IL36 indicating good prognosis in human Hepatocellular Carcinoma

IL-36 antagonism blunts the proliferation and migration of oral squamous cell carcinoma cells

IL-36 is known to mediate inflammation and fibrosis. Nevertheless, IL-36 signalling axis has also been implicated in cancer, although understanding of exact contribution of IL-36 to cancer progression is very limited, partly due to existence of multiple IL-36 ligands with agonistic and antagonistic function. Here we explored the role of IL-36 in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Firstly, we analyzed expression of IL-36 ligands and receptor and found that the expression of IL-36γ was significantly higher in head and neck cancer (HNSCC) than that of normal tissues, and that the high expression of IL-36γ predicted poor clinical outcomes. Secondly, we investigated the direct effect of IL-36γ on OSCC cells and found that IL-36γ stimulated proliferation of OSCC cells with high expression of IL-36R expression. Interestingly, IL-36γ also promoted migration of OSCC cells with low to high IL-36R expression. Critically, both proliferation and migration of OSCC cells induced by IL-36γ were abrogated by anti-IL-36R mAb. Fittingly, RNA sequence analysis revealed that IL-36γ regulated genes involved in cell cycle and cell division. In summary, our results showed that IL-36γ can be a tumor-promoting factor, and targeting of IL-36R signalling may be a beneficial targeted therapy for patients with abnormal IL-36 signalling.

The role of IL-36 and 37 in hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has garnered considerable attention due to its morbidity and mortality. Although the precise mechanisms underlying HCC tumorigenesis remain to be elucidated, evidence suggests that host immunity plays a pivotal role in its development. IL-36 and IL-37 are important immunoregulatory cytokines classified as pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory respectively. In the context of HCC, the downregulation of intrahepatic IL-36 is inversely correlated with cirrhosis, but positively correlated with 5-year survival rates, suggesting that IL-36 offers protection during HCC development. However, IL-36 may lose its hepatoprotective effects as the disease progresses to HCC in the context of dysregulated immunity in cirrhotic patients. Substantially increased circulating IL-36 in HCC patients is likely a systemic response to HCC stimulation, but is insufficient to suppress progression towards HCC. Intrahepatic IL-37 is suppressed in HCC patients, consistent with the inverse correlation between intrahepatic IL-37 and the level of AFP in HCC patients, suggesting IL-37 exerts hepatoprotection. There is no significant difference in IL-37 among differentiations of HCC or with respect to clinical BCLC stages or cirrhosis status in HCC patients. However, IL-37 protection is demonstrated in an IL-37 transfected HCC animal model, showing significantly reduced tumour size. IL-36/37 may inhibit HCC by enhancing M1 tumour-associated macrophages while not affecting M2 macrophages. The interplay between IL-36 (pro-inflammatory) and IL-37 (anti-inflammatory) is emerging as a crucial factor in host protection against the development of HCC. Further research is needed to investigate the complex mechanisms involved and the therapeutic potential of targeting these cytokines in HCC management.

Prognostic value of Interleukin-36s in cancers: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Interleukin-36s (IL-36s) are a category of inflammatory cytokines and an increasing number of studies over the past decade have found that different kinds of IL-36s play different roles in cancers. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of IL-36s in different cancer types.

METHOD

Two reviewers independently searched in PubMed, Cochrane Library and EMBASE up to December 13, 2022. We extracted the hazard ratio (HR) and the confidence intervals (CIs) of the related prognostic outcomes and analyzed the pooled HR.

RESULTS

We included 12 studies including 1925 patients. In all, six studies including IL-36α, five including IL-36γ and one including IL-36β. A high expression of IL-36α was associated with better overall survival (OS) (HR = 0.48, 95 %CI: 0.37-0.62, P < 0.001) of cancer patients. The expression of IL-36γ was not related with cancers. Further, subgroup analysis showed that the expression of IL-36γ had no correlation with the OS of colorectal cancer (CRC) and non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Interestingly, a high expression of IL-36γ played contrasting prognostic roles in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (HR = 0.43, 95 %CI: 0.27-0.69, P < 0.001) patients and gastric cancer (GC) (HR = 1.58, 95 %CI: 1.33-1.87, P < 0.001) patients. The only IL-36β related study showed the expression of IL-36β was not correlated with the prognosis of CRC patients (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

IL-36α, IL-36β and IL-36γ possibly play different roles in different cancers. High expression of IL-36α may be associated with good prognostic value in cancer patients, especially in CRC patients. The association between cancers prognosis and expression of IL-36β or IL-36γ needs further evaluation. These conclusions need more clinical prognostic data for confirmation.

The Pro-Tumor Biological Function of IL-36α Plays an Important Role in the Tumor Microenvironment of HCC

Purpose

To investigate the role of IL-36 in the tumorigenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). IL-36 composed of a natural antagonist (IL-36Ra) and three agonists (IL-36α, -β, -γ) that stimulate inflammation by binding to a common receptor consisting of IL-36R and IL-1RAcP. HCC is a common malignancy associated with high morbidity and mortality, often diagnosed at later stages. Although the exact role of IL-36α in HCC remains controversial, it is hypothesized that it may play a significant role in the development and progression of this cancer.

Materials and Methods

In the current study, we measured both circulating and intrahepatic levels of IL-36α from HCC patients and healthy controls, using ELISA. The association between IL-36 and the differentiation of HCC was determined. Furthermore, the role IL-36 in both HCC and non-HCC cell lines was evaluated in vitro.

Results

Circulating and intra-hepatic IL-36α was inversely correlated with differentiation of HCC, suggesting that IL-36α contribute to protection during the development of HCC. Based on bioinformatics, miR-27b-3p is closely related to downstream IL-36α. Thus, we determined miR-27b-3p expression in HCC tissues, showing upregulated miR-27b-3p was inversely correlated with IL-36α in HCC, perhaps via CXCL1 in HCC cells. It was confirmed that IL-36α inhibited HCC proliferation, viability and migration in vitro, consistent with reduced the expression of cytokines IL-1β, IL-18, implying that IL-36α inhibited the possible involvement of pyroptosis.

Conclusion

Our data suggests that IL-36α may be a potential therapeutic target and a prediction biomarker for the management of HCC.

Transcriptomic and functional analyses reveal a tumour-promoting role for the IL-36 receptor in colon cancer and crosstalk between IL-36 signalling and the IL-17/ IL-23 axis

BACKGROUND

The interleukin (IL)-36 cytokines are a sub-family of the IL-1 family which are becoming increasingly implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases and malignancies. Initial studies of IL-36 signalling in tumorigenesis identified an immune-mediated anti-tumorigenic function for these cytokines. However, more recent studies have shown IL-36 cytokines also contribute to the pathogenesis of lung and colorectal cancer (CRC).

METHODS

The aim of this study was to investigate IL-36 expression in CRC using transcriptomic datasets and software such as several R packages, Cytoscape, GEO2R and AnalyzeR. Validation of results was completed by qRT-PCR on both cell lines and a patient cohort. Cellular proliferation was assessed by flow cytometry and resazurin reduction.

RESULTS

We demonstrate that IL-36 gene expression increases with CRC development. Decreased tumoral IL-36 receptor expression was shown to be associated with improved patient outcome. Our differential gene expression analysis revealed a novel role for the IL-36/IL-17/IL-23 axis, with these findings validated using patient-derived samples and cell lines. IL-36γ, together with either IL-17a or IL-22, was able to synergistically induce different genes involved in the IL-17/IL-23 axis in CRC cells and additively induce colon cancer cell proliferation.

CONCLUSIONS

Collectively, this data support a pro-tumorigenic role for IL-36 signalling in colon cancer, with the IL-17/IL-23 axis influential in IL-36-mediated colon tumorigenesis.

Enrichment of Tumor-Infiltrating B Cells in Group 4 Medulloblastoma in Children

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant brain tumor in children. It is classified into core molecular subgroups (wingless activated (WNT), sonic hedgehog activated (SHH), Group 3 (G3), and Group 4 (G4)). In this study, we analyzed the tumor-infiltrating immune cells and cytokine profiles of 70 MB patients in Taiwan using transcriptome data. In parallel, immune cell composition in tumors from the SickKids cohort dataset was also analyzed to confirm the findings. The clinical cohort data showed the WNT and G4 MB patients had lower recurrence rates and better 5-year relapse-free survival (RFP) compared with the SHH and G3 MB patients, among the four subgroups of MB. We found tumor-infiltrating B cells (TIL-Bs) enriched in the G4 subgroups in the Taiwanese MB patients and the SickKids cohort dataset. In the G4 subgroups, the patients with a high level of TIL-Bs had better 5-year overall survival. Mast cells presented in G4 MB tumors were positively correlated with TIL-Bs. Higher levels of CXCL13, IL-36γ, and CCL27 were found compared to other subgroups or normal brains. These three cytokines, B cells and mast cells contributed to the unique immune microenvironment in G4 MB tumors. Therefore, B-cell enrichment is a G4-subgroup-specific immune signature and the presence of B cells may be an indicator of a better prognosis in G4 MB patients.

The role of IL-36 subfamily in intestinal disease

Interleukin (IL)-36 is a subfamily, of the IL-1 super-family and includes IL-36α, IL-36β, IL-36γ, IL-38 and IL-36Ra. IL-36 cytokines are involved in the pathology of multiple tissues, including skin, lung, oral cavity, intestine, kidneys and joints. Recent studies suggest that IL-36 signaling regulates autoimmune disease in addition to antibacterial and antiviral responses. Most research has focused on IL-36 in skin diseases such as psoriasis, however, studies on intestinal diseases are also underway. This review outlines what is known about the bioactivity of the IL-36 subfamily and its role in the pathogenesis of intestinal diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, colorectal cancer, gut dysbacteriosis and infection, and proposes that IL-36 may be a target for novel therapeutic strategies to prevent or treat intestinal diseases.

The Role of IL-36 in the Pathophysiological Processes of Autoimmune Diseases

A member of the interleukin (IL)-1 superfamily was IL-36, which contained IL-36α, IL-36β, IL-36γ, and IL-36Ra. Heterotrimer complexes, consisting of heterodimeric receptor complexes and IL-36 agonist, gave signals through intracellular functional domains, so as to bind to downstream proteins and induce inflammatory response. IL-36 agonists upregulated mature-associated CD80, CD86, MHCII, and inductively produced several pro-inflammatory cytokines through the IL-36R-dependent manner in dendritic cells (DCs). Besides, DCs had the ability to initiate the differentiation of helper T (Th) cells. Up to date, the role of IL-36 in immunity, inflammation and other diseases is of great importance. Additionally, autoimmune diseases were characterized by excessive immune response, resulting in damage and dysfunction of specific or multiple organs and tissues. Most autoimmune diseases were related to inflammatory response. In this review, we will conclude the recent research advances of IL-36 in the occurrence and development of autoimmune diseases, which may provide new insight for the future research and the treatment of these diseases.

IL-36 cytokines in inflammatory and malignant diseases: not the new kid on the block anymore

The IL-36 family of cytokines were first identified in 2000 based on their sequence homology to IL-1 cytokines. Over subsequent years, the ability of these cytokines to either agonise or antagonise an IL-1R homologue, now known as the IL-36 Receptor (IL-36R), was identified and these cytokines went through several cycles of renaming with the current nomenclature being proposed in 2010. Despite being identified over 20 years ago, it is only during the last decade that the function of these cytokines in health and disease has really begun to be appreciated, with both homeostatic functions in wound healing and response to infection, as well as pathological functions now ascribed. In the disease context, over activation of IL-36 has now been associated with many inflammatory diseases including Psoriasis and inflammatory bowel diseases, with roles in cancer also now being investigated. This review summarises the current knowledge of IL-36 biology, its role in inflammatory diseases and focuses on an emerging role for IL-36 in cancer.