1
|
Lim SY, Lee J, Osuna CE, Vikhe P, Schalk DR, Chen E, Fray E, Kumar M, Schultz-Darken N, Rakasz E, Capuano S, Ladd RA, Gil HM, Evans DT, Jeng EK, Seaman M, Martin M, Van Dorp C, Perelson AS, Wong HC, Siliciano JD, Siliciano R, Safrit JT, Nixon DF, Soon-Shiong P, Nussenzweig M, Whitney JB. Induction of durable remission by dual immunotherapy in SHIV-infected ART-suppressed macaques. Science 2024; 383:1104-1111. [PMID: 38422185 PMCID: PMC11022498 DOI: 10.1126/science.adf7966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
The eradication of the viral reservoir represents the major obstacle to the development of a clinical cure for established HIV-1 infection. Here, we demonstrate that the administration of N-803 (brand name Anktiva) and broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) results in sustained viral control after discontinuation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in simian-human AD8 (SHIV-AD8)-infected, ART-suppressed rhesus macaques. N-803+bNAbs treatment induced immune activation and transient viremia but only limited reductions in the SHIV reservoir. Upon ART discontinuation, viral rebound occurred in all animals, which was followed by durable control in approximately 70% of all N-803+bNAb-treated macaques. Viral control was correlated with the reprogramming of CD8+ T cells by N-803+bNAb synergy. Thus, complete eradication of the replication-competent viral reservoir is likely not a prerequisite for the induction of sustained remission after discontinuation of ART.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- So-Yon Lim
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Jina Lee
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Christa E. Osuna
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Pratik Vikhe
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Dane R. Schalk
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Elsa Chen
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Emily Fray
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Mithra Kumar
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Nancy Schultz-Darken
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Eva Rakasz
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Saverio Capuano
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Ruby A Ladd
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Hwi Min Gil
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - David T. Evans
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | | | - Michael Seaman
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Malcolm Martin
- Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | | | - Alan S. Perelson
- Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA
| | | | - Janet D. Siliciano
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Robert Siliciano
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | | | - Douglas F. Nixon
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | | | - Michel Nussenzweig
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - James B. Whitney
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
- Department of Biology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Shrestha N, Chaturvedi P, Zhu X, Dee MJ, George V, Janney C, Egan JO, Liu B, Foster M, Marsala L, Wong P, Cubitt CC, Foltz JA, Tran J, Schappe T, Hsiao K, Leclerc GM, You L, Echeverri C, Spanoudis C, Carvalho A, Kanakaraj L, Gilkes C, Encalada N, Kong L, Wang M, Fang B, Wang Z, Jiao J, Muniz GJ, Jeng EK, Valdivieso N, Li L, Deth R, Berrien‐Elliott MM, Fehniger TA, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Immunotherapeutic approach to reduce senescent cells and alleviate senescence-associated secretory phenotype in mice. Aging Cell 2023; 22:e13806. [PMID: 36967480 PMCID: PMC10186597 DOI: 10.1111/acel.13806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 02/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Accumulation of senescent cells (SNCs) with a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) has been implicated as a major source of chronic sterile inflammation leading to many age-related pathologies. Herein, we provide evidence that a bifunctional immunotherapeutic, HCW9218, with capabilities of neutralizing TGF-β and stimulating immune cells, can be safely administered systemically to reduce SNCs and alleviate SASP in mice. In the diabetic db/db mouse model, subcutaneous administration of HCW9218 reduced senescent islet β cells and SASP resulting in improved glucose tolerance, insulin resistance, and aging index. In naturally aged mice, subcutaneous administration of HCW9218 durably reduced the level of SNCs and SASP, leading to lower expression of pro-inflammatory genes in peripheral organs. HCW9218 treatment also reverted the pattern of key regulatory circadian gene expression in aged mice to levels observed in young mice and impacted genes associated with metabolism and fibrosis in the liver. Single-nucleus RNA Sequencing analysis further revealed that HCW9218 treatment differentially changed the transcriptomic landscape of hepatocyte subtypes involving metabolic, signaling, cell-cycle, and senescence-associated pathways in naturally aged mice. Long-term survival studies also showed that HCW9218 treatment improved physical performance without compromising the health span of naturally aged mice. Thus, HCW9218 represents a novel immunotherapeutic approach and a clinically promising new class of senotherapeutic agents targeting cellular senescence-associated diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Bai Liu
- HCW Biologics Inc.MiramarFloridaUSA
| | - Mark Foster
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Lynne Marsala
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Pamela Wong
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Celia C. Cubitt
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Jennifer A. Foltz
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Jennifer Tran
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Timothy Schappe
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Karin Hsiao
- Department of Pharmaceutical SciencesNova Southeastern UniversityFort LauderdaleFloridaUSA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Lin Kong
- HCW Biologics Inc.MiramarFloridaUSA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Richard Deth
- Department of Pharmaceutical SciencesNova Southeastern UniversityFort LauderdaleFloridaUSA
| | | | - Todd A. Fehniger
- Division of OncologyWashington University School of MedicineSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Chaturvedi P, George V, Shrestha N, Wang M, Dee MJ, Zhu X, Liu B, Egan J, D'Eramo F, Spanoudis C, Gallo V, Echeverri C, You L, Kong L, Fang B, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Immunotherapeutic HCW9218 augments anti-tumor activity of chemotherapy via NK cell-mediated reduction of therapy-induced senescent cells. Mol Ther 2022; 30:1171-1187. [PMID: 35051615 PMCID: PMC8899672 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.01.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Therapy induced senescence (TIS) in tumors and TIS cancer cells secrete proinflammatory senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) factors. SASP factors promote TIS cancer cells to re-enter the growth cycle with stemness characteristics, resulting in chemo-resistance and disease relapse. Herein, we show that the immunotherapeutic HCW9218, comprising transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) receptor II and interleukin (IL)-15/IL-15 receptor α domains, enhances metabolic and cytotoxic activities of immune cells and reduces TIS tumor cells in vivo to improve the efficacy of docetaxel and gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel against B16F10 melanoma and SW1990 pancreatic tumors, respectively. Mechanistically, HCW9218 treatment reduces the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and enhances immune cell infiltration and cytotoxicity in the tumors to eliminate TIS cancer cells. Immuno-depletion analysis suggests that HCW9218-activated natural killer cells play a pivotal role in TIS cancer cell removal. HCW9218 treatment following docetaxel chemotherapy further enhances efficacy of tumor antigen-specific and anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibodies in B16F10 tumor-bearing mice. We also show that HCW9218 treatment decreases TIS cells and lowers SASP factors in off-target tissues caused by chemotherapy of tumor-bearing mice. Collectively, HCW9218 has the potential to significantly enhance anti-tumor efficacy of chemotherapy, therapeutic antibodies, and checkpoint blockade by eliminating TIS cancer cells while reducing TIS-mediated proinflammatory side effects in normal tissues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Meng Wang
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | | | | | - Bai Liu
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Jack Egan
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Lijing You
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Lin Kong
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Byron Fang
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | | | | | - Hing C. Wong
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL 33025, USA,Corresponding author: Hing C. Wong, PhD, HCW Biologics Inc., 2929 N. Commerce Parkway, Miramar, FL 33025, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Becker-Hapak MK, Shrestha N, McClain E, Dee MJ, Chaturvedi P, Leclerc GM, Marsala LI, Foster M, Schappe T, Tran J, Desai S, Neal CC, Pence P, Wong P, Wagner JA, Russler-Germain DA, Zhu X, Spanoudis CM, Gallo VL, Echeverri CA, Ramirez LL, You L, Egan JO, Rhode PR, Jiao JA, Muniz GJ, Jeng EK, Prendes CA, Sullivan RP, Berrien-Elliott MM, Wong HC, Fehniger TA. A Fusion Protein Complex that Combines IL-12, IL-15, and IL-18 Signaling to Induce Memory-Like NK Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy. Cancer Immunol Res 2021; 9:1071-1087. [PMID: 34244297 PMCID: PMC8416787 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-20-1002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are a promising cellular therapy for cancer, with challenges in the field including persistence, functional activity, and tumor recognition. Briefly, priming blood NK cells with recombinant human (rh)IL-12, rhIL-15, and rhIL-18 (12/15/18) results in memory-like NK cell differentiation and enhanced responses against cancer. However, the lack of available, scalable Good Manufacturing Process (GMP)-grade reagents required to advance this approach beyond early-phase clinical trials is limiting. To address this challenge, we developed a novel platform centered upon an inert tissue factor scaffold for production of heteromeric fusion protein complexes (HFPC). The first use of this platform combined IL-12, IL-15, and IL-18 receptor engagement (HCW9201), and the second adds CD16 engagement (HCW9207). This unique HFPC expression platform was scalable with equivalent protein quality characteristics in small- and GMP-scale production. HCW9201 and HCW9207 stimulated activation and proliferation signals in NK cells, but HCW9207 had decreased IL-18 receptor signaling. RNA sequencing and multidimensional mass cytometry revealed parallels between HCW9201 and 12/15/18. HCW9201 stimulation improved NK cell metabolic fitness and resulted in the DNA methylation remodeling characteristic of memory-like differentiation. HCW9201 and 12/15/18 primed similar increases in short-term and memory-like NK cell cytotoxicity and IFNγ production against leukemia targets, as well as equivalent control of leukemia in NSG mice. Thus, HFPCs represent a protein engineering approach that solves many problems associated with multisignal receptor engagement on immune cells, and HCW9201-primed NK cells can be advanced as an ideal approach for clinical GMP-grade memory-like NK cell production for cancer therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ethan McClain
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | | | | | | | - Lynne I Marsala
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Mark Foster
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Timothy Schappe
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Jennifer Tran
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Sweta Desai
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Carly C Neal
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Patrick Pence
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Pamela Wong
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Julia A Wagner
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Todd A Fehniger
- Washington University School of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Saint Louis, Missouri.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Liu B, Zhu X, Kong L, Wang M, Spanoudis C, Chaturvedi P, George V, Jiao JA, You L, Egan JO, Echeverri C, Gallo VL, Xing J, Ravelo K, Prendes C, Antolinez J, Denissova J, Muniz GJ, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Bifunctional TGF-β trap/IL-15 Protein Complex Elicits Potent NK Cell and CD8 + T Cell Immunity Against Solid Tumors. Mol Ther 2021; 29:2949-2962. [PMID: 34091051 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2021.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Advances in immunostimulatory and anti-immunosuppressive therapeutics have revolutionized cancer treatment. However, novel immunotherapeutics with these dual functions are not frequently reported. Here we describe the creation of a heterodimeric bifunctional fusion molecule, HCW9218, constructed using our soluble tissue factor-based scaffold technology. This complex comprises extracellular domains of the human transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) receptor II and a human interleukin (IL)-15/IL-15 receptor α complex. HCW9218 can be readily expressed in CHO cells and purified using antibody-based affinity chromatography in a large-scale manufacturing setting. HCW9218 potently activates mouse natural killer (NK) cells and CD8+ T cells in vitro and in vivo to enhance cell proliferation, metabolism and antitumor cytotoxic activities. Similarly, human immune cells become activated with increased cytotoxicity following incubation with HCW9218. This fusion complex also exhibits TGF-β neutralizing activity in vitro and sequesters plasma TGF-β in vivo. In a syngeneic B16F10 melanoma model, HCW9218 displayed strong antitumor activity mediated by NK cells and CD8+ T cells, and increased their infiltration into tumors. Repeat-dose subcutaneous administration of HCW9218 was well tolerated by mice, with a half-life sufficient to provide long lasting biological activity. Thus, HCW9218 may serve as a novel therapeutic to simultaneously provide immunostimulation and lessen immunosuppression associated with tumors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bai Liu
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL, 33025 USA
| | | | - Lin Kong
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL, 33025 USA
| | - Meng Wang
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL, 33025 USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Lijing You
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL, 33025 USA
| | | | | | | | - Jilan Xing
- HCW Biologics Inc., Miramar, FL, 33025 USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
6
|
Chu Y, Rosenblum J, Jeng EK, Alter S, Rhode PR, Lee JH, Lee D, Wong HC, Cairo MS. Efficiently Targeting Metastatic Osteosarcoma, Neuroblastoma and Glioblastoma with Ex-Vivo Expanded Natural Killer Cells Combined with N-803 (ALT-803, IL-15 Superagonist) and TIM-3 Blockage. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2018.12.543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
7
|
Nayyar G, Chu Y, Negron O, Lyngdoh J, Jeng EK, Alter S, Rhode PR, Lee JH, Ayello J, Lee D, Wong HC, Cairo MS. Combining ROR1- Specific Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) NK Cells with IL-15 Superagonist (N-803/ALT-803) to Target Chemotherapy Resistant Neuroblastoma. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2018.12.539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
|
8
|
Tang L, Zheng Y, Melo MB, Mabardi L, Castaño AP, Xie YQ, Li N, Kudchodkar SB, Wong HC, Jeng EK, Maus MV, Irvine DJ. Enhancing T cell therapy through TCR-signaling-responsive nanoparticle drug delivery. Nat Biotechnol 2018; 36:707-716. [PMID: 29985479 PMCID: PMC6078803 DOI: 10.1038/nbt.4181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 384] [Impact Index Per Article: 64.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2016] [Accepted: 06/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) with antigen-specific T cells has shown remarkable clinical success, but approaches to safely and effectively augment T cell function, especially in solid tumors, remain of great interest. Here we describe a strategy to “backpack” large quantities of supporting protein drugs on T cells using protein nanogels (NGs) that selectively release these cargos in response to T cell receptor (TCR) activation. We design cell surface-conjugated NGs that respond to an increase in T cell surface reduction potential upon antigen recognition, limiting drug release to sites of antigen encounter such as the tumor microenvironment. Using NGs carrying an IL-15 superagonist complex, we demonstrate that relative to systemic administration of free cytokines, NG delivery selectively expands T cells 16-fold in tumors, and allows at least 8-fold higher doses of cytokine to be administered without toxicity. The improved therapeutic window enables substantially increased tumor clearance by murine T cell and human CAR-T cell therapy in vivo.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Li Tang
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Yiran Zheng
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Mariane Bandeira Melo
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Llian Mabardi
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Ana P Castaño
- Cellular Immunotherapy Program, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center, Charlestown, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Yu-Qing Xie
- Institute of Bioengineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Na Li
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida, USA
| | - Emily K Jeng
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida, USA
| | - Marcela V Maus
- Cellular Immunotherapy Program, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center, Charlestown, Massachusetts, USA.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Darrell J Irvine
- David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, Maryland, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Romee R, Cooley S, Berrien-Elliott MM, Westervelt P, Verneris MR, Wagner JE, Weisdorf DJ, Blazar BR, Ustun C, DeFor TE, Vivek S, Peck L, DiPersio JF, Cashen AF, Kyllo R, Musiek A, Schaffer A, Anadkat MJ, Rosman I, Miller D, Egan JO, Jeng EK, Rock A, Wong HC, Fehniger TA, Miller JS. First-in-human phase 1 clinical study of the IL-15 superagonist complex ALT-803 to treat relapse after transplantation. Blood 2018; 131:2515-2527. [PMID: 29463563 PMCID: PMC5992862 DOI: 10.1182/blood-2017-12-823757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 268] [Impact Index Per Article: 44.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2017] [Accepted: 02/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
New therapies for patients with hematologic malignancies who relapse after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) are needed. Interleukin 15 (IL-15) is a cytokine that stimulates CD8+ T-cell and natural killer (NK) cell antitumor responses, and we hypothesized this cytokine may augment antileukemia/antilymphoma immunity in vivo. To test this, we performed a first-in-human multicenter phase 1 trial of the IL-15 superagonist complex ALT-803 in patients who relapsed >60 days after allo-HCT. ALT-803 was administered to 33 patients via the IV or subcutaneous (SQ) routes once weekly for 4 doses (dose levels of 1, 3, 6, and 10 μg/kg). ALT-803 was well tolerated, and no dose-limiting toxicities or treatment-emergent graft-versus-host disease requiring systemic therapy was observed in this clinical setting. Adverse events following IV administration included constitutional symptoms temporally related to increased serum IL-6 and interferon-γ. To mitigate these effects, the SQ route was tested. SQ delivery resulted in self-limited injection site rashes infiltrated with lymphocytes without acute constitutional symptoms. Pharmacokinetic analysis revealed prolonged (>96 hour) serum concentrations following SQ, but not IV, injection. ALT-803 stimulated the activation, proliferation, and expansion of NK cells and CD8+ T cells without increasing regulatory T cells. Responses were observed in 19% of evaluable patients, including 1 complete remission lasting 7 months. Thus, ALT-803 is a safe, well-tolerated agent that significantly increased NK and CD8+ T cell numbers and function. This immunostimulatory IL-15 superagonist warrants further investigation to augment antitumor immunity alone and combined with other immunotherapies. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01885897.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rizwan Romee
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | | | - Melissa M Berrien-Elliott
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | - Peter Westervelt
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Sithara Vivek
- Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
| | - Lindsey Peck
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | - John F DiPersio
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | - Amanda F Cashen
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | - Rachel Kyllo
- Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, and
| | - Amy Musiek
- Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, and
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | | | - Milan J Anadkat
- Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, and
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | - Ilana Rosman
- Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, and
| | - Daniel Miller
- Department of Dermatology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN; and
| | - Jack O Egan
- Altor BioScience, a Nantworks company, Miramar, FL
| | - Emily K Jeng
- Altor BioScience, a Nantworks company, Miramar, FL
| | - Amy Rock
- Altor BioScience, a Nantworks company, Miramar, FL
| | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience, a Nantworks company, Miramar, FL
| | - Todd A Fehniger
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
| | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Johnson CB, May BR, Riesenberg BP, Suriano S, Mehrotra S, Garrett-Mayer E, Salem ML, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Paulos CM, Wrangle JM, Cole DJ, Rubinstein MP. Enhanced Lymphodepletion Is Insufficient to Replace Exogenous IL2 or IL15 Therapy in Augmenting the Efficacy of Adoptively Transferred Effector CD8 + T Cells. Cancer Res 2018; 78:3067-3074. [PMID: 29636345 PMCID: PMC6108084 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-17-2153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2017] [Revised: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 04/02/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Effector CD8+ T cells conditioned with IL12 during activation mediate enhanced antitumor efficacy after adoptive transfer into lymphodepleted hosts; this is due in part to improved IL7 responsiveness. Therefore, we hypothesized that increasing the intensity or type of lymphodepletion would deplete more IL7-consuming host cells and improve the persistence and antitumor activity of IL12-conditioned CD8+ T cells. Using cyclophosphamide, fludarabine, and total body irradiation (TBI, 6 Gy) either individually or in combination, we found that combined lymphodepletion best enhanced T-cell engraftment in mice. This improvement was strongly related to the extent of leukopenia, as posttransfer levels of donor T cells inversely correlated to host cell counts after lymphodepletion. Despite the improvement in engraftment seen with combination lymphodepletion, dual-agent lymphodepletion did not augment the antitumor efficacy of donor T cells compared with TBI alone. Similarly, IL7 supplementation after TBI and transfer of tumor-reactive T cells failed to improve persistence or antitumor immunity. However, IL15 or IL2 supplementation greatly augmented the persistence and antitumor efficacy of donor tumor-reactive T cells. Our results indicate that the amount of host IL7 induced after single agent lymphodepletion is sufficient to potentiate the expansion and antitumor activity of donor T cells, and that the efficacy of future regimens may be improved by providing posttransfer support with IL2 or IL15.Significance: The relationship between lymphodepletion and cytokine support plays a critical role in determining donor T-cell engraftment and antitumor efficacy. Cancer Res; 78(11); 3067-74. ©2018 AACR.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C Bryce Johnson
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Bennett R May
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Brian P Riesenberg
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Samantha Suriano
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Shikhar Mehrotra
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Elizabeth Garrett-Mayer
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Mohamed L Salem
- Immunology and Biotechnology Division, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Center of Excellence in Cancer Research, Tanta, Egypt
| | | | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Chrystal M Paulos
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
- Department of Dermatology and Dermatological Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - John M Wrangle
- Department of Dermatology and Dermatological Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
- Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - David J Cole
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| | - Mark P Rubinstein
- Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina.
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Wrangle JM, Velcheti V, Patel MR, Garrett-Mayer E, Hill EG, Ravenel JG, Miller JS, Farhad M, Anderton K, Lindsey K, Taffaro-Neskey M, Sherman C, Suriano S, Swiderska-Syn M, Sion A, Harris J, Edwards AR, Rytlewski JA, Sanders CM, Yusko EC, Robinson MD, Krieg C, Redmond WL, Egan JO, Rhode PR, Jeng EK, Rock AD, Wong HC, Rubinstein MP. ALT-803, an IL-15 superagonist, in combination with nivolumab in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer: a non-randomised, open-label, phase 1b trial. Lancet Oncol 2018; 19:694-704. [PMID: 29628312 DOI: 10.1016/s1470-2045(18)30148-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 281] [Impact Index Per Article: 46.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2017] [Revised: 01/31/2018] [Accepted: 02/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Immunotherapy with PD-1 or PD-L1 blockade fails to induce a response in about 80% of patients with unselected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and many of those who do initially respond then develop resistance to treatment. Agonists that target the shared interleukin-2 (IL-2) and IL-15Rβγ pathway have induced complete and durable responses in some cancers, but no studies have been done to assess the safety or efficacy of these agonists in combination with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. We aimed to define the safety, tolerability, and activity of this drug combination in patients with NSCLC. METHODS In this non-randomised, open-label, phase 1b trial, we enrolled patients (aged ≥18 years) with previously treated histologically or cytologically confirmed stage IIIB or IV NSCLC from three academic hospitals in the USA. Key eligibility criteria included measurable disease, eligibility to receive anti-PD-1 immunotherapy, and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1. Patients received the anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody nivolumab intravenously at 3 mg/kg (then 240 mg when US Food and Drug Administration [FDA]-approved dosing changed) every 14 days (either as new treatment or continued treatment at the time of disease progression) and the IL-15 superagonist ALT-803 subcutaneously once per week on weeks 1-5 of four 6-week cycles for 6 months. ALT-803 was administered at one of four escalating dose concentrations: 6, 10, 15, or 20 μg/kg. The primary endpoint was to define safety and tolerability and to establish a recommended phase 2 dose of ALT-803 in combination with nivolumab. Analyses were per-protocol and included any patients who received at least one dose of study treatment. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02523469; phase 2 enrolment of patients is ongoing. FINDINGS Between Jan 18, 2016, and June 28, 2017, 23 patients were enrolled and 21 were treated at four dose levels of ALT-803 in combination with nivolumab. Two patients did not receive treatment because of the development of inter-current illness during enrolment, one patient due to leucopenia and one patient due to pulmonary dysfunction. No dose-limiting toxicities were recorded and the maximum tolerated dose was not reached. The most common adverse events were injection-site reactions (in 19 [90%] of 21 patients) and flu-like symptoms (15 [71%]). The most common grade 3 adverse events, occurring in two patients each, were lymphocytopenia and fatigue. A grade 3 myocardial infarction occurred in one patient. No grade 4 or 5 adverse events were recorded. The recommended phase 2 dose of ALT-803 is 20 μg/kg given once per week subcutaneously in combination with 240 mg intravenous nivolumab every 2 weeks. INTERPRETATION ALT-803 in combination with nivolumab can be safely administered in an outpatient setting. The promising clinical activity observed with the addition of ALT-803 to the regimen of patients with PD-1 monoclonal antibody relapsed and refractory disease shows evidence of anti-tumour activity for a new class of agents in NSCLC. FUNDING Altor BioScience (a NantWorks company), National Institutes of Health, and Medical University of South Carolina Hollings Cancer Center.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John M Wrangle
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | | | - Manish R Patel
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Elizabeth Garrett-Mayer
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Elizabeth G Hill
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - James G Ravenel
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Jeffrey S Miller
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | | | - Kate Anderton
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Kathryn Lindsey
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Michele Taffaro-Neskey
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Carol Sherman
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Samantha Suriano
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Marzena Swiderska-Syn
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Amy Sion
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Joni Harris
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Andie R Edwards
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | | | | | | | - Mark D Robinson
- Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Carsten Krieg
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Mark P Rubinstein
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Department of Surgery Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Burrack KS, Huggins MA, Taras E, Dougherty P, Henzler CM, Yang R, Alter S, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Felices M, Cichocki F, Miller JS, Hart GT, Johnson AJ, Jameson SC, Hamilton SE. Interleukin-15 Complex Treatment Protects Mice from Cerebral Malaria by Inducing Interleukin-10-Producing Natural Killer Cells. Immunity 2018; 48:760-772.e4. [PMID: 29625893 DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2018.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2017] [Revised: 11/27/2017] [Accepted: 03/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Cerebral malaria is a deadly complication of Plasmodium infection and involves blood brain barrier (BBB) disruption following infiltration of white blood cells. During experimental cerebral malaria (ECM), mice inoculated with Plasmodium berghei ANKA-infected red blood cells develop a fatal CM-like disease caused by CD8+ T cell-mediated pathology. We found that treatment with interleukin-15 complex (IL-15C) prevented ECM, whereas IL-2C treatment had no effect. IL-15C-expanded natural killer (NK) cells were necessary and sufficient for protection against ECM. IL-15C treatment also decreased CD8+ T cell activation in the brain and prevented BBB breakdown without influencing parasite load. IL-15C induced NK cells to express IL-10, which was required for IL-15C-mediated protection against ECM. Finally, we show that ALT-803, a modified human IL-15C, mediates similar induction of IL-10 in NK cells and protection against ECM. These data identify a regulatory role for cytokine-stimulated NK cells in the prevention of a pathogenic immune response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kristina S Burrack
- Center for Immunology, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Matthew A Huggins
- Center for Immunology, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA; Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Emily Taras
- Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Philip Dougherty
- Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Christine M Henzler
- Supercomputing Institute for Advanced Computational Research, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Rendong Yang
- Supercomputing Institute for Advanced Computational Research, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Sarah Alter
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Emily K Jeng
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | - Martin Felices
- Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Frank Cichocki
- Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Jeffrey S Miller
- Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Geoffrey T Hart
- Center for Immunology, Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Aaron J Johnson
- Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Stephen C Jameson
- Center for Immunology, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Sara E Hamilton
- Center for Immunology, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Chu Y, Su NK, Alter S, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Barth M, Lee D, Wong HC, Cairo MS. Therapeutic Effects of a Novel Fusion of ALT-803, an IL-15 Superagonist, with 4 Single-Chains of Anti-CD20 Antibody (2B8T2M) in Combination with Expanded Natural Killer Cells Against Rituximab Sensitive and Resistant Burkitt Lymphoma (BL). Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2017.12.659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
14
|
Liu B, Jones M, Kong L, Noel T, Jeng EK, Shi S, England CG, Alter S, Miller JS, Cai W, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Evaluation of the biological activities of the IL-15 superagonist complex, ALT-803, following intravenous versus subcutaneous administration in murine models. Cytokine 2018; 107:105-112. [PMID: 29452720 DOI: 10.1016/j.cyto.2017.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Revised: 11/30/2017] [Accepted: 12/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
ALT-803 is a fusion protein complex consisting of an interleukin (IL)-15 superagonist and a dimeric IL-15 receptor alpha sushi domain IgG1 Fc fusion protein. When administered to mice, ALT-803 is capable of inducing natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T cell proliferation and activation, and effectively promoting potent anti-tumor responses. Currently, ALT-803 is in clinical trials for treatment of various solid tumors and hematological malignancies. In the initial phase of these clinical studies, intravenous (iv) injection was used according to the route used in pre-clinical efficacy studies. In order to evaluate the possible advantage of subcutaneous (sc) injection versus iv injection, this study compared the biological activity of the two treatment regimens of ALT-803 in pre-clinical in vivo models. The pharmacokinetics, immune stimulation, and anti-tumor efficacy of iv and sc injection routes of ALT-803 in C57BL/6 mice were compared. The half-life of ALT-803 was 7.5 h for iv versus 7.7 h for sc with the maximal detected serum concentration of ALT-803 to be 3926 ng/ml at 0.5 h time-point following iv injection versus 495 ng/ml at 16 h post sc injection. Biodistribution studies indicated that sc ALT-803, similarly to iv ALT-803 as previously reported, has a greater tissue distribution and longer residence time in lymphoid tissues compared to recombinant IL-15. Notably, ALT-803 when administered either iv or sc induced comparable proliferation and activation of CD8+ T and NK cells and resulted in similar reductions of tumor burden. A toxicity study of mice receiving multiple injections of ALT-803 for 4 weeks by iv or sc routes revealed equivalent immune-related changes. The gradual absorbance into the blood stream and lower maximal blood levels of ALT-803 in sc-injected mice, along with similar anti-tumor efficacy support the administration of ALT-803 by sc injection in patients with various malignancies and infectious diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bai Liu
- Altor BioScience, Miramar, FL, USA
| | | | - Lin Kong
- Altor BioScience, Miramar, FL, USA
| | | | | | - Sixiang Shi
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Christopher G England
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | | | - Jeffrey S Miller
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Transplantation, Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Weibo Cai
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
15
|
Mah AY, Rashidi A, Keppel MP, Saucier N, Moore EK, Alinger JB, Tripathy SK, Agarwal SK, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Miller JS, Fehniger TA, Mace EM, French AR, Cooper MA. Glycolytic requirement for NK cell cytotoxicity and cytomegalovirus control. JCI Insight 2017; 2:95128. [PMID: 29212951 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.95128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2017] [Accepted: 10/26/2017] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
NK cell activation has been shown to be metabolically regulated in vitro; however, the role of metabolism during in vivo NK cell responses to infection is unknown. We examined the role of glycolysis in NK cell function during murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) infection and the ability of IL-15 to prime NK cells during CMV infection. The glucose metabolism inhibitor 2-deoxy-ᴅ-glucose (2DG) impaired both mouse and human NK cell cytotoxicity following priming in vitro. Similarly, MCMV-infected mice treated with 2DG had impaired clearance of NK-specific targets in vivo, which was associated with higher viral burden and susceptibility to infection on the C57BL/6 background. IL-15 priming is known to alter NK cell metabolism and metabolic requirements for activation. Treatment with the IL-15 superagonist ALT-803 rescued mice from otherwise lethal infection in an NK-dependent manner. Consistent with this, treatment of a patient with ALT-803 for recurrent CMV reactivation after hematopoietic cell transplant was associated with clearance of viremia. These studies demonstrate that NK cell-mediated control of viral infection requires glucose metabolism and that IL-15 treatment in vivo can reduce this requirement and may be effective as an antiviral therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Annelise Y Mah
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Armin Rashidi
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Molly P Keppel
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Nermina Saucier
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Emily K Moore
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Joshua B Alinger
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Sandeep K Tripathy
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Sandeep K Agarwal
- Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology, Allergy, and Rheumatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | | | | | - Jeffrey S Miller
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Todd A Fehniger
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Emily M Mace
- Center for Human Immunobiology, Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Anthony R French
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Megan A Cooper
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Rheumatology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Kim PS, Kwilas AR, Xu W, Alter S, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Schlom J, Hodge JW. IL-15 superagonist/IL-15RαSushi-Fc fusion complex (IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc; ALT-803) markedly enhances specific subpopulations of NK and memory CD8+ T cells, and mediates potent anti-tumor activity against murine breast and colon carcinomas. Oncotarget 2017; 7:16130-45. [PMID: 26910920 PMCID: PMC4941302 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.7470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2015] [Accepted: 02/11/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Interleukin (IL)-15-N72D superagonist-complexed with IL-15RαSushi-Fc fusion protein (IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc; ALT-803) has been reported to exhibit significant anti-tumor activity in murine myeloma, rat bladder cancer, and murine glioblastoma models. In this study, we examined the immunomodulatory and anti-tumor effects of IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc in tumor-free and highly metastatic tumor-bearing mice. Here, IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc significantly expanded natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T cells. In examining NK cell subsets, the greatest significant increase was in highly cytotoxic and migrating (CD11b+, CD27hi; high effector) NK cells, leading to enhanced function on a per-cell basis. CD8+ T cell subset analysis determined that IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc significantly increased IL-15 responding memory (CD122+, CD44+) CD8+ T cells, in particular those having the innate (NKG2D+, PD1−) phenotype. In 4T1 breast tumor–bearing mice, IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc induced significant anti-tumor activity against spontaneous pulmonary metastases, depending on CD8+ T and NK cells, and resulting in prolonged survival. Similar anti-tumor activity was seen in the experimental pulmonary metastasis model of CT26 colon carcinoma cells, particularly when IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc was combined with a cocktail of checkpoint inhibitors, anti-CTLA-4 and anti-PD-L1. Altogether, these studies showed for the first time that IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc (1) promoted the development of high effector NK cells and CD8+ T cell responders of the innate phenotype, (2) enhanced function of NK cells, and (3) played a vital role in reducing tumor metastasis and ultimately survival, especially in combination with checkpoint inhibitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peter S Kim
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Anna R Kwilas
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Wenxin Xu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL, USA
| | - Sarah Alter
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL, USA
| | | | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL, USA
| | - Jeffrey Schlom
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - James W Hodge
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology and Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Liu B, Kong L, Jones M, Noel T, Han K, Rhode PR, Jeng EK, Cai W, Wong HC. Biological Activities of IL-15 superagonist - IL-15 Mutein:IL-15RaFc complex following Intravenous or Subcutaneous Administration. The Journal of Immunology 2017. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.198.supp.120.13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
ALT-803 is a fusion protein complex consisting of IL-15N72D superagonist and a dimeric IL-15 receptor alpha (IL-15Rα) sushi domain IgG1 Fc fusion protein. When administered to mice, ALT-803 is capable of inducing NK and CD8+ T cell proliferation and activation, as well as potent antitumor responses. ALT-803 is currently in clinical studies using an intravenous (iv) route of administration. We were interested in exploring treatment regimens using subcutaneous (sc) administration of ALT-803 as an alternative to iv administration in order to lessen the adverse side effects that were observed. In this study, we compared the pharmacokinetics, immunostimulation, and anti-tumor efficacy of iv and sc administration of ALT-803 in C57BL/6 mice. We found the half-life of ALT-803 to be 7.5 hrs for iv administration vs. 7.7 hrs for sc. The maximal detected serum concentration of ALT-803 was 495 ng/ml at 16 hr time point following sc administration or 3926 ng/ml at 0.5 hr time point following iv administration. Similar bio-distribution of radio-labeled ALT-803 in mice was observed using quantitative PET-scan studies. We also demonstrated that ALT-803 administered iv or sc induced comparable proliferation of CD8+ T cells and NK cells and similarly activated immune cells which resulted in the reduction of tumor burden. A toxicity study of mice receiving multiple injections of ALT-803 for 4 weeks by iv or sc administration revealed that comparable immune system-related changes were observed and ALT-803 was well tolerated. The gradual absorbance into blood stream and lower maximal blood level of ALT-803 in sc injected mice, along with similar antitumor efficacy supports the use of ALT-803 by sc administration in patients with metastatic malignancies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Weibo Cai
- 2Department of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
| | | |
Collapse
|
18
|
Liu B, Kong L, Noel T, Han K, You L, Dee M, Rhode PR, Jeng EK, Alter S, Wong HC. Novel antitumor complexes of bispecific antibodies using ALT-803 as a scaffold demonstrate Tetra-specific binding activities. The Journal of Immunology 2017. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.198.supp.120.12] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
IL-15 and its receptor α (IL-15Ra) are co-expressed in antigen presenting cells allowing trans-presentation of IL-15 to immune cells bearing IL-2Rβγc and stimulation of effector immune responses. We have demonstrated that an IL-15 superagonist:IL-15Rα-Fc complex (ALT-803) is capable of stimulating T cell and NK cell responses. We have reported that ALT-803 could be exploited to create a functional scaffold for the design of multivalent disease-targeted complexes (Liu et al, J. Biol. Chem. 2016 291: 23869). The lead molecule based on anti-CD20 rituximab is currently in pre-clinical development. In this study, this approach was further optimized by generating an IL-15 superagonist:IL-15Rα-Fc complex (2B8T3M) comprising two anti-human CD20 scFv domains and two anti-human CD3 scFv domains. 2B8T3M molecules exhibit CD3, CD20, Fc-receptor and IL-15Rbgc tetra-specific binding activities and IL-15 bioactivity. In contrast to 2B8T2M which redirects NK cells to lyse CD20+ B-lymphoma cells (ADCC), 2B8T3M was capable of redirecting both CD8+ T cells via the anti-CD3 scFv domains and NK cells via the Fc domain against CD20+ Daudi cells. In order to investigate antitumor activities in vivo of the tetra-specific molecules in immunocompetent mouse, we have also constructed and generated mouse CD3/CD19-binding T3M complexes. Antitumor efficacy of these molecules is being assessed in mouse A20 B cell lymphoma model. These findings suggest that tetra-specific T3M complexes may serve as novel, T-cell based targeted immunotherapeutics for treating cancer.
Collapse
|
19
|
Wong HC, Newman RG, Marcus WD, Liu B, Jeng EK, Alter S, Rhode PR. Novel antibody-like single-chain TCR antibody Fc fusion protein. The Journal of Immunology 2017. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.198.supp.120.9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
We have previously reported the construction of a fusion protein composed of a soluble single-chain T cell receptor genetically linked to the constant domain of the human IgG1 heavy chain (TCR-Ig). The antigen recognition portion of the protein binds to an unmutated peptide derived from human p53 (amino acids 264–272) presented in the context of HLA-A2.1, whereas the IgG1 Fc provides effector functions. The protein is capable of forming dimers, specifically staining tumor cells, and promoting target and effector cell conjugation. The protein also has potent antitumor effects against p53+/HLA-A2.1+ human tumor xenografts in athymic nude mice and can mediate cell killing by antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. Therefore, TCR-Ig behaves like an antibody, but possesses the ability to recognize antigens derived from intracellular targets. To test TCR-Ig in fully immunocompetent models, we have generated murine tumor cells stably expressing the human p53 epitope by constructing a single chain trimer composed of the human p53 peptide genetically linked to murine beta 2 microglobulin genetically linked to HLA-A2.1, with the inclusion of a disulfide trap to enhance stability. Utilizing haNK (NK-92 cells stably expressing high affinity Fc receptor and IL-2) as effector cells in the presence of TCR-Ig we demonstrated specific killing of murine single chain trimer expressing tumor cells. We are currently evaluating the antitumor activities and vaccinal effects of TCR-Ig in an HLA-A2.1 transgenic mouse model. TCR-Ig may represent a novel group of immunotherapeutics that has the potential to expand the range of tumors available for targeted therapies beyond those currently addressed by conventional antibody-based approaches.
Collapse
|
20
|
Wong HC, Shrestha N, Liu B, Alter S, Jeng EK, Fehniger TA, Rhode PR. Enhancement of Anti-Tumor Activities of Daratumumab Using ALT-803, an IL-15 Superagonist, in an Experimental Model and Against Primary Human Lymphoma Cells. The Journal of Immunology 2017. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.198.supp.120.10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
Daratumumab has recently been approved by FDA for treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. Daratumumab has been shown to reduce the tumor burden by targeting CD38 expressing tumor cells. In this study, we examined the in vitro as well as in vivo ability of ALT-803, a novel IL-15 superagonist-complex, to enhance the tumor targeting antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) of daratumumab in combination therapy. Using freshly isolated PBMCs, we demonstrated that ALT-803 significantly enhanced the ADCC activity of Daratumumab against Daudi, human B lymphoma, cells. We also observed that purified human NK cells, which were activated by ALT-803, enhanced daratumumab-mediated ADCC activity against primary human B-lymphoma cells. We also assessed the in vivo effects of ALT-803 on daratumumab-mediated antitumor activity against Daudi cells in the SCID xenograft model. We observed that both ALT-803 and daratumumab alone were capable of reducing Daudi tumor burden in tumor-bearing mice. However, the combination of ALT-803 with daratumumab increased antitumor activity which significantly reduced Daudi cells in the bone marrow. These observations indicate that the addition of ALT-803 to daratumumab treatment enhances the antitumor efficacy of Daratumumab compared to daratumumab alone. In addition, we have evidence that ALT-803 also augment the Antibody Dependent Cytotoxicity of Phagocytosis of Daratumumab against tumor cells. In a current clinical study, our correlative studies also show that ALT-803 augment the ADCC activity of Daratumumab against Daudi cells. This also demonstrates that ALT-803 possesses synergistic antitumor activities with tumor-specific antibodies in vivo.
Collapse
|
21
|
Basher F, Jeng EK, Wong H, Wu J. Cooperative therapeutic anti-tumor effect of IL-15 agonist ALT-803 and co-targeting soluble NKG2D ligand sMIC. Oncotarget 2016; 7:814-30. [PMID: 26625316 PMCID: PMC4808035 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.6416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2015] [Accepted: 11/16/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Shedding of the human NKG2D ligand MIC (MHC class I-chain-related molecule) from tumor cell surfaces correlates with progression of many epithelial cancers. Shedding-derived soluble MIC (sMIC) enables tumor immune escape through multiple immune suppressive mechanisms, such as disturbing natural killer (NK) cell homeostatic maintenance, impairing NKG2D expression on NK cells and effector T cells, and facilitating the expansion of arginase I+ myeloid suppressor cells. Our recent study has demonstrated that sMIC is an effective cancer therapeutic target. Whether targeting tumor-derived sMIC would enhance current active immunotherapy is not known. Here, we determined the in vivo therapeutic effect of an antibody co-targeting sMIC with the immunostimulatory IL-15 superagonist complex, ALT-803, using genetically engineered transplantable syngeneic sMIC+ tumor models. We demonstrate that combined therapy of a nonblocking antibody neutralizing sMIC and ALT-803 improved the survival of animals bearing sMIC+ tumors in comparison to monotherapy. We further demonstrate that the enhanced therapeutic effect with combined therapy is through concurrent augmentation of NK and CD8 T cell anti-tumor responses. In particular, expression of activation-induced surface molecules and increased functional potential by cytokine secretion are improved greatly by the administration of combined therapy. Depletion of NK cells abolished the cooperative therapeutic effect. Our findings suggest that administration of the sMIC-neutralizing antibody can enhance the anti-tumor effects of ALT-803. With ALT-803 currently in clinical trials to treat progressive solid tumors, the majority of which are sMIC+, our findings provide a rationale for co-targeting sMIC to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of ALT-803 or other IL-15 agonists.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fahmin Basher
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA
| | | | - Hing Wong
- Altor BioSciences Corporation, Miramar, FL, USA
| | - Jennifer Wu
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.,Cancer Immunology Program, Hollings Cancer Center, Charleston, SC, USA.,CanCure LLC, Everett, WA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Liu B, Kong L, Han K, Hong H, Marcus WD, Chen X, Jeng EK, Alter S, Zhu X, Rubinstein MP, Shi S, Rhode PR, Cai W, Wong HC. A Novel Fusion of ALT-803 (Interleukin (IL)-15 Superagonist) with an Antibody Demonstrates Antigen-specific Antitumor Responses. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:23869-23881. [PMID: 27650494 PMCID: PMC5104912 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.733600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2016] [Revised: 09/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
IL-15 and its receptor α (IL-15Rα) are co-expressed on antigen-presenting cells, allowing transpresentation of IL-15 to immune cells bearing IL-2RβγC and stimulation of effector immune responses. We reported previously that the high-affinity interactions between an IL-15 superagonist (IL-15N72D) and the extracellular IL-15Rα sushi domain (IL-15RαSu) could be exploited to create a functional scaffold for the design of multivalent disease-targeted complexes. The IL-15N72D·IL-15RαSuFc complex, also known as ALT-803, is a multimeric complex constructed by fusing IL-15N72D·IL-15RαSu to the Fc domain of IgG1. ALT-803 is an IL-15 superagonist complex that has been developed as a potent antitumor immunotherapeutic agent and is in clinical trials. Here we describe the creation of a novel fusion molecule, 2B8T2M, using the ALT-803 scaffold fused to four single chains of the tumor-targeting monoclonal antibody rituximab. This molecule displays trispecific binding activity through its recognition of the CD20 molecule on tumor cells, stimulation via IL-2RβγC displayed on immune effector cells, and binding to Fcγ receptors on natural killer cells and macrophages. 2B8T2M activates natural killer cells to enhance antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, mediates complement-dependent cytotoxicity, and induces apoptosis of B-lymphoma cells. Compared with rituximab, 2B8T2M exhibits significantly stronger antitumor activity in a xenograft SCID mouse model and depletes B cells in cynomolgus monkeys more efficiently. Thus, ALT-803 can be modified as a functional scaffold for creating multispecific, targeted IL-15-based immunotherapeutic agents and may serve as a novel platform to improve the antitumor activity and clinical efficacy of therapeutic antibodies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bai Liu
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Lin Kong
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Kaiping Han
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Hao Hong
- the Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, and
| | | | - Xiaoyue Chen
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Emily K Jeng
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Sarah Alter
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Xiaoyun Zhu
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Mark P Rubinstein
- the Departments of Surgery and Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina 29425
| | - Sixiang Shi
- the Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, and
| | - Peter R Rhode
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025
| | - Weibo Cai
- the Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, and
| | - Hing C Wong
- From the Altor BioScience Corp., Miramar, Florida 33025,
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Kim PS, Kwilas AR, Xu W, Alter S, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Schlom J, Hodge JW. Abstract 3245: IL-15 superagonist/IL-15RαSushi-Fc fusion complex (IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc; ALT-803) markedly enhances specific subpopulations of NK and memory CD8+ T cells, and mediates potent anti-tumor activity of murine breast and colon carcinomas. Cancer Res 2016. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2016-3245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Interleukin (IL)-15-N72D superagonist-complexed with IL-15RαSushi-Fc fusion protein (IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc; ALT-803) has been reported to exhibit significant anti-tumor activity in murine myeloma, rat bladder cancer, and murine glioblastoma models. In this study, we examined the immunomodulatory and anti-tumor effects of IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc in tumor-free and highly metastatic tumor-bearing mice. Here, IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc significantly expanded NK and CD8+ T cells. In examining natural killer (NK) cell subsets, the greatest significant increase was in highly cytotoxic and migrating (CD11b+, CD27hi; high effector) NK cells, leading to enhanced function on a per-cell basis. CD8+ T cell subset analysis determined that IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc significantly increased IL-15 responding memory (CD122+, CD44+) CD8+ T cells, in particular those having the innate (NKG2D+, PD1-) phenotype. In 4T1 breast tumor-bearing mice, IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc induced significant anti-tumor activity against spontaneous pulmonary metastases, depending on CD8+ T and NK cells, and resulting in prolonged survival. Similar anti-tumor activity was seen in the experimental pulmonary metastasis model of CT26 colon carcinoma cells, particularly when IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc was combined with a cocktail of checkpoint inhibitors, anti-CTLA-4 and anti-PD-L1. Altogether, these studies showed for the first time that IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc (1) promoted the development of high effector NK cells, (2) enhanced function of NK cells, and (3) played a vital role in reducing tumor metastasis and ultimately survival, especially in combination with checkpoint inhibitors.
Citation Format: Peter S. Kim, Anna R. Kwilas, Wenxin Xu, Sarah Alter, Emily K. Jeng, Hing C. Wong, Jeffrey Schlom, James W. Hodge. IL-15 superagonist/IL-15RαSushi-Fc fusion complex (IL-15SA/IL-15RαSu-Fc; ALT-803) markedly enhances specific subpopulations of NK and memory CD8+ T cells, and mediates potent anti-tumor activity of murine breast and colon carcinomas. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 3245.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peter S. Kim
- 1National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Anna R. Kwilas
- 1National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Wenxin Xu
- 2Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL
| | | | | | | | - Jeffrey Schlom
- 1National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - James W. Hodge
- 1National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Jones RB, Mueller S, O’Connor R, Rimpel K, Sloan DD, Karel D, Wong HC, Jeng EK, Thomas AS, Whitney JB, Lim SY, Kovacs C, Benko E, Karandish S, Huang SH, Buzon MJ, Lichterfeld M, Irrinki A, Murry JP, Tsai A, Yu H, Geleziunas R, Trocha A, Ostrowski MA, Irvine DJ, Walker BD. A Subset of Latency-Reversing Agents Expose HIV-Infected Resting CD4+ T-Cells to Recognition by Cytotoxic T-Lymphocytes. PLoS Pathog 2016; 12:e1005545. [PMID: 27082643 PMCID: PMC4833318 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 122] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2015] [Accepted: 03/11/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Resting CD4+ T-cells harboring inducible HIV proviruses are a critical reservoir in antiretroviral therapy (ART)-treated subjects. These cells express little to no viral protein, and thus neither die by viral cytopathic effects, nor are efficiently cleared by immune effectors. Elimination of this reservoir is theoretically possible by combining latency-reversing agents (LRAs) with immune effectors, such as CD8+ T-cells. However, the relative efficacy of different LRAs in sensitizing latently-infected cells for recognition by HIV-specific CD8+ T-cells has not been determined. To address this, we developed an assay that utilizes HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell clones as biosensors for HIV antigen expression. By testing multiple CD8+ T-cell clones against a primary cell model of HIV latency, we identified several single agents that primed latently-infected cells for CD8+ T-cell recognition, including IL-2, IL-15, two IL-15 superagonists (IL-15SA and ALT-803), prostratin, and the TLR-2 ligand Pam3CSK4. In contrast, we did not observe CD8+ T-cell recognition of target cells following treatment with histone deacetylase inhibitors or with hexamethylene bisacetamide (HMBA). In further experiments we demonstrate that a clinically achievable concentration of the IL-15 superagonist ‘ALT-803’, an agent presently in clinical trials for solid and hematological tumors, primes the natural ex vivo reservoir for CD8+ T-cell recognition. Thus, our results establish a novel experimental approach for comparative evaluation of LRAs, and highlight ALT-803 as an LRA with the potential to synergize with CD8+ T-cells in HIV eradication strategies. Although modern therapies have greatly improved the lives of HIV-positive people with access to care, a cure remains elusive. This leaves these individuals burdened by a lifelong commitment to medication, and fails to fully restore health. Curing infection would likely require therapies that combine the ability to force the virus out the ‘latent state’ in which it hides, with immune responses able to kill unmasked infected cells, the so called “shock and kill” strategy. A critical aspect of this strategy is identifying drugs that are effective at shocking virus out of latency, known as latency reversing agents. In this study, we took the novel approach of using CD8+ T-cells, immune cells responsible for killing infected cells, as biosensors able to detect the unmasking of latently-infected cells. Using this method, we screened a panel of potential latency reversing agents. We found that while a subset of these agents exposed infected cells to the immune system, others did not. Our results establish a new method for screening potential latency reversing agents, and support the prioritization of the agents that were shown to be effective for combination with CD8+ T-cells in shock and kill strategies aimed at curing HIV infection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- R. Brad Jones
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Microbiology Immunology and Tropical Medicine, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - Stefanie Mueller
- Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Rachel O’Connor
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Katherine Rimpel
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Derek D. Sloan
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Dan Karel
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Hing C. Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida, United States of America
| | - Emily K. Jeng
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida, United States of America
| | - Allison S. Thomas
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Microbiology Immunology and Tropical Medicine, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - James B. Whitney
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - So-Yon Lim
- Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Colin Kovacs
- The Maple Leaf Medical Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Erika Benko
- The Maple Leaf Medical Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sara Karandish
- Department of Microbiology Immunology and Tropical Medicine, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - Szu-Han Huang
- Department of Microbiology Immunology and Tropical Medicine, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., United States of America
| | - Maria J. Buzon
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Mathias Lichterfeld
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Alivelu Irrinki
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Jeffrey P. Murry
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Angela Tsai
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Helen Yu
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Romas Geleziunas
- Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California, United States of America
| | - Alicja Trocha
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Mario A. Ostrowski
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Li Ka Shing Medical Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canad
| | - Darrell J. Irvine
- Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, Maryland, United States of America
- Department of Biological Engineering, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Bruce D. Walker
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, Maryland, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Allegrezza MJ, Rutkowski MR, Stephen TL, Svoronos N, Tesone AJ, Perales-Puchalt A, Nguyen JM, Sarmin F, Sheen MR, Jeng EK, Tchou J, Wong HC, Fiering SN, Conejo-Garcia JR. IL15 Agonists Overcome the Immunosuppressive Effects of MEK Inhibitors. Cancer Res 2016; 76:2561-72. [PMID: 26980764 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-15-2808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2015] [Accepted: 03/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Many signal transduction inhibitors are being developed for cancer therapy target pathways that are also important for the proper function of antitumor lymphocytes, possibly weakening their therapeutic effects. Here we show that most inhibitors targeting multiple signaling pathways have especially strong negative effects on T-cell activation at their active doses on cancer cells. In particular, we found that recently approved MEK inhibitors displayed potent suppressive effects on T cells in vitro However, these effects could be attenuated by certain cytokines that can be administered to cancer patients. Among them, clinically available IL15 superagonists, which can activate PI3K selectively in T lymphocytes, synergized with MEK inhibitors in vivo to elicit potent and durable antitumor responses, including by a vaccine-like effect that generated resistance to tumor rechallenge. Our work identifies a clinically actionable approach to overcome the T-cell-suppressive effects of MEK inhibitors and illustrates how to reconcile the deficiencies of signal transduction inhibitors, which impede desired immunologic effects in vivo Cancer Res; 76(9); 2561-72. ©2016 AACR.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Allegrezza
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Melanie R Rutkowski
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Tom L Stephen
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Nikolaos Svoronos
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Amelia J Tesone
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Jenny M Nguyen
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Fahmida Sarmin
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Mee R Sheen
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Emily K Jeng
- Research & Development, Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Julia Tchou
- Department of Surgery, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Rena Rowan Breast Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Hing C Wong
- Research & Development, Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Steven N Fiering
- Department of Genetics, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Jose R Conejo-Garcia
- Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Kim PS, Kwilas AR, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Schlom J, Hodge JW. IL15N72D superagonist/IL15Rα-Fc fusion complex (ALT-803) exhibits anti-metastatic activity in murine breast tumor model. J Immunother Cancer 2015. [PMCID: PMC4649486 DOI: 10.1186/2051-1426-3-s2-p229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
|
27
|
Rhode PR, Egan JO, Xu W, Hong H, Webb GM, Chen X, Liu B, Zhu X, Wen J, You L, Kong L, Edwards AC, Han K, Shi S, Alter S, Sacha JB, Jeng EK, Cai W, Wong HC. Comparison of the Superagonist Complex, ALT-803, to IL15 as Cancer Immunotherapeutics in Animal Models. Cancer Immunol Res 2015; 4:49-60. [PMID: 26511282 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-15-0093-t] [Citation(s) in RCA: 162] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2015] [Accepted: 09/03/2015] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
IL15, a potent stimulant of CD8(+) T cells and natural killer (NK) cells, is a promising cancer immunotherapeutic. ALT-803 is a complex of an IL15 superagonist mutant and a dimeric IL15 receptor αSu/Fc fusion protein that was found to exhibit enhanced biologic activity in vivo, with a substantially longer serum half-life than recombinant IL15. A single intravenous dose of ALT-803, but not IL15, eliminated well-established tumors and prolonged survival of mice bearing multiple myeloma. In this study, we extended these findings to demonstrate the superior antitumor activity of ALT-803 over IL15 in mice bearing subcutaneous B16F10 melanoma tumors and CT26 colon carcinoma metastases. Tissue biodistribution studies in mice also showed much greater retention of ALT-803 in the lymphoid organs compared with IL15, consistent with its highly potent immunostimulatory and antitumor activities in vivo. Weekly dosing with 1 mg/kg ALT-803 in C57BL/6 mice was well tolerated, yet capable of increasing peripheral blood lymphocyte, neutrophil, and monocyte counts by >8-fold. ALT-803 dose-dependent stimulation of immune cell infiltration into the lymphoid organs was also observed. Similarly, cynomolgus monkeys treated weekly with ALT-803 showed dose-dependent increases of peripheral blood lymphocyte counts, including NK, CD4(+), and CD8(+) memory T-cell subsets. In vitro studies demonstrated ALT-803-mediated stimulation of mouse and human immune cell proliferation and IFNγ production without inducing a broad-based release of other proinflammatory cytokines (i.e., cytokine storm). Based on these results, a weekly dosing regimen of ALT-803 has been implemented in multiple clinical studies to evaluate the dose required for effective immune cell stimulation in humans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Jack O Egan
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Wenxin Xu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Hao Hong
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
| | - Gabriela M Webb
- Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.,Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | | | - Bai Liu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Xiaoyun Zhu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Jinghai Wen
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Lijing You
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Lin Kong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | | | - Kaiping Han
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Sixiang Shi
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
| | - Sarah Alter
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Jonah B Sacha
- Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.,Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | | | - Weibo Cai
- Departments of Radiology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
| | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Rosario M, Liu B, Kong L, Collins LI, Schneider SE, Chen X, Han K, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Leong JW, Schappe T, Jewell BA, Keppel CR, Shah K, Hess B, Romee R, Piwnica-Worms DR, Cashen AF, Bartlett NL, Wong HC, Fehniger TA. The IL-15-Based ALT-803 Complex Enhances FcγRIIIa-Triggered NK Cell Responses and In Vivo Clearance of B Cell Lymphomas. Clin Cancer Res 2015; 22:596-608. [PMID: 26423796 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-15-1419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 117] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2015] [Accepted: 09/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies (mAb) are an important immunotherapy for B-cell lymphoma, and provide evidence that the immune system may be harnessed as an effective lymphoma treatment approach. ALT-803 is a superagonist IL-15 mutant and IL-15Rα-Fc fusion complex that activates the IL-15 receptor constitutively expressed on natural killer (NK) cells. We hypothesized that ALT-803 would enhance anti-CD20 mAb-directed NK-cell responses and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We tested this hypothesis by adding ALT-803 immunostimulation to anti-CD20 mAb triggering of NK cells in vitro and in vivo. Cell lines and primary human lymphoma cells were utilized as targets for primary human NK cells. Two complementary in vivo mouse models were used, which included human NK-cell xenografts in NOD/SCID-γc (-/-) mice. RESULTS We demonstrate that short-term ALT-803 stimulation significantly increased degranulation, IFNγ production, and ADCC by human NK cells against B-cell lymphoma cell lines or primary follicular lymphoma cells. ALT-803 augmented cytotoxicity and the expression of granzyme B and perforin, providing one potential mechanism for this enhanced functionality. Moreover, in two distinct in vivo B-cell lymphoma models, the addition of ALT-803 to anti-CD20 mAb therapy resulted in significantly reduced tumor cell burden and increased survival. Long-term ALT-803 stimulation of human NK cells induced proliferation and NK-cell subset changes with preserved ADCC. CONCLUSIONS ALT-803 represents a novel immunostimulatory drug that enhances NK-cell antilymphoma responses in vitro and in vivo, thereby supporting the clinical investigation of ALT-803 plus anti-CD20 mAbs in patients with indolent B-cell lymphoma.
Collapse
MESH Headings
- Animals
- Antibody-Dependent Cell Cytotoxicity/drug effects
- Antineoplastic Agents/pharmacology
- Cell Line, Tumor
- Cytotoxicity, Immunologic/drug effects
- Disease Models, Animal
- Drug Synergism
- Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic/drug effects
- Granzymes/genetics
- Granzymes/metabolism
- Humans
- Interferon-gamma/biosynthesis
- Killer Cells, Natural/immunology
- Killer Cells, Natural/metabolism
- Lymphoma, B-Cell/drug therapy
- Lymphoma, B-Cell/immunology
- Lymphoma, B-Cell/metabolism
- Lymphoma, B-Cell/pathology
- Mice
- Mice, Knockout
- Perforin/genetics
- Perforin/metabolism
- Proteins/pharmacology
- Receptors, IgG/metabolism
- Recombinant Fusion Proteins
- Rituximab/pharmacology
- Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maximillian Rosario
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri. Department of Pathology/Immunology, Division of Laboratory and Genomic Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Bai Liu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Lin Kong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Lynne I Collins
- Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Stephanie E Schneider
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | | | - Kaiping Han
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | | | | | - Jeffrey W Leong
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Timothy Schappe
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Brea A Jewell
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Catherine R Keppel
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Keval Shah
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Brian Hess
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Rizwan Romee
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - David R Piwnica-Worms
- Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri. Department of Cancer Systems Imaging, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
| | - Amanda F Cashen
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Nancy L Bartlett
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, Florida
| | - Todd A Fehniger
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Mathios D, Park CK, Marcus WD, Alter S, Rhode PR, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Pardoll DM, Lim M. Therapeutic administration of IL-15 superagonist complex ALT-803 leads to long-term survival and durable antitumor immune response in a murine glioblastoma model. Int J Cancer 2015; 138:187-94. [PMID: 26174883 DOI: 10.1002/ijc.29686] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2015] [Revised: 06/28/2015] [Accepted: 07/06/2015] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive primary central nervous system malignancy with a poor prognosis in patients. Despite the need for better treatments against glioblastoma, very little progress has been made in discovering new therapies that exhibit superior survival benefit than the standard of care. Immunotherapy has been shown to be a promising treatment modality that could help improve clinical outcomes of glioblastoma patients by assisting the immune system to overcome the immunosuppressive tumor environment. Interleukin-15 (IL-15), a cytokine shown to activate several effector components of the immune system, may serve as an excellent immunotherapeutic candidate for the treatment of glioblastoma. Thus, we evaluated the efficacy of an IL-15 superagonist complex (IL-15N72D:IL-15RαSu-Fc; also known as ALT-803) in a murine GL261-luc glioblastoma model. We show that ALT-803, as a single treatment as well as in combination with anti-PD-1 antibody or stereotactic radiosurgery, exhibits a robust antitumor immune response resulting in a prolonged survival including complete remission in tumor bearing mice. In addition, ALT-803 treatment results in long-term immune memory against glioblastoma tumor rechallenge. Flow cytometric analysis of tumor infiltrating immune cells shows that ALT-803 leads to increased percentage of CD8+-cell infiltration, but not the NK cells, and IFN-γ production into the tumor microenvironment. Cell depletion studies, in accordance with the flow cytometric results, show that the ALT-803 therapeutic effect is dependent on CD4+ and CD8+ cells. These results provide a rationale for evaluating the therapeutic activity of ALT-803 against glioblastoma in the clinical setting.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Mathios
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Baltimore, MD
| | - Chul-Kee Park
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Baltimore, MD.,Seoul National University College of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Drew M Pardoll
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Oncology and Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baltimore, MD
| | - Michael Lim
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Baltimore, MD
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Kudchodkar SB, Tang L, Jeng EK, Wong HC, Irvine DJ, Maus MV. 517. Improving CAR T Cell Efficacy for Solid Tumors By Nanogel-Based Delivery of Immunomodulatory Proteins. Mol Ther 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/s1525-0016(16)34126-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022] Open
|
31
|
Chen X, Liu B, Han K, Kong L, Noel T, Jeng EK, Alter S, Rubinstein M, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Combination therapy of an IL-15 superagonist complex, ALT-803, and a tumor targeting monoclonal antibody promotes direct antitumor activity and protective vaccinal effect in a syngenic mouse melanoma model. J Immunother Cancer 2015. [PMCID: PMC4649322 DOI: 10.1186/2051-1426-3-s2-p347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
|
32
|
Johnson CB, Riesenberg B, Neitzke D, Jeng EK, Marcus WD, Cole D, Wong HC, Rubinstein MP. Combinatorial therapy with an IL-15 superagonist (ALT-803) and anti-PD-L1 mAb augment T cell mediated anti-tumor immunity in mice. J Immunother Cancer 2014. [PMCID: PMC4292513 DOI: 10.1186/2051-1426-2-s3-p234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
|
33
|
Xu W, Egan JO, Liu B, Chen X, You L, Han K, Marcus WD, Kong L, Jones M, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Novel antitumor mechanism-of-action of an IL-2 fusion protein mediated by tumor associated macrophage repolarization and innate-like CD8+ memory T cells. J Immunother Cancer 2014. [PMCID: PMC4288425 DOI: 10.1186/2051-1426-2-s3-p123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
|
34
|
Rosario M, Liu B, Kong L, Schneider SE, Jeng EK, Rhode PR, Wong HC, Fehniger TA. The IL-15 superagonist ALT-803 enhances anti-CD20 antibody-directed NK cell ADCC and in vivo clearance of B cell lymphomas. J Immunother Cancer 2014. [PMCID: PMC4288551 DOI: 10.1186/2051-1426-2-s3-p168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
|
35
|
Wong HC, Jeng EK, Rhode PR. The IL-15-based superagonist ALT-803 promotes the antigen-independent conversion of memory CD8 + T cells into innate-like effector cells with antitumor activity. Oncoimmunology 2013; 2:e26442. [PMID: 24404427 PMCID: PMC3881336 DOI: 10.4161/onci.26442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2013] [Accepted: 09/10/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
ALT-803, an interleukin-15-based superagonist, induces memory CD8+ T cells to proliferate, upregulate receptors involved in innate immunity, secrete interferon γ and acquire the ability to kill malignant cells in the absence of antigenic stimulation. Thus, ALT-803 can promote the expansion and activation of memory CD8+ T cells while converting them into innate immune effector cells that exhibit robust antineoplastic activity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hing C Wong
- Altor BioScience Corporation; Miramar, FL USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
36
|
Xu W, Jones M, Liu B, Zhu X, Johnson CB, Edwards AC, Kong L, Jeng EK, Han K, Marcus WD, Rubinstein MP, Rhode PR, Wong HC. Efficacy and mechanism-of-action of a novel superagonist interleukin-15: interleukin-15 receptor αSu/Fc fusion complex in syngeneic murine models of multiple myeloma. Cancer Res 2013; 73:3075-86. [PMID: 23644531 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-12-2357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 149] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
ALT-803, a complex of an interleukin (IL)-15 superagonist mutant and a dimeric IL-15 receptor αSu/Fc fusion protein, was found to exhibit significantly stronger in vivo biologic activity on NK and T cells than IL-15. In this study, we show that a single dose of ALT-803, but not IL-15 alone, eliminated well-established 5T33P and MOPC-315P myeloma cells in the bone marrow of tumor-bearing mice. ALT-803 treatment also significantly prolonged survival of myeloma-bearing mice and provided resistance to rechallenge with the same tumor cells through a CD8(+) T-cell-dependent mechanism. ALT-803 treatment stimulated CD8(+) T cells to secrete large amounts of IFN-γ and promoted rapid expansion of CD8(+)CD44(high) memory T cells in vivo. These memory CD8(+) T cells exhibited ALT-803-mediated upregulation of NKG2D (KLRK1) but not PD-1 (PDCD1) or CD25 (IL2RA) on their cell surfaces. ALT-803-activated CD8(+) memory T cells also exhibited nonspecific cytotoxicity against myeloma and other tumor cells in vitro, whereas IFN-γ had no direct effect on myeloma cell growth. ALT-803 lost its antimyeloma activity in tumor-bearing IFN-γ knockout mice but retained the ability to promote CD8(+)CD44(high) memory T-cell proliferation, indicating that ALT-803-mediated stimulation of CD8(+)CD44(high) memory T cells is IFN-γ-independent. Thus, besides well-known IL-15 biologic functions in host immunity, this study shows that IL-15-based ALT-803 could activate CD8(+)CD44(high) memory T cells to acquire a unique innate-like phenotype and secrete IFN-γ for nonspecific tumor cell killing. This unique immunomodulatory property of ALT-803 strongly supports its clinical development as a novel immunotherapeutic agent against cancer and viral infections.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wenxin Xu
- Altor BioScience Corporation, Miramar, FL 33025, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|