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Lopez DC, Fabian KP, Padget MR, Robbins YL, Kowalczyk JT, Lassoued W, Pastor DM, Allen CT, Gallia GL, Gulley JL, Hodge JW, London NR. Chordoma cancer stem cell subpopulation characterization may guide targeted immunotherapy approaches to reduce disease recurrence. Front Oncol 2024; 14:1376622. [PMID: 38741774 PMCID: PMC11089222 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1376622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Cancer stem cells (CSCs), a group of tumor-initiating and tumor-maintaining cells, may be major players in the treatment resistance and recurrence distinctive of chordoma. Characterizing CSCs is crucial to better targeting this subpopulation. Methods Using flow cytometry, six chordoma cell lines were evaluated for CSC composition. In vitro, cell lines were stained for B7H6, HER2, MICA-B, ULBP1, EGFR, and PD-L1 surface markers. Eighteen resected chordomas were stained using a multispectral immunofluorescence (mIF) antibody panel to identify CSCs in vivo. HALO software was used for quantitative CSC density and spatial analysis. Results In vitro, chordoma CSCs express more B7H6, MICA-B, and ULBP1, assessed by percent positivity and mean fluorescence intensity (MFI), as compared to non-CSCs in all cell lines. PD- L1 percent positivity is increased by >20% in CSCs compared to non-CSCs in all cell lines except CH22. In vivo, CSCs comprise 1.39% of chordoma cells and most are PD-L1+ (75.18%). A spatial analysis suggests that chordoma CSCs cluster at an average distance of 71.51 mm (SD 73.40 mm) from stroma. Discussion To our knowledge, this study is the first to identify individual chordoma CSCs and describe their surface phenotypes using in vitro and in vivo methods. PD-L1 is overexpressed on CSCs in chordoma human cell lines and operative tumor samples. Similarly, potential immunotherapeutic targets on CSCs, including B7H6, MICA-B, ULBP1, EGFR, and HER2 are overexpressed across cell lines. Targeting these markers may have a preferential role in combating CSCs, an aggressive subpopulation likely consequential to chordoma's high recurrence rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana C. Lopez
- Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, Surgical Oncology Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Kellsye P. Fabian
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Michelle R. Padget
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Yvette L. Robbins
- Head and Neck Section, Surgical Oncology Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Joshua T. Kowalczyk
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Department of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Wiem Lassoued
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Danielle M. Pastor
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Clint T. Allen
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Head and Neck Section, Surgical Oncology Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Gary L. Gallia
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine;, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - James L. Gulley
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - James W. Hodge
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nyall R. London
- Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, Surgical Oncology Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine;, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Single-cell transcriptome reveals cellular hierarchies and guides p-EMT-targeted trial in skull base chordoma. Cell Discov 2022; 8:94. [PMID: 36127333 PMCID: PMC9489773 DOI: 10.1038/s41421-022-00459-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Skull base chordoma (SBC) is a bone cancer with a high recurrence rate, high radioresistance rate, and poorly understood mechanism. Here, we profiled the transcriptomes of 90,691 single cells, revealed the SBC cellular hierarchies, and explored novel treatment targets. We identified a cluster of stem-like SBC cells that tended to be distributed in the inferior part of the tumor. Combining radiated UM-Chor1 RNA-seq data and in vitro validation, we further found that this stem-like cell cluster is marked by cathepsin L (CTSL), a gene involved in the packaging of telomere ends, and may be responsible for radioresistance. Moreover, signatures related to partial epithelial-mesenchymal transition (p-EMT) were found to be significant in malignant cells and were related to the invasion and poor prognosis of SBC. Furthermore, YL-13027, a p-EMT inhibitor that acts through the TGF-β signaling pathway, demonstrated remarkable potency in inhibiting the invasiveness of SBC in preclinical models and was subsequently applied in a phase I clinical trial that enrolled three SBC patients. Encouragingly, YL-13027 attenuated the growth of SBC and achieved stable disease with no serious adverse events, underscoring the clinical potential for the precision treatment of SBC with this therapy. In summary, we conducted the first single-cell RNA sequencing of SBC and identified several targets that could be translated to the treatment of SBC.
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Hoke AT, Padget MR, Fabian KP, Nandal A, Gallia GL, Bilusic M, Soon-Shiong P, Hodge JW, London NR. Combinatorial Natural Killer Cell-based Immunotherapy Approaches Selectively Target Chordoma Cancer Stem Cells. CANCER RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 2021; 1:127-139. [PMID: 35765577 PMCID: PMC9236084 DOI: 10.1158/2767-9764.crc-21-0020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/14/2023]
Abstract
Chordoma is a rare tumor derived from notochord remnants that has a propensity to recur and metastasize despite conventional multimodal treatment. Cancer stem cells (CSC) are implicated in chordoma's resistant and recurrent behavior; thus strategies that target CSCs are of particular interest. Using in vitro cytotoxicity models, we demonstrated that anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (N-601) and anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (cetuximab) antibodies enhanced lysis of chordoma cells by healthy donor and chordoma patient NK cells through antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). Treatment of NK cells with an IL-15 superagonist complex (N-803) increased their cytotoxicity against chordoma cells, which was further enhanced by treatment with N-601 and/or cetuximab. PD-L1-targeted chimeric antigen receptor NK cells (PD-L1 t-haNKs) were also effective against chordoma cells. CSCs were preferentially vulnerable to NK cell killing in the presence of N-601 and N-803. Flow cytometric analysis of a chordoma CSC population showed that CSCs expressed significantly more NK activating ligand B7-H6 and PD-L1 than non-CSCs, thus explaining a potential mechanism of selective targeting. These data suggest that chordoma may be effectively targeted by combinatorial NK cell-mediated immunotherapeutic approaches and that the efficacy of these approaches in chordoma and other CSC-driven tumor types should be investigated further in clinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin T.K. Hoke
- Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, National Institutes on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Michelle R. Padget
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Kellsye P. Fabian
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Anjali Nandal
- Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, National Institutes on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Gary L. Gallia
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Marijo Bilusic
- Genitourinary Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | | | - James W. Hodge
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Nyall R. London
- Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, National Institutes on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
- Corresponding Author: Nyall R. London Jr., Sinonasal and Skull Base Tumor Program, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications Disorders (NIDCD), NIH, 10 Center Drive Room #7N256, Bethesda, MD USA 20892-2320. Phone: 301-402-4216; E-mail:
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Sarabia-Estrada R, Ruiz-Valls A, Shah SR, Ahmed AK, Ordonez AA, Rodriguez FJ, Guerrero-Cazares H, Jimenez-Estrada I, Velarde E, Tyler B, Li Y, Phillips NA, Goodwin CR, Petteys RJ, Jain SK, Gallia GL, Gokaslan ZL, Quinones-Hinojosa A, Sciubba DM. Effects of primary and recurrent sacral chordoma on the motor and nociceptive function of hindlimbs in rats: an orthotopic spine model. J Neurosurg Spine 2017; 27:215-226. [PMID: 28598292 DOI: 10.3171/2016.12.spine16917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Chordoma is a slow-growing, locally aggressive cancer that is minimally responsive to conventional chemotherapy and radiotherapy and has high local recurrence rates after resection. Currently, there are no rodent models of spinal chordoma. In the present study, the authors sought to develop and characterize an orthotopic model of human chordoma in an immunocompromised rat. METHODS Thirty-four immunocompromised rats were randomly allocated to 4 study groups; 22 of the 34 rats were engrafted in the lumbar spine with human chordoma. The groups were as follows: UCH1 tumor-engrafted (n = 11), JHC7 tumor-engrafted (n = 11), sham surgery (n = 6), and intact control (n = 6) rats. Neurological impairment of rats due to tumor growth was evaluated using open field and locomotion gait analysis; pain response was evaluated using mechanical or thermal paw stimulation. Cone beam CT (CBCT), MRI, and nanoScan PET/CT were performed to evaluate bony changes due to tumor growth. On Day 550, rats were killed and spines were processed for H & E-based histological examination and immunohistochemistry for brachyury, S100β, and cytokeratin. RESULTS The spine tumors displayed typical chordoma morphology, that is, physaliferous cells filled with vacuolated cytoplasm of mucoid matrix. Brachyury immunoreactivity was confirmed by immunostaining, in which samples from tumor-engrafted rats showed a strong nuclear signal. Sclerotic lesions in the vertebral body of rats in the UCH1 and JHC7 groups were observed on CBCT. Tumor growth was confirmed using contrast-enhanced MRI. In UCH1 rats, large tumors were observed growing from the vertebral body. JHC7 chordoma-engrafted rats showed smaller tumors confined to the bone periphery compared with UCH1 chordoma-engrafted rats. Locomotion analysis showed a disruption in the normal gait pattern, with an increase in the step length and duration of the gait in tumor-engrafted rats. The distance traveled and the speed of rats in the open field test was significantly reduced in the UCH1 and JHC7 tumor-engrafted rats compared with controls. Nociceptive response to a mechanical stimulus showed a significant (p < 0.001) increase in the paw withdrawal threshold (mechanical hypalgesia). In contrast, the paw withdrawal response to a thermal stimulus decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in tumor-engrafted rats. CONCLUSIONS The authors developed an orthotopic human chordoma model in rats. Rats were followed for 550 days using imaging techniques, including MRI, CBCT, and nanoScan PET/CT, to evaluate lesion progression and bony integrity. Nociceptive evaluations and locomotion analysis were performed during follow-up. This model reproduces cardinal signs, such as locomotor and sensory deficits, similar to those observed clinically in human patients. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first spine rodent model of human chordoma. Its use and further study will be essential for pathophysiology research and the development of new therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sagar R Shah
- Department of Neurologic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida.,Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | | | - Alvaro A Ordonez
- Pediatrics, Center for Infection and Inflammation Imaging Research
| | | | | | - Ismael Jimenez-Estrada
- Department of Physiology, Biophysics, and Neurosciences, Research Center for Advanced Studies IPN, Mexico City, Mexico
| | | | | | - Yuxin Li
- Department of Neurosurgery, Jinan General Hospital of PLA, Jinan, China
| | | | | | | | - Sanjay K Jain
- Pediatrics, Center for Infection and Inflammation Imaging Research
| | | | - Ziya L Gokaslan
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island; and
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