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Leopold AV, Verkhusha VV. Engineering signalling pathways in mammalian cells. Nat Biomed Eng 2024:10.1038/s41551-024-01237-z. [PMID: 39237709 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-024-01237-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2024] [Indexed: 09/07/2024]
Abstract
In mammalian cells, signalling pathways orchestrate cellular growth, differentiation and survival, as well as many other processes that are essential for the proper functioning of cells. Here we describe cutting-edge genetic-engineering technologies for the rewiring of signalling networks in mammalian cells. Specifically, we describe the recombination of native pathway components, cross-kingdom pathway transplantation, and the development of de novo signalling within cells and organelles. We also discuss how, by designing signalling pathways, mammalian cells can acquire new properties, such as the capacity for photosynthesis, the ability to detect cancer and senescent cell markers or to synthesize hormones or metabolites in response to chemical or physical stimuli. We also review the applications of mammalian cells in biocomputing. Technologies for engineering signalling pathways in mammalian cells are advancing basic cellular biology, biomedical research and drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna V Leopold
- Medicum, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Vladislav V Verkhusha
- Medicum, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
- Department of Genetics and Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA.
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2
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Basnet S, Van der Heijden M, Quixabeira DCA, Jirovec E, Grönberg-Vähä-Koskela SAM, Clubb JHA, Kanerva A, Pakola S, Haybout L, Arias V, Hemminki O, Kudling T, Zafar S, Cervera-Carrascon V, Santos JM, Hemminki A. Overcoming effector T cell exhaustion in ovarian cancer ascites with a novel adenovirus encoding for a MUC1 bispecific antibody engager and IL-2 cytokine. Mol Ther 2024; 32:3114-3127. [PMID: 38910324 PMCID: PMC11403222 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.06.029] [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: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 03/18/2024] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/25/2024] Open
Abstract
T cell-focused cancer immunotherapy including checkpoint inhibitors and cell therapies has been rapidly evolving over the past decade. Nevertheless, there remains a major unmet medical need in oncology generally and immuno-oncology specifically. We have constructed an oncolytic adenovirus, Ad5/3-E2F-d24-aMUC1aCD3-IL-2 (TILT-322), which is armed with a human aMUC1aCD3 T cell engager and IL-2. TILT-322 treatment stimulated T cell cytotoxicity through the increased presence of granzyme B, perforin, and interferon-gamma. Additional immune profiling indicated TILT-322 increased gamma delta T cell activation and impacted other cell types such as natural killer cells and natural killer-like T cells that are traditionally involved in cancer immunotherapy. TILT-322 treatment also decreased the proportion of exhausted CD8+ T cells as demarked by immune checkpoint expression in ovarian ascites samples. Overall, our data showed that TILT-322 treatment led to an enhanced T cell activation and reversed T cell exhaustion translating into high antitumor efficacy when given locally or intravenously. The analysis of blood and tumors isolated from an in vivo patient-derived ovarian cancer xenograft model suggested TILT-322 mediated tumor control through improved T cell functions. Therefore, TILT-322 is a promising novel anti-tumor agent for clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saru Basnet
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Mirte Van der Heijden
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Dafne C A Quixabeira
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Elise Jirovec
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Susanna A M Grönberg-Vähä-Koskela
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki University Hospital (HUS), Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki, Finland
| | - James H A Clubb
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Anna Kanerva
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Santeri Pakola
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki University Hospital (HUS), Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Lyna Haybout
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Victor Arias
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Otto Hemminki
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Department of Urology, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Tatiana Kudling
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sadia Zafar
- Applied Tumor Genomics HUS Comprehensive Cancer Center, Research Program, Research Program Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Department of Pathology, HUSLAB, HUS Diagnostic Center, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Victor Cervera-Carrascon
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Joao M Santos
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Akseli Hemminki
- Cancer Gene Therapy Group, Translational Immunology Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; TILT Biotherapeutics Ltd, Helsinki, Finland; Translational Immunology Research Program (TRIMM), Research Program Unit (RPU), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; Helsinki University Hospital (HUS), Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki, Finland.
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3
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Li Y, Ahamed Younis D, He C, Ni C, Liu R, Zhou Y, Sun Z, Lin H, Xiao Z, Sun B. Engineered IRES-mediated promoter-free insulin-producing cells reverse hyperglycemia. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2024; 15:1439351. [PMID: 39279997 PMCID: PMC11392723 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2024.1439351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2024] [Accepted: 08/02/2024] [Indexed: 09/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Endogenous insulin supplementation is essential for individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D). However, current treatments, including pancreas transplantation, insulin injections, and oral medications, have significant limitations. The development of engineered cells that can secrete endogenous insulin offers a promising new therapeutic strategy for type 1 diabetes (T1D). This approach could potentially circumvent autoimmune responses associated with the transplantation of differentiated β-cells or systemic delivery of viral vectors. Methods We utilized CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing coupled with homology-directed repair (HDR) to precisely integrate a promoter-free EMCVIRES-insulin cassette into the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of the GAPDH gene in human HEK-293T cells. Subsequently quantified insulin expression levels in these engineered cells, the viability and functionality of the engineered cells when seeded on different cell vectors (GelMA and Cytopore I) were also assessed. Finally, we investigated the therapeutic potential of EMCVIRES-based insulin secretion circuits in reversing Hyperglycaemia in T1D mice. Result Our results demonstrate that HDR-mediated gene editing successfully integrated the IRES-insulin loop into the genome of HEK-293T cells, a non-endocrine cell line, enabling the expression of human-derived insulin. Furthermore, Cytopore I microcarriers facilitated cell attachment and proliferation during in vitro culture and enhanced cell survival post-transplantation. Transplantation of these cell-laden microcarriers into mice led to the development of a stable, fat-encapsulated structure. This structure exhibited the expression of the platelet-endothelial cell adhesion molecule CD31, and no significant immune rejection was observed throughout the experiment. Diabetic mice that received the cell carriers reversed hyperglycemia, and blood glucose fluctuations under simulated feeding stimuli were very similar to those of healthy mice. Conclusion In summary, our study demonstrates that Cytopore I microcarriers are biocompatible and promote long-term cell survival in vivo. The promoter-free EMCVIRES-insulin loop enables non-endocrine cells to secrete mature insulin, leading to a rapid reduction in glucose levels. We have presented a novel promoter-free genetic engineering strategy for insulin secretion and proposed an efficient cell transplantation method. Our findings suggest the potential to expand the range of cell sources available for the treatment of diabetes, offering new avenues for therapeutic interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumin Li
- State Key Laboratory of Digital Medical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Doulathunnisa Ahamed Younis
- State Key Laboratory of Digital Medical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, United States
| | - Cong He
- State Key Laboratory of Digital Medical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bio functional Molecules, College of Life Science and Chemistry, Jiangsu Second Normal University, Nanjing, China
| | - Chengming Ni
- Department of Endocrinology, Zhongda Hospital, Institute of Diabetes, School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Rui Liu
- Department of Genetic Engineering, College of Natural Science, University of Suwon, Hwaseong, Kyunggi-Do, Republic of Korea
| | - Yunting Zhou
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zilin Sun
- Department of Endocrinology, Zhongda Hospital, Institute of Diabetes, School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Hao Lin
- Department of Endocrinology, Zhongda Hospital, Institute of Diabetes, School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zhongdang Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Digital Medical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Bo Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Digital Medical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
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Zhao J, Chen Z, Zhang M, Zou L, He S, Liu J, Wang Q, Song X, Wu J. DeepIRES: a hybrid deep learning model for accurate identification of internal ribosome entry sites in cellular and viral mRNAs. Brief Bioinform 2024; 25:bbae439. [PMID: 39234953 PMCID: PMC11375421 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbae439] [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: 06/17/2024] [Revised: 08/03/2024] [Accepted: 08/21/2024] [Indexed: 09/06/2024] Open
Abstract
The internal ribosome entry site (IRES) is a cis-regulatory element that can initiate translation in a cap-independent manner. It is often related to cellular processes and many diseases. Thus, identifying the IRES is important for understanding its mechanism and finding potential therapeutic strategies for relevant diseases since identifying IRES elements by experimental method is time-consuming and laborious. Many bioinformatics tools have been developed to predict IRES, but all these tools are based on structure similarity or machine learning algorithms. Here, we introduced a deep learning model named DeepIRES for precisely identifying IRES elements in messenger RNA (mRNA) sequences. DeepIRES is a hybrid model incorporating dilated 1D convolutional neural network blocks, bidirectional gated recurrent units, and self-attention module. Tenfold cross-validation results suggest that DeepIRES can capture deeper relationships between sequence features and prediction results than other baseline models. Further comparison on independent test sets illustrates that DeepIRES has superior and robust prediction capability than other existing methods. Moreover, DeepIRES achieves high accuracy in predicting experimental validated IRESs that are collected in recent studies. With the application of a deep learning interpretable analysis, we discover some potential consensus motifs that are related to IRES activities. In summary, DeepIRES is a reliable tool for IRES prediction and gives insights into the mechanism of IRES elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhao
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Zhewei Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Meng Zhang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Lingxiao Zou
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Shan He
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Jingjing Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Quan Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Xiaofeng Song
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, No. 29 Jiangjun Road, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211106, China
| | - Jing Wu
- School of Biomedical Engineering and Informatics, Nanjing Medical University, No. 101 Longmian Avenue, Jiangning District, Nanjing 211166, China
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Sharma NK, Dwivedi P, Bhushan R, Maurya PK, Kumar A, Dakal TC. Engineering circular RNA for molecular and metabolic reprogramming. Funct Integr Genomics 2024; 24:117. [PMID: 38918231 DOI: 10.1007/s10142-024-01394-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2024] [Revised: 06/10/2024] [Accepted: 06/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Abstract
The role of messenger RNA (mRNA) in biological systems is extremely versatile. However, it's extremely short half-life poses a fundamental restriction on its application. Moreover, the translation efficiency of mRNA is also limited. On the contrary, circular RNAs, also known as circRNAs, are a common and stable form of RNA found in eukaryotic cells. These molecules are synthesized via back-splicing. Both synthetic circRNAs and certain endogenous circRNAs have the potential to encode proteins, hence suggesting the potential of circRNA as a gene expression machinery. Herein, we aim to summarize all engineering aspects that allow exogenous circular RNA (circRNA) to prolong the time that proteins are expressed from full-length RNA signals. This review presents a systematic engineering approach that have been devised to efficiently assemble circRNAs and evaluate several aspects that have an impact on protein production derived from. We have also reviewed how optimization of the key components of circRNAs, including the topology of vector, 5' and 3' untranslated sections, entrance site of the internal ribosome, and engineered aptamers could be efficiently impacting the translation machinery for molecular and metabolic reprogramming. Collectively, molecular and metabolic reprogramming present a novel way of regulating distinctive cellular features, for instance growth traits to neoplastic cells, and offer new possibilities for therapeutic inventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Narendra Kumar Sharma
- Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Banasthali Vidyapith (Deemed University), P.O. Banasthali Vidyapith Distt. Tonk, Rajasthan, 304 022, India.
| | - Pragya Dwivedi
- Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Banasthali Vidyapith (Deemed University), P.O. Banasthali Vidyapith Distt. Tonk, Rajasthan, 304 022, India
| | - Ravi Bhushan
- Department of Zoology, M.S. College, Motihari, Bihar, India
| | - Pawan Kumar Maurya
- Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Haryana, Mahendergarh, 123031, Haryana, India
| | - Abhishek Kumar
- Institute of Bioinformatics, International Technology Park, Bangalore, 560066, Karnataka, India
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, 576104, Karnataka, India
| | - Tikam Chand Dakal
- Genome and Computational Biology Lab, Department of Biotechnology, Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur, Rajasthan, 313001, India.
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Jacobebbinghaus N, Lauersen KJ, Kruse O, Baier T. Bicistronic expression of nuclear transgenes in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 118:1400-1412. [PMID: 38415961 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
In eukaryotic organisms, proteins are typically translated from monocistronic messenger RNAs containing a single coding sequence (CDS). However, recent long transcript sequencing identified 87 nuclear polycistronic mRNAs in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii natively carrying multiple co-expressed CDSs. In this study, we investigated the dynamics of 22 short intergenic sequences derived from these native polycistronic loci by their application in genetic constructs for synthetic transgene expression. A promising candidate sequence was identified based on the quantification of transformation efficiency and expression strength of a fluorescence reporter protein. Subsequently, the expression of independent proteins from one mRNA was verified by cDNA amplification and protein molecular mass characterization. We demonstrated engineered bicistronic expression in vivo to drive successful co-expression of several terpene synthases with the selection marker aphVIII. Bicistronic transgene design resulted in significantly increased (E)-α-bisabolene production of 7.95 mg L-1 from a single open reading frame, 18.1× fold higher than previous reports. Use of this strategy simplifies screening procedures for identification of high-level expressing transformants, does not require the application of additional fluorescence reporters, and reduces the nucleotide footprint compared to classical monocistronic expression cassettes. Although clear advantages for bicistronic transgene expression were observed, this strategy was found to be limited to the aphVIII marker, and further studies are necessary to gain insights into the underlying mechanism that uniquely permits this co-expression from the algal nuclear genome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nick Jacobebbinghaus
- Algae Biotechnology and Bioenergy, Faculty of Biology, Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Kyle J Lauersen
- Bioengineering Program, Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
| | - Olaf Kruse
- Algae Biotechnology and Bioenergy, Faculty of Biology, Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Thomas Baier
- Algae Biotechnology and Bioenergy, Faculty of Biology, Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec), Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
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Solodushko V, Fouty B. Terminal hairpins improve protein expression in IRES-initiated mRNA in the absence of a cap and polyadenylated tail. Gene Ther 2023; 30:620-627. [PMID: 36828937 PMCID: PMC9951143 DOI: 10.1038/s41434-023-00391-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/26/2023]
Abstract
Synthesizing mRNA in vitro is a standard and simple procedure. Adding the 5' cap and 3' polyadenylated (poly(A)) tail to make this mRNA functional for use as a vaccine or therapy increases the time and cost of production and usually decreases the yield, however. We designed mRNA that lacked a cap and poly(A) tail but included an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES) to initiate protein translation. To protect the 5' and 3' ends of mRNA from exonucleases, we added stable terminal hairpins. When compared against typical mRNA (i.e., mRNA that contained a cap and poly(A) tail but lacked hairpins), expression of the delivered reporter protein in HEK293 cells was similar. Using a triple instead of a single hairpin at each end increased protein expression even more. This method has the potential to simplify the production and reduce the cost of synthesizing exogenous mRNA for use as biologics or vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Solodushko
- Department of Pharmacology, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
- The Center for Lung Biology, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
| | - Brian Fouty
- Department of Pharmacology, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
- The Center for Lung Biology, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
- The Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of South Alabama School of Medicine, Mobile, AL, 36688, USA.
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8
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Liu Y, Wu Z, Wu D, Gao N, Lin J. Reconstitution of Multi-Protein Complexes through Ribozyme-Assisted Polycistronic Co-Expression. ACS Synth Biol 2022; 12:136-143. [PMID: 36512506 PMCID: PMC9872166 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
In living cells, proteins often exert their functions by interacting with other proteins forming protein complexes. Obtaining homogeneous samples of protein complexes with correct fold and stoichiometry is critical for its biochemical and biophysical characterization as well as functional investigation. Here, we developed a Ribozyme-Assisted Polycistronic co-expression system (pRAP) for heterologous co-production and in vivo assembly of multi-subunit complexes. In the pRAP system, a polycistronic mRNA transcript is co-transcriptionally converted into individual mono-cistrons in vivo. Each cistron can initiate translation with comparable efficiency, resulting in balanced production for all subunits, thus permitting faithful protein complex assembly. With pRAP polycistronic co-expression, we have successfully reconstituted large functional multi-subunit complexes involved in mammalian translation initiation. Our invention provides a valuable tool for studying the molecular mechanisms of biological processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Liu
- State
Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Zhongshan
Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Zihan Wu
- State
Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Zhongshan
Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Damu Wu
- State
Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for
Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Ning Gao
- State
Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for
Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jinzhong Lin
- State
Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Zhongshan
Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China,. Tel.: +86-21-31246764
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9
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Martínez-Puente DH, Pérez-Trujillo JJ, Zavala-Flores LM, García-García A, Villanueva-Olivo A, Rodríguez-Rocha H, Valdés J, Saucedo-Cárdenas O, Montes de Oca-Luna R, Loera-Arias MDJ. Plasmid DNA for Therapeutic Applications in Cancer. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14091861. [PMID: 36145609 PMCID: PMC9503848 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14091861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2022] [Revised: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, the interest in using nucleic acids for therapeutic applications has been increasing. DNA molecules can be manipulated to express a gene of interest for gene therapy applications or vaccine development. Plasmid DNA can be developed to treat different diseases, such as infections and cancer. In most cancers, the immune system is limited or suppressed, allowing cancer cells to grow. DNA vaccination has demonstrated its capacity to stimulate the immune system to fight against cancer cells. Furthermore, plasmids for cancer gene therapy can direct the expression of proteins with different functions, such as enzymes, toxins, and cytotoxic or proapoptotic proteins, to directly kill cancer cells. The progress and promising results reported in animal models in recent years have led to interesting clinical results. These DNA strategies are expected to be approved for cancer treatment in the near future. This review discusses the main strategies, challenges, and future perspectives of using plasmid DNA for cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José Juan Pérez-Trujillo
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
| | - Laura Mireya Zavala-Flores
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Northeast Biomedical Research Center (CIBIN) of IMSS, Nuevo Leon Delegation, Monterrey 64720, Mexico
| | - Aracely García-García
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
| | - Arnulfo Villanueva-Olivo
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
| | - Humberto Rodríguez-Rocha
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
| | - Jesús Valdés
- Departamento de Bioquímica, CINVESTAV-México, Av. IPN 2508, Colonia San Pedro Zacatenco, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
| | - Odila Saucedo-Cárdenas
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
| | - Roberto Montes de Oca-Luna
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
- Correspondence: (R.M.d.O.-L.); (M.d.J.L.-A.); Tel.: +52-81-8329-4195 (R.M.d.O.-L. & M.d.J.L.-A.)
| | - María de Jesús Loera-Arias
- Histology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), Monterrey 64460, Mexico
- Correspondence: (R.M.d.O.-L.); (M.d.J.L.-A.); Tel.: +52-81-8329-4195 (R.M.d.O.-L. & M.d.J.L.-A.)
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10
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Internal Ribosome Entry Site (IRES)-Mediated Translation and Its Potential for Novel mRNA-Based Therapy Development. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10081865. [PMID: 36009412 PMCID: PMC9405587 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10081865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Many conditions can benefit from RNA-based therapies, namely, those targeting internal ribosome entry sites (IRESs) and their regulatory proteins, the IRES trans-acting factors (ITAFs). IRES-mediated translation is an alternative mechanism of translation initiation, known for maintaining protein synthesis when canonical translation is impaired. During a stress response, it contributes to cell reprogramming and adaptation to the new environment. The relationship between IRESs and ITAFs with tumorigenesis and resistance to therapy has been studied in recent years, proposing new therapeutic targets and treatments. In addition, IRES-dependent translation initiation dysregulation is also related to neurological and cardiovascular diseases, muscular atrophies, or other syndromes. The participation of these structures in the development of such pathologies has been studied, yet to a far lesser extent than in cancer. Strategies involving the disruption of IRES–ITAF interactions or the modification of ITAF expression levels may be used with great impact in the development of new therapeutics. In this review, we aim to comprehend the current data on groups of human pathologies associated with IRES and/or ITAF dysregulation and their application in the designing of new therapeutic approaches using them as targets or tools. Thus, we wish to summarise the evidence in the field hoping to open new promising lines of investigation toward personalised treatments.
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Kandra P, Nandigama R, Eul B, Huber M, Kobold S, Seeger W, Grimminger F, Savai R. Utility and Drawbacks of Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cell (CAR-T) Therapy in Lung Cancer. Front Immunol 2022; 13:903562. [PMID: 35720364 PMCID: PMC9201083 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.903562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The present treatments for lung cancer include surgical resection, radiation, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy. Despite advances in therapies, the prognosis of lung cancer has not been substantially improved in recent years. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell immunotherapy has attracted growing interest in the treatment of various malignancies. Despite CAR-T cell therapy emerging as a novel potential therapeutic option with promising results in refractory and relapsed leukemia, many challenges limit its therapeutic efficacy in solid tumors including lung cancer. In this landscape, studies have identified several obstacles to the effective use of CAR-T cell therapy including antigen heterogeneity, the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, and tumor penetration by CAR-T cells. Here, we review CAR-T cell design; present the results of CAR-T cell therapies in preclinical and clinical studies in lung cancer; describe existing challenges and toxicities; and discuss strategies to improve therapeutic efficacy of CAR-T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prameela Kandra
- Department of Biotechnology, Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM) Institute of Technology, Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM) Deemed to be University, Visakhapatnam, India
| | - Rajender Nandigama
- Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, Member of the German Center for Lung Research Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of the Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Bad Nauheim, Germany
| | - Bastian Eul
- Department of Internal Medicine, Member of the Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Magdalena Huber
- Institute for Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, Philipps-University Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Sebastian Kobold
- Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine IV, Member of the Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), University Hospital Munich, Munich, Germany.,German Cancer Consortium Deutsches Konsortium für Translationale Krebsforschung (DKTK), Partner site Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Werner Seeger
- Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, Member of the German Center for Lung Research Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of the Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Bad Nauheim, Germany.,Department of Internal Medicine, Member of the Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany.,Institute for Lung Health (ILH), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Friedrich Grimminger
- Department of Internal Medicine, Member of the Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany.,Institute for Lung Health (ILH), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
| | - Rajkumar Savai
- Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, Member of the German Center for Lung Research Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of the Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Bad Nauheim, Germany.,Department of Internal Medicine, Member of the Deutsches Zentrum für Lungenforschung (DZL), Member of Cardio-Pulmonary Institute (CPI), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany.,Institute for Lung Health (ILH), Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany
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12
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Kattner AA. One day at a time. Biomed J 2021; 44:S1-S7. [PMID: 35042016 PMCID: PMC8760849 DOI: 10.1016/j.bj.2022.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In this issue of Biomedical Journal we get to know measures to prevent a nosocomial COVID-19 outbreak, a compound that is able to stall SARS-CoV-2 replication, and the connection between air pollution and COVID-19 cases. Another article allows an insight into the potential of treating HIV combining a conventional drug and low level laser therapy. Furthermore, the advantages of awake craniotomy are presented, the efficacy of IRES is examined, and plant extracts are on the one hand explored as a nociceptive agent and on the other hand as therapeutic approach against breast cancer. We learn about drug resistance in liver cancer, a mutation involved in a rare inflammatory disorder, and lung surgery related unilateral vocal fold paralysis. Finally, the success of emergency endotracheal intubations across different hospital units is compared, the importance of monitoring cerebral blood flow in asphyxiated neonates is elucidated, and resistance variants in hepatitis C virus are examined. A study about the necessity to perform quantitative cardiac MRI in Asian population is presented, and an approach is shown on how to augment the effect of platelet-rich plasma injections in chronic knee osteoarthritis.
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13
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Kolesov DV, Ivanova VO, Sokolinskaya EL, Kost LA, Balaban PM, Lukyanov KA, Nikitin ES, Bogdanov AM. Impacts of OrX and cAMP-insensitive Orco to the insect olfactory heteromer activity. Mol Biol Rep 2021; 48:4549-4561. [PMID: 34129187 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-021-06480-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Insect odorant receptors (ORs) have been suggested to function as ligand-gated cation channels, with OrX/Orco heteromers combining ionotropic and metabotropic activity. The latter is mediated by different G proteins and results in Orco self-activation by cyclic nucleotide binding. In this contribution, we co-express the odor-specific subunits DmOr49b and DmOr59b with either wild-type Orco or an Orco-PKC mutant lacking cAMP activation heterologously in mammalian cells. We show that the characteristics of heteromers strongly depend on both the OrX type and the coreceptor variant. Thus, methyl acetate-sensitive Or59b/Orco demonstrated 25-fold faster response kinetics over o-cresol-specific Or49b/Orco, while the latter required a 10-100 times lower ligand concentration to evoke a similar electrical response. Compared to wild-type Orco, Orco-PKC decreased odorant sensitivity in both heteromers, and blocked an outward current rectification intrinsic to the Or49b/Orco pair. Our observations thus provide an insight into insect OrX/Orco functioning, highlighting their natural and artificial tuning features and laying the groundwork for their application in chemogenetics, drug screening, and repellent design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danila V Kolesov
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Moscow, Russia
| | - Violetta O Ivanova
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Liubov A Kost
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Moscow, Russia
| | - Pavel M Balaban
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Evgeny S Nikitin
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexey M Bogdanov
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Moscow, Russia.
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14
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Tickner ZJ, Farzan M. Riboswitches for Controlled Expression of Therapeutic Transgenes Delivered by Adeno-Associated Viral Vectors. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2021; 14:ph14060554. [PMID: 34200913 PMCID: PMC8230432 DOI: 10.3390/ph14060554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2021] [Revised: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Vectors developed from adeno-associated virus (AAV) are powerful tools for in vivo transgene delivery in both humans and animal models, and several AAV-delivered gene therapies are currently approved for clinical use. However, AAV-mediated gene therapy still faces several challenges, including limited vector packaging capacity and the need for a safe, effective method for controlling transgene expression during and after delivery. Riboswitches, RNA elements which control gene expression in response to ligand binding, are attractive candidates for regulating expression of AAV-delivered transgene therapeutics because of their small genomic footprints and non-immunogenicity compared to protein-based expression control systems. In addition, the ligand-sensing aptamer domains of many riboswitches can be exchanged in a modular fashion to allow regulation by a variety of small molecules, proteins, and oligonucleotides. Riboswitches have been used to regulate AAV-delivered transgene therapeutics in animal models, and recently developed screening and selection methods allow rapid isolation of riboswitches with novel ligands and improved performance in mammalian cells. This review discusses the advantages of riboswitches in the context of AAV-delivered gene therapy, the subsets of riboswitch mechanisms which have been shown to function in human cells and animal models, recent progress in riboswitch isolation and optimization, and several examples of AAV-delivered therapeutic systems which might be improved by riboswitch regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary J. Tickner
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, the Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA;
- Correspondence:
| | - Michael Farzan
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, the Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA;
- Emmune, Inc., Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
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15
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Expression of Secreted Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin in 293T Cell Using the Inducible Dual-Function System. Processes (Basel) 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/pr9050855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) has emerged as a promising biomarker for the early prediction of acute kidney injury (AKI). The production of recombinant NGAL is considered to be necessary for the development of a detection method. This study intended to express the recombinant NGAL protein in 293T cell under the Tet-On inducible system and human serum albumin signal sequence (HSA-SS). The transfection efficiency and protein modulation were assessed by detecting the expression of the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) and secreted NGAL protein. Both proteins were detected only in the presence of a doxycycline (Dox) inducer. Cell toxicity was not found under any conditions. Moreover, a higher level of soluble NGAL protein in the supernatant secreted by HSA-SS compared with a native signal peptide (Nat-SS) was observed. In summary, this work successfully optimized the conditions for induction of NGAL expression. This system will provide as an efficient strategy to produce other recombinant proteins secreted from a mammalian cell.
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Brücher D, Kirchhammer N, Smith SN, Schumacher J, Schumacher N, Kolibius J, Freitag PC, Schmid M, Weiss F, Keller C, Grove M, Greber UF, Zippelius A, Plückthun A. iMATCH: an integrated modular assembly system for therapeutic combination high-capacity adenovirus gene therapy. MOLECULAR THERAPY-METHODS & CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT 2021; 20:572-586. [PMID: 33665227 PMCID: PMC7890373 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2021.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Adenovirus-mediated combination gene therapies have shown promising results in vaccination or treating malignant and genetic diseases. Nevertheless, an efficient system for the rapid assembly and incorporation of therapeutic genes into high-capacity adenoviral vectors (HCAdVs) is still missing. In this study, we developed the iMATCH (integrated modular assembly for therapeutic combination HCAdVs) platform, which enables the generation and production of HCAdVs encoding therapeutic combinations in high quantity and purity within 3 weeks. Our modular cloning system facilitates the efficient combination of up to four expression cassettes and the rapid integration into HCAdV genomes with defined sizes. Helper viruses (HVs) and purification protocols were optimized to produce HCAdVs with distinct capsid modifications and unprecedented purity (0.1 ppm HVs). The constitution of HCAdVs, with adapters for targeting and a shield of trimerized single-chain variable fragment (scFv) for reduced liver clearance, mediated cell- and organ-specific targeting of HCAdVs. As proof of concept, we show that a single HCAdV encoding an anti PD-1 antibody, interleukin (IL)-12, and IL-2 produced all proteins, and it led to tumor regression and prolonged survival in tumor models, comparable to a mixture of single payload HCAdVs in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, the iMATCH system provides a versatile platform for the generation of high-capacity gene therapy vectors with a high potential for clinical development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dominik Brücher
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Nicole Kirchhammer
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Hebelstrasse 20, 4031 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sheena N. Smith
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Jatina Schumacher
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Nina Schumacher
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Jonas Kolibius
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Patrick C. Freitag
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Markus Schmid
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Fabian Weiss
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Institute of Pharmacology, University of Bern, Inselspital, INO-F, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Corina Keller
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Melanie Grove
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Urs F. Greber
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Alfred Zippelius
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Hebelstrasse 20, 4031 Basel, Switzerland
- Medical Oncology, University Hospital Basel, 4031 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Plückthun
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Corresponding author: Andreas Plückthun, Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland.
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17
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Zeng D, Qiu C, Shen Y, Hou J, Li Z, Zhang J, Liu S, Shang J, Qin W, Xu L, Bao X. An innovative protein expression system using RNA polymerase I for large-scale screening of high-nucleic-acid content Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains. Microb Biotechnol 2020; 13:2008-2019. [PMID: 32854170 PMCID: PMC7533336 DOI: 10.1111/1751-7915.13653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Revised: 07/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is the preferred source of RNA derivatives, which are widely used as supplements for foods and pharmaceuticals. As the most abundant RNAs, the ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs) transcribed by RNA polymerase I (Pol I) have no 5' caps, thus cannot be translated to proteins. To screen high-nucleic-acid content yeasts more efficiently, a cap-independent protein expression system mediated by Pol I has been designed and established to monitor the regulatory changes of rRNA synthesis by observing the variation in the reporter genes expression. The elements including Pol I-recognized rDNA promoter, the internal ribosome entry site from cricket paralytic virus which can recruit ribosomes internally, reporter genes (URA3 and yEGFP3), oligo-dT and an rDNA terminator were ligated to a yeast episomal plasmid. This system based on the URA3 gene worked well by observing the growth phenotype and did not require the disruption of cap-dependent initiation factors. The fluorescence intensity of strains expressing the yEGFP3 gene increased and drifted after mutagenesis. Combined with flow cytometry, cells with higher GFP level were sorted out. A strain showed 58% improvement in RNA content and exhibited no sequence alteration in the whole expression cassette introduced. This study provides a novel strategy for breeding high-nucleic-acid content yeasts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duwen Zeng
- College of Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Shandong Microbial Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Biobased Material and Green PapermakingQilu University of Technology, Shandong Academy of Sciences3501 Daxue RoadJinan250353China
| | - Chenxi Qiu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Institute of Microbial TechnologyShandong University72 Binhai RoadQingdao266237China
| | - Yu Shen
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Institute of Microbial TechnologyShandong University72 Binhai RoadQingdao266237China
| | - Jin Hou
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Institute of Microbial TechnologyShandong University72 Binhai RoadQingdao266237China
| | - Zailu Li
- College of Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Shandong Microbial Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Biobased Material and Green PapermakingQilu University of Technology, Shandong Academy of Sciences3501 Daxue RoadJinan250353China
| | - Jixiang Zhang
- Shandong Sunkeen Biological Company6789 Xingfuhe RoadJining273517China
| | - Shuai Liu
- Shandong Sunkeen Biological Company6789 Xingfuhe RoadJining273517China
| | - Jianli Shang
- Shandong Sunkeen Biological Company6789 Xingfuhe RoadJining273517China
| | - Wensheng Qin
- Department of BiologyLakehead University955 Oliver RoadThunder BayONP7B 5E1Canada
| | - Lili Xu
- College of Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Shandong Microbial Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Biobased Material and Green PapermakingQilu University of Technology, Shandong Academy of Sciences3501 Daxue RoadJinan250353China
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Institute of Microbial TechnologyShandong University72 Binhai RoadQingdao266237China
- Shandong Sunkeen Biological Company6789 Xingfuhe RoadJining273517China
| | - Xiaoming Bao
- College of Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Shandong Microbial Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Biobased Material and Green PapermakingQilu University of Technology, Shandong Academy of Sciences3501 Daxue RoadJinan250353China
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Institute of Microbial TechnologyShandong University72 Binhai RoadQingdao266237China
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18
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Wagner J, Wickman E, DeRenzo C, Gottschalk S. CAR T Cell Therapy for Solid Tumors: Bright Future or Dark Reality? Mol Ther 2020; 28:2320-2339. [PMID: 32979309 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2020.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 196] [Impact Index Per Article: 49.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 09/08/2020] [Accepted: 09/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has garnered significant excitement due to its success for hematological malignancies in clinical studies leading to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of three CD19-targeted CAR T cell products. In contrast, the clinical experience with CAR T cell therapy for solid tumors and brain tumors has been less encouraging, with only a few patients achieving complete responses. Clinical and preclinical studies have identified multiple "roadblocks," including (1) a limited array of targetable antigens and heterogeneous antigen expression, (2) limited T cell fitness and survival before reaching tumor sites, (3) an inability of T cells to efficiently traffic to tumor sites and penetrate physical barriers, and (4) an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Herein, we review these challenges and discuss strategies that investigators have taken to improve the effector function of CAR T cells for the adoptive immunotherapy of solid tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Wagner
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Elizabeth Wickman
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Christopher DeRenzo
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA
| | - Stephen Gottschalk
- Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA.
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19
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Wang Y, Mao JM, Wang GD, Luo ZP, Yang L, Yao Q, Chen KP. Human SARS-CoV-2 has evolved to reduce CG dinucleotide in its open reading frames. Sci Rep 2020; 10:12331. [PMID: 32704018 PMCID: PMC7378049 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-69342-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Accepted: 07/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The outbreak of COVID-19 has brought great threat to human health. Its causative agent is a severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus which has been officially named SARS-CoV-2. Here we report the discovery of extremely low CG abundance in its open reading frames. We found that CG reduction in SARS-CoV-2 is achieved mainly through mutating C/G into A/T, and CG is the best target for mutation. Meanwhile, 5'-untranslated region of SARS-CoV-2 has high CG content and is capable of forming an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) to recruit host ribosome for translating its RNA. These features allow SARS-CoV-2 to reproduce efficiently in host cells, because less energy is consumed in disrupting the stem-loops formed by its genomic RNA. Notably, genomes of cellular organisms also have very low CG abundance, suggesting that mutating C/G into A/T occurs universally in all life forms. Moreover, CG is the dinucleotide related to CpG island, mutational hotspot and single nucleotide polymorphism in cellular organisms. The relationship between these features is worthy of further investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong Wang
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China.
| | - Jun-Ming Mao
- Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
| | - Guang-Dong Wang
- Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
| | - Zhi-Peng Luo
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
| | - Liu Yang
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
| | - Qin Yao
- Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
| | - Ke-Ping Chen
- Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, China
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20
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Murata K, Nakatsugawa M, Rahman MA, Nguyen LT, Millar DG, Mulder DT, Sugata K, Saijo H, Matsunaga Y, Kagoya Y, Guo T, Anczurowski M, Wang CH, Burt BD, Ly D, Saso K, Easson A, Goldstein DP, Reedijk M, Ghazarian D, Pugh TJ, Butler MO, Mak TW, Ohashi PS, Hirano N. Landscape mapping of shared antigenic epitopes and their cognate TCRs of tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes in melanoma. eLife 2020; 9:53244. [PMID: 32314731 PMCID: PMC7234812 DOI: 10.7554/elife.53244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Accepted: 04/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
HLA-restricted T cell responses can induce antitumor effects in cancer patients. Previous human T cell research has largely focused on the few HLA alleles prevalent in a subset of ethnic groups. Here, using a panel of newly developed peptide-exchangeable peptide/HLA multimers and artificial antigen-presenting cells for 25 different class I alleles and greater than 800 peptides, we systematically and comprehensively mapped shared antigenic epitopes recognized by tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes (TILs) from eight melanoma patients for all their class I alleles. We were able to determine the specificity, on average, of 12.2% of the TILs recognizing a mean of 3.1 shared antigen-derived epitopes across HLA-A, B, and C. Furthermore, we isolated a number of cognate T cell receptor genes with tumor reactivity. Our novel strategy allows for a more complete examination of the immune response and development of novel cancer immunotherapy not limited by HLA allele prevalence or tumor mutation burden. The immune system is the body’s way of defending itself, offering protection against diseases such as cancer. But to remove the cancer cells, the immune system must be able to identify them as different from the rest of the body. All cells break down proteins into shorter fragments, known as peptides, that are displayed on the cell surface by a protein called human leukocyte antigen, HLA for short. Cancer cells display distinctive peptides on their surface as they generate different proteins to those of healthy cells. Immune cells called T cells use these abnormal peptides to identify the cancer so that it can be destroyed. Sometimes T cells can lack the right equipment to detect abnormal peptides, allowing cancer cells to hide from the immune system. However, T cells can be trained through a treatment called immunotherapy, which provides T cells with new tools so that they can spot the peptides displayed by HLA on the previously ‘hidden’ cancer cells. There are many different forms of HLA, each of which can display different peptides. Current research in immunotherapy commonly targets only a subset of HLA forms, and not all cancer patients have these types. This means that immunotherapy research is only likely to be of most benefit to a limited number of patients. Immunotherapy could be made effective for more people if new cancer peptides that are displayed by the other ‘under-represented’ forms of HLA were identified. Murata, Nakatsugawa et al. have now used T cells that were taken from tumors in eight patients with melanoma, which is a type of skin cancer. A library of fluorescent HLA-peptides was generated – using a new, simplified methodology – with 25 forms of HLA that displayed over 800 peptides. T cells were then mixed with the library to identify which HLA-peptides they can target. As a result, Murata, Nakatsugawa et al. found the cancer targets of around 12% of the tumor-infiltrating T cells tested, including those from under-represented forms of HLA. Consequently, these findings could be used to develop new immunotherapies that can treat more patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenji Murata
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Munehide Nakatsugawa
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Muhammed A Rahman
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Linh T Nguyen
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Douglas G Millar
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - David T Mulder
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kenji Sugata
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Hiroshi Saijo
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Yukiko Matsunaga
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Yuki Kagoya
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tingxi Guo
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Mark Anczurowski
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Chung-Hsi Wang
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Brian D Burt
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Dalam Ly
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kayoko Saso
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Alexandra Easson
- Department of Surgical Oncology, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - David P Goldstein
- Department of Surgical Oncology, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Michael Reedijk
- Department of Surgical Oncology, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Danny Ghazarian
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Trevor J Pugh
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, Canada
| | - Marcus O Butler
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Tak W Mak
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Pamela S Ohashi
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada
| | - Naoto Hirano
- Tumor Immunotherapy Program, Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.,Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, Canada
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21
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Ghosh A, Shcherbik N. Effects of Oxidative Stress on Protein Translation: Implications for Cardiovascular Diseases. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E2661. [PMID: 32290431 PMCID: PMC7215667 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21082661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Revised: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 04/09/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a group of disorders that affect the heart and blood vessels. Due to their multifactorial nature and wide variation, CVDs are the leading cause of death worldwide. Understanding the molecular alterations leading to the development of heart and vessel pathologies is crucial for successfully treating and preventing CVDs. One of the causative factors of CVD etiology and progression is acute oxidative stress, a toxic condition characterized by elevated intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Left unabated, ROS can damage virtually any cellular component and affect essential biological processes, including protein synthesis. Defective or insufficient protein translation results in production of faulty protein products and disturbances of protein homeostasis, thus promoting pathologies. The relationships between translational dysregulation, ROS, and cardiovascular disorders will be examined in this review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnab Ghosh
- Department for Cell Biology and Neuroscience, School of Osteopathic Medicine, Rowan University, 2 Medical Center Drive, Stratford, NJ 08084, USA
| | - Natalia Shcherbik
- Department for Cell Biology and Neuroscience, School of Osteopathic Medicine, Rowan University, 2 Medical Center Drive, Stratford, NJ 08084, USA
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22
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Gupta K, Parasnis M, Jain R, Dandekar P. Vector-related stratagems for enhanced monoclonal antibody production in mammalian cells. Biotechnol Adv 2019; 37:107415. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2019.107415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 07/01/2019] [Accepted: 07/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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23
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Geiger S, Ozay EI, Geumann U, Hereth MK, Magnusson T, Shanthalingam S, Hirsch D, Kälin S, Günther C, Osborne BA, Tew GN, Hermann FG, Minter LM. Alpha-1 Antitrypsin-Expressing Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Confer a Long-Term Survival Benefit in a Mouse Model of Lethal GvHD. Mol Ther 2019; 27:1436-1451. [PMID: 31138510 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2019.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2018] [Revised: 05/02/2019] [Accepted: 05/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Acute graft-versus-host disease is a frequent complication associated with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Patients that become refractory to initial steroid treatment have a poor prognosis. apceth-201 consists of human allogeneic mesenchymal stromal cells, engineered by lentiviral transduction to express the protease inhibitor alpha-1 antitrypsin, to augment the anti-inflammatory potential of the mesenchymal stromal cells. We show that apceth-201 mesenchymal stromal cells efficiently suppress T cell proliferation and polarize macrophages to an anti-inflammatory M2 type, in vitro. To assess the in vivo efficacy of apceth-201, it was tested in two different mouse models of acute graft-versus-host disease. Control animals in a humanized model succumbed quickly to disease, whereas median survival was doubled in apceth-201-treated animals. The product was also tested in a graft-versus-host disease model system that closely mimics haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, an approach that is now being evaluated for use in the clinic. Control animals succumbed quickly to disease, whereas treatment with apceth-201 resulted in long-term survival of 57% of the animals. Within 25 days after the second injection, clinical scores returned to baseline in responding animals, indicating complete resolution of graft-versus-host disease. These promising data have led to planning of a phase I study using apceth-201.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Emrah I Ozay
- Program in Molecular & Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA; Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Ulf Geumann
- apceth Biopharma GmbH, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | | | | | - Sudarvili Shanthalingam
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | | | | | | | - Barbara A Osborne
- Program in Molecular & Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA; Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Gregory N Tew
- Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | | | - Lisa M Minter
- Program in Molecular & Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA; Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
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24
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Hofacre A, Yagiz K, Mendoza D, Lopez Espinoza F, Munday AW, Burrascano C, Singer O, Gruber HE, Jolly DJ, Lin AH. Efficient Therapeutic Protein Expression Using Retroviral Replicating Vector with 2A Peptide in Cancer Models. Hum Gene Ther 2018; 29:437-451. [PMID: 29216761 DOI: 10.1089/hum.2017.205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Toca 511, a retroviral replicating vector (RRV), uses an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES) to express an optimized yeast cytosine deaminase (yCD2), which converts 5-fluorocytosine to 5-fluorouracil. This configuration is genetically stable in both preclinical mouse models and human clinical trials. However, the use of IRES (∼600 bp) restricts choices of therapeutic transgenes due to limits in RRV genome size. This study replaced IRES with 2A peptides derived from picornaviruses with or without a GSG linker. The data show that GSG-linked 2A (g2A) peptide resulted in higher polyprotein separation efficiency than non-GSG linked 2A peptide. The study also shows that RRV can tolerate insertion of two separate 2A peptides to allow expression of two transgenes without compromising the assembly and function of the virus in addition to insertion of a single 2A peptide to confirm genetic stability with yCD2, green fluorescent protein, and HSV-1 thymidine kinase. In a parallel comparison of the RRV-IRES-yCD2 and RRV-g2A-yCD2 configurations, the study shows the yCD2 protein expressed from RRV-g2A-yCD2 has higher activity, resulting in a higher survival benefit in an intracranial tumor mouse model. These data enable a wider range of potential product candidates that could be developed using the RRV platform.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Amy H Lin
- Tocagen, Inc. , San Diego, California
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25
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Renaud-Gabardos E, Tatin F, Hantelys F, Lebas B, Calise D, Kunduzova O, Masri B, Pujol F, Sicard P, Valet P, Roncalli J, Chaufour X, Garmy-Susini B, Parini A, Prats AC. Therapeutic Benefit and Gene Network Regulation by Combined Gene Transfer of Apelin, FGF2, and SERCA2a into Ischemic Heart. Mol Ther 2017; 26:902-916. [PMID: 29249393 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2017.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Revised: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 11/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite considerable advances in cardiovascular disease treatment, heart failure remains a public health challenge. In this context, gene therapy appears as an attractive approach, but clinical trials using single therapeutic molecules result in moderate benefit. With the objective of improving ischemic heart failure therapy, we designed a combined treatment, aimed to simultaneously stimulate angiogenesis, prevent cardiac remodeling, and restore contractile function. We have previously validated IRES-based vectors as powerful tools to co-express genes of interest. Mono- and multicistronic lentivectors expressing fibroblast growth factor 2 (angiogenesis), apelin (cardioprotection), and/or SERCA2a (contractile function) were produced and administrated by intramyocardial injection into a mouse model of myocardial infarction. Data reveal that combined treatment simultaneously improves vessel number, heart function parameters, and fibrosis prevention, due to FGF2, SERCA2a, and apelin, respectively. Furthermore, addition of SERCA2a in the combination decreases cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Large-scale transcriptome analysis reveals that the triple treatment is the most efficient in restoring angiogenic balance as well as expression of genes involved in cardiac function and remodeling. Our study validates the concept of combined treatment of ischemic heart disease with apelin, FGF2, and SERCA2a and shows that such therapeutic benefit is mediated by a more effective recovery of gene network regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Florence Tatin
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Fransky Hantelys
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Benoît Lebas
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France; Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse, 31059 Toulouse, France
| | - Denis Calise
- UMS 006, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Oksana Kunduzova
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Bernard Masri
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Françoise Pujol
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Pierre Sicard
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Philippe Valet
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Jérôme Roncalli
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France; Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse, 31059 Toulouse, France
| | - Xavier Chaufour
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France; Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse, 31059 Toulouse, France
| | - Barbara Garmy-Susini
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Angelo Parini
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France
| | - Anne-Catherine Prats
- UMR 1048-I2MC, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, FHU IMPACT, 31432 Toulouse, France.
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26
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Yokoda R, Nagalo BM, Vernon B, Oklu R, Albadawi H, DeLeon TT, Zhou Y, Egan JB, Duda DG, Borad MJ. Oncolytic virus delivery: from nano-pharmacodynamics to enhanced oncolytic effect. Oncolytic Virother 2017; 6:39-49. [PMID: 29184854 PMCID: PMC5687448 DOI: 10.2147/ov.s145262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
With the advancement of a growing number of oncolytic viruses (OVs) to clinical development, drug delivery is becoming an important barrier to overcome for optimal therapeutic benefits. Host immunity, tumor microenvironment and abnormal vascularity contribute to inefficient vector delivery. A number of novel approaches for enhanced OV delivery are under evaluation, including use of nanoparticles, immunomodulatory agents and complex viral–particle ligands along with manipulations of the tumor microenvironment. This field of OV delivery has quickly evolved to bioengineering of complex nanoparticles that could be deposited within the tumor using minimal invasive image-guided delivery. Some of the strategies include ultrasound (US)-mediated cavitation-enhanced extravasation, magnetic viral complexes delivery, image-guided infusions with focused US and targeting photodynamic virotherapy. In addition, strategies that modulate tumor microenvironment to decrease extracellular matrix deposition and increase viral propagation are being used to improve tumor penetration by OVs. Some involve modification of the viral genome to enhance their tumoral penetration potential. Here, we highlight the barriers to oncolytic viral delivery, and discuss the challenges to improving it and the perspectives of establishing new modes of active delivery to achieve enhanced oncolytic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raquel Yokoda
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
| | - Bolni M Nagalo
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
| | - Brent Vernon
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe
| | - Rahmi Oklu
- Division of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ
| | - Hassan Albadawi
- Division of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ
| | - Thomas T DeLeon
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
| | - Yumei Zhou
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
| | - Jan B Egan
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
| | - Dan G Duda
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mitesh J Borad
- Division of Hematology Oncology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale
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27
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Villate-Beitia I, Puras G, Soto-Sánchez C, Agirre M, Ojeda E, Zarate J, Fernández E, Pedraz JL. Non-viral vectors based on magnetoplexes, lipoplexes and polyplexes for VEGF gene delivery into central nervous system cells. Int J Pharm 2017; 521:130-140. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2017.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2016] [Revised: 02/02/2017] [Accepted: 02/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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28
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Lebas B, Galley J, Renaud-Gabardos E, Pujol F, Lenfant F, Garmy-Susini B, Chaufour X, Prats AC. Therapeutic Benefits and Adverse Effects of Combined Proangiogenic Gene Therapy in Mouse Critical Leg Ischemia. Ann Vasc Surg 2017; 40:252-261. [DOI: 10.1016/j.avsg.2016.08.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2016] [Revised: 08/08/2016] [Accepted: 08/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
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29
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Chen Y, Huang H, Yao C, Su F, Guan W, Yan S, Ni Z. Antitumor activity of combined endostatin and thymidine kinase gene therapy in C6 glioma models. Cancer Med 2016; 5:2477-86. [PMID: 27366865 PMCID: PMC5055148 DOI: 10.1002/cam4.798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2016] [Revised: 05/15/2016] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The combination of Endostatin (ES) and Herpes Simplex Virus thymidine kinase (HSV‐TK) gene therapy is known to have antitumor activity in bladder cancer. The potential effect of ES and TK therapy in glioma has not yet been investigated. In this study, pTK‐internal ribosome entry site (IRES), pIRES‐ES, and pTK‐IRES‐ES plasmids were constructed; pIRES empty vector served as the negative control. The recombinant constructs were transfected into human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) ECV304 and C6 rat glioma cell line. Ganciclovir (GCV) was used to induce cell death in transfected C6 cells. We found that ECV304 cells expressing either ES or TK‐ES showed reduced proliferation, decreased migration capacity, and increased apoptosis, as compared to untransfected cells or controls. pTK‐IRES‐ES/GCV or pTK‐IRES/GCV significantly suppressed cell proliferation and induced cell apoptosis in C6 cells, as compared to the control. In addition, the administration of pIRES‐ES, pTK‐IRES/GCV, or pTK‐IRES‐ES/GCV therapy improved animal activity and behavior; was associated with prolonged animal survival, and a lower microvessel density (MVD) value in tumor tissues of C6 glioma rats. In comparison to others, dual gene therapy in form of pTK‐IRES‐ES/GCV had a significant antitumor activity against C6 glioma. These findings indicate combined TK and ES gene therapy was associated with a superior antitumor efficacy as compared to single gene therapy in C6 glioma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Chen
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Honglan Huang
- Department of Pathogenobiology, College of Basic Medical Science, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Chunshan Yao
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Fengbo Su
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Wenming Guan
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Shijun Yan
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China
| | - Zhaohui Ni
- Department of Pathogenobiology, College of Basic Medical Science, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, 130021, P. R. China.
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