cytotoxicity and improve the prognosis of HCC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaodong Xun
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Changkun Zhang
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Siqi Wang
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Shihua Hu
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Xiao Xiang
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Qian Cheng
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Zhao Li
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Yang Wang
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
| | - Jiye Zhu
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing Key Laboratory of Basic Research on Liver Cirrhosis and Cancer, UMHS-PUHSC Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research Beijing, China
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42
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Gupta RG, Li F, Roszik J, Lizée G. Exploiting Tumor Neoantigens to Target Cancer Evolution: Current Challenges and Promising Therapeutic Approaches. Cancer Discov 2021; 11:1024-1039. [PMID: 33722796 PMCID: PMC8102318 DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-20-1575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2020] [Revised: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 12/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Immunotherapeutic manipulation of the antitumor immune response offers an attractive strategy to target genomic instability in cancer. A subset of tumor-specific somatic mutations can be translated into immunogenic and HLA-bound epitopes called neoantigens, which can induce the activation of helper and cytotoxic T lymphocytes. However, cancer immunoediting and immunosuppressive mechanisms often allow tumors to evade immune recognition. Recent evidence also suggests that the tumor neoantigen landscape extends beyond epitopes originating from nonsynonymous single-nucleotide variants in the coding exome. Here we review emerging approaches for identifying, prioritizing, and immunologically targeting personalized neoantigens using polyvalent cancer vaccines and T-cell receptor gene therapy. SIGNIFICANCE: Several major challenges currently impede the clinical efficacy of neoantigen-directed immunotherapy, such as the relative infrequency of immunogenic neoantigens, suboptimal potency and priming of de novo tumor-specific T cells, and tumor cell-intrinsic and -extrinsic mechanisms of immune evasion. A deeper understanding of these biological barriers could help facilitate the development of effective and durable immunotherapy for any type of cancer, including immunologically "cold" tumors that are otherwise therapeutically resistant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ravi G Gupta
- Department of Hematology/Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, Camden, New Jersey.
| | - Fenge Li
- Department of Melanoma Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
| | - Jason Roszik
- Department of Melanoma Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
- Department of Genomic Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
| | - Gregory Lizée
- Department of Melanoma Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
- Department of Immunology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
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43
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Zhang Z, Lu M, Qin Y, Gao W, Tao L, Su W, Zhong J. Neoantigen: A New Breakthrough in Tumor Immunotherapy. Front Immunol 2021; 12:672356. [PMID: 33936118 PMCID: PMC8085349 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.672356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 35.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 03/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy works by stimulating and strengthening the body’s anti-tumor immune response to eliminate cancer cells. Over the past few decades, immunotherapy has shown remarkable efficacy in the treatment of cancer, particularly the success of immune checkpoint blockade targeting CTLA-4, PD-1 and PDL1, which has led to a breakthrough in tumor immunotherapy. Tumor neoantigens, a new approach to tumor immunotherapy, include antigens produced by tumor viruses integrated into the genome and antigens produced by mutant proteins, which are abundantly expressed only in tumor cells and have strong immunogenicity and tumor heterogeneity. A growing number of studies have highlighted the relationship between neoantigens and T cells’ recognition of cancer cells. Vaccines developed against neoantigens are now being used in clinical trials in various solid tumors. In this review, we summarized the latest advances in the classification of immunotherapy and the process of classification, identification and synthesis of tumor-specific neoantigens, as well as their role in current cancer immunotherapy. Finally, the application prospects and existing problems of neoantigens were discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheying Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Manman Lu
- Department of Pathology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Yu Qin
- Department of Pathology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Wuji Gao
- Department of Pathology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Li Tao
- Department of Gastroenterology, Cancer Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Wei Su
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Jiateng Zhong
- Department of Pathology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
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44
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Nethi SK, Bhatnagar S, Prabha S. Synthetic Receptor-Based Targeting Strategies to Improve Tumor Drug Delivery. AAPS PharmSciTech 2021; 22:93. [PMID: 33683499 DOI: 10.1208/s12249-021-01919-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 12/28/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Heterogeneity in tumor expression as well as expression in normal tissues of various targets limit the usefulness of current ligand-based active targeting approaches. Incorporation of synthetic receptors, which can be recognized by delivery systems engineered to present specific functional groups on the surface, is a novel approach to improve tumor targeting. Alternatively, introduction of synthetic functionalities on cellular carriers can also enhance tumor targeting. We review various strategies that have been utilized for the introduction of synthetic targets in tumor tissues. The introduction of synthetic functional groups in the tumor through improved strategies is anticipated to result in improved target specificity and reduced heterogeneity in target expression.
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45
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Olsen HE, Lynn GM, Valdes PA, Cerecedo Lopez CD, Ishizuka AS, Arnaout O, Bi WL, Peruzzi PP, Chiocca EA, Friedman GK, Bernstock JD. Therapeutic cancer vaccines for pediatric malignancies: advances, challenges, and emerging technologies. Neurooncol Adv 2021; 3:vdab027. [PMID: 33860227 PMCID: PMC8034661 DOI: 10.1093/noajnl/vdab027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Though outcomes for pediatric cancer patients have significantly improved over the past several decades, too many children still experience poor outcomes and survivors suffer lifelong, debilitating late effects after conventional chemotherapy, radiation, and surgical treatment. Consequently, there has been a renewed focus on developing novel targeted therapies to improve survival outcomes. Cancer vaccines are a promising type of immunotherapy that leverage the immune system to mediate targeted, tumor-specific killing through recognition of tumor antigens, thereby minimizing off-target toxicity. As such, cancer vaccines are orthogonal to conventional cancer treatments and can therefore be used alone or in combination with other therapeutic modalities to maximize efficacy. To date, cancer vaccination has remained largely understudied in the pediatric population. In this review, we discuss the different types of tumor antigens and vaccine technologies (dendritic cells, peptides, nucleic acids, and viral vectors) evaluated in clinical trials, with a focus on those used in children. We conclude with perspectives on how advances in combination therapies, tumor antigen (eg, neoantigen) selection, and vaccine platform optimization can be translated into clinical practice to improve outcomes for children with cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah E Olsen
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Pablo A Valdes
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Neurosurgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Christian D Cerecedo Lopez
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Omar Arnaout
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - W Linda Bi
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Pier Paolo Peruzzi
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - E Antonio Chiocca
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Gregory K Friedman
- Division of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.,Department of Neurosurgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
| | - Joshua D Bernstock
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Avidea Technologies, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neurosurgery, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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46
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Resident Memory T Cells in the Tumor Microenvironment. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2020; 1273:39-68. [PMID: 33119875 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-49270-0_3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
Tissue-resident memory T (TRM) cells are strategically positioned within the epithelial layers of many tissues to provide enduring site-specific immunological memory. This unique T-cell lineage is endowed with the capacity to rapidly respond to tissue perturbations and has a well-documented role in eradicating pathogens upon reexposure. Emerging evidence has highlighted a key role for TRM cells in cancer immunity. Single-cell approaches have identified TRM cells among other CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) subsets, and their presence is a positive indicator of clinical outcome in cancer patients. Furthermore, recent preclinical studies have elegantly demonstrated that TRM cells are a critical component of the antitumor immune response. Given their unique functional abilities, TRM cells have emerged as a potential immunotherapeutic target. Here, we discuss TRM cells in the framework of the cancer-immunity cycle and in the context of the T cell- and non-T cell-inflamed tumor microenvironments (TME). We highlight how their core features make TRM cells uniquely suited to function within the metabolically demanding TME. Finally, we consider potential therapeutic avenues that target TRM cells to augment the antitumor immune response.
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47
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Kuryk L, Bertinato L, Staniszewska M, Pancer K, Wieczorek M, Salmaso S, Caliceti P, Garofalo M. From Conventional Therapies to Immunotherapy: Melanoma Treatment in Review. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:cancers12103057. [PMID: 33092131 PMCID: PMC7589099 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12103057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Here, we review the current state of knowledge in the field of cancer immunotherapy, focusing on the scientific rationale for the use of oncolytic viruses, checkpoint inhibitors and their combination to combat melanomas. Attention is also given to the immunological aspects of cancer therapy and the shift from conventional therapy towards immunotherapy. This review brings together information on how immunotherapy can be applied to support other cancer therapies in order to maximize the efficacy of melanoma treatment and improve clinical outcomes. Abstract In this review, we discuss the use of oncolytic viruses and checkpoint inhibitors in cancer immunotherapy in melanoma, with a particular focus on combinatory therapies. Oncolytic viruses are promising and novel anti-cancer agents, currently under investigation in many clinical trials both as monotherapy and in combination with other therapeutics. They have shown the ability to exhibit synergistic anticancer activity with checkpoint inhibitors, chemotherapy, radiotherapy. A coupling between oncolytic viruses and checkpoint inhibitors is a well-accepted strategy for future cancer therapies. However, eradicating advanced cancers and tailoring the immune response for complete tumor clearance is an ongoing problem. Despite current advances in cancer research, monotherapy has shown limited efficacy against solid tumors. Therefore, current improvements in virus targeting, genetic modification, enhanced immunogenicity, improved oncolytic properties and combination strategies have a potential to widen the applications of immuno-oncology (IO) in cancer treatment. Here, we summarize the strategy of combinatory therapy with an oncolytic vector to combat melanoma and highlight the need to optimize current practices and improve clinical outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukasz Kuryk
- Department of Virology, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene, Chocimska 24, 00-791 Warsaw, Poland; (K.P.); (M.W.)
- Clinical Science, Targovax Oy, Saukonpaadenranta 2, 00180 Helsinki, Finland
- Correspondence: (L.K.); (M.G.)
| | - Laura Bertinato
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Via F. Marzolo 5, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (S.S.); (P.C.)
| | - Monika Staniszewska
- Chair of Drug and Cosmetics Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw University of Technology, Noakowskiego 3, 00-664 Warsaw, Poland;
- Centre for Advanced Materials and Technologies, Warsaw University of Technology, Poleczki 19, 02-822 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Pancer
- Department of Virology, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene, Chocimska 24, 00-791 Warsaw, Poland; (K.P.); (M.W.)
| | - Magdalena Wieczorek
- Department of Virology, National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene, Chocimska 24, 00-791 Warsaw, Poland; (K.P.); (M.W.)
| | - Stefano Salmaso
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Via F. Marzolo 5, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (S.S.); (P.C.)
| | - Paolo Caliceti
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Via F. Marzolo 5, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (S.S.); (P.C.)
| | - Mariangela Garofalo
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, University of Padova, Via F. Marzolo 5, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (S.S.); (P.C.)
- Correspondence: (L.K.); (M.G.)
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48
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Zamora AE, Crawford JC, Allen EK, Guo XZJ, Bakke J, Carter RA, Abdelsamed HA, Moustaki A, Li Y, Chang TC, Awad W, Dallas MH, Mullighan CG, Downing JR, Geiger TL, Chen T, Green DR, Youngblood BA, Zhang J, Thomas PG. Pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia generate abundant and functional neoantigen-specific CD8 + T cell responses. Sci Transl Med 2020; 11:11/498/eaat8549. [PMID: 31243155 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aat8549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2018] [Revised: 11/16/2018] [Accepted: 05/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Cancer arises from the accumulation of genetic alterations, which can lead to the production of mutant proteins not expressed by normal cells. These mutant proteins can be processed and presented on the cell surface by major histocompatibility complex molecules as neoepitopes, allowing CD8+ T cells to mount responses against them. For solid tumors, only an average 2% of neoepitopes predicted by algorithms have detectable endogenous antitumor T cell responses. This suggests that low mutation burden tumors, which include many pediatric tumors, are poorly immunogenic. Here, we report that pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have tumor-associated neoepitope-specific CD8+ T cells, responding to 86% of tested neoantigens and recognizing 68% of the tested neoepitopes. These responses include a public neoantigen from the ETV6-RUNX1 fusion that is targeted in seven of nine tested patients. We characterized phenotypic and transcriptional profiles of CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) at the single-cell level and found a heterogeneous population that included highly functional effectors. Moreover, we observed immunodominance hierarchies among the CD8+ TILs restricted to one or two putative neoepitopes. Our results indicate that robust antitumor immune responses are induced in pediatric ALL despite their low mutation burdens and emphasize the importance of immunodominance in shaping cellular immune responses. Furthermore, these data suggest that pediatric cancers may be amenable to immunotherapies aimed at enhancing immune recognition of tumor-specific neoantigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony E Zamora
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Jeremy Chase Crawford
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - E Kaitlynn Allen
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Xi-Zhi J Guo
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA.,Integrated Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
| | - Jesse Bakke
- Department of Chemical Biology and Therapeutics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA.,Department of Foundational Sciences, College of Medicine, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI 48858, USA
| | - Robert A Carter
- Department of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Hossam A Abdelsamed
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Ardiana Moustaki
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Yongjin Li
- Department of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Ti-Cheng Chang
- Department of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Walid Awad
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Mari H Dallas
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Charles G Mullighan
- Department of Pathology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - James R Downing
- Department of Pathology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Terrence L Geiger
- Department of Pathology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Taosheng Chen
- Department of Chemical Biology and Therapeutics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Douglas R Green
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Benjamin A Youngblood
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Jinghui Zhang
- Department of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Paul G Thomas
- Department of Immunology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. .,Integrated Biomedical Sciences Program, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
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49
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Bisheshar SK, De Ruiter EJ, Devriese LA, Willems SM. The prognostic role of NK cells and their ligands in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Oncoimmunology 2020; 9:1747345. [PMID: 32363116 PMCID: PMC7185215 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2020.1747345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Revised: 01/21/2020] [Accepted: 02/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background : Despite the improvement in therapeutic interventions, 5-year survival rates in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) are limited. HNSCC is an immunogenic cancer type for which molecular stratification markers are lacking. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) have shown a favorable prognostic role in different cancer types. This study focused on the prognostic role of NK cells in HNSCC. Methods : A systematic search was conducted in Pubmed/Medline and Embase. Articles that correlated the presence of intratumoral NK cells, activating/inhibiting receptors, death receptors, or their ligands with clinicopathologic characteristics or survival were included. A meta-analysis was performed that assessed the association between CD56+ and CD57+ and overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and progression-free survival (PFS). Results : A pooled analysis indicated a favorable prognostic role of CD56+ and CD57+ NK cells for OS (HR 0.19 CI 0.11-0.35). NK cell markers NKp46 and Granzyme B (GrB) also have a favorable prognostic role. NK cell ligand Fas correlated with better survival and better characteristics. NK cell marker Fas-L, NK cell ligands CEACAM1, RCAS1, CD70 and TRAIL-R, and effector molecules of these ligands, FADD and FAP1, correlated to features of worse prognosis. Conclusion : A favorable prognostic role of NK cells in HNSCC was found in this review. Some studies implied the opposite, indicating the fine balance between pro- and anti-tumor functions of NK cells. Future studies using homogeneous patient cohorts regarding tumor subsite and treatment modality, are necessary to further provide insight into the prognostic role of NK cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sangeeta K. Bisheshar
- Department of Pathology, University Medical Center Utrecht, CX Utrecht 3584, The Netherlands
| | - Emma J. De Ruiter
- Department of Pathology, University Medical Center Utrecht, CX Utrecht 3584, The Netherlands
| | - Lot A. Devriese
- Department of Medical Oncology, University Medical Center Utrecht, CX Utrecht 3584, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan M. Willems
- Department of Pathology, University Medical Center Utrecht, CX Utrecht 3584, The Netherlands
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50
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Ebelt ND, Zuniga E, Johnson BL, Diamond DJ, Manuel ER. 5-Azacytidine Potentiates Anti-tumor Immunity in a Model of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma. Front Immunol 2020; 11:538. [PMID: 32296439 PMCID: PMC7136411 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 03/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumors evolve a variety of mechanisms to escape immune detection while expressing tumor-promoting molecules that can be immunogenic. Here, we show that transposable elements (TE) and gene encoded, tumor-associated antigens (TAA), which can be both highly immunogenic and tumor-promoting, are significantly upregulated during the transition from pre-malignancy to malignancy in an inducible model of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Coincident with the increased presence of TEs and TAAs was the downregulation of gene transcripts associated with antigen presentation, T cell recruitment and intrinsic anti-viral responses, suggesting a unique strategy employed by PDAC to possibly augment tumorigenesis while escaping detection by the immune system. In vitro treatment of mouse and human PDAC cell lines with the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-azacytidine (Aza) resulted in augmented expression of transcripts for antigen presentation machinery and T cell chemokines. When immunocompetent mice implanted with PDAC were therapeutically treated with Aza, we observed significant tumor regression that was not observed in immunocompromised mice, implicating anti-tumor immunity as the principal mechanism of tumor growth control. Analysis of PDAC tumors, immediately following Aza treatment in immunocompetent mice, revealed a significantly greater infiltration of T cells and various innate immune subsets compared to control treatment, suggesting that Aza treatment enhances tumor immunogenicity. Thus, augmenting antigen presentation and T cell chemokine expression using DNA methyltransferase inhibitors could be leveraged to potentiate adaptive anti-tumor immune responses against PDAC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nancy D. Ebelt
- Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, United States
| | - Edith Zuniga
- Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, United States
| | - Benjamin L. Johnson
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, United States
| | - Don J. Diamond
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, United States
| | - Edwin R. Manuel
- Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, United States
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