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Pipchuk A, Kelly T, Carew M, Nicol C, Yang X. Development of Novel Bioluminescent Biosensors Monitoring the Conformation and Activity of the Merlin Tumour Suppressor. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1527. [PMID: 38338806 PMCID: PMC10855677 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25031527] [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: 12/26/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Solid tumours can universally evade contact inhibition of proliferation (CIP), a mechanism halting cell proliferation when cell-cell contact occurs. Merlin, an ERM-like protein, crucially regulates CIP and is frequently deactivated in various cancers, indicating its significance as a tumour suppressor in cancer biology. Despite extensive investigations into Merlin's role in cancer, its lack of intrinsic catalytic activity and frequent conformation changes have made it notoriously challenging to study. To address this challenge, we harnessed innovative luciferase technologies to create and validate a NanoBiT split-luciferase biosensor system in which Merlin is cloned between two split components (LgBiT and SmBiT) of NanoLuc luciferase. This system enables precise quantification of Merlin's conformation and activity both in vitro and within living cells. This biosensor significantly enhances the study of Merlin's molecular functions, serving as a potent tool for exploring its contributions to CIP and tumorigenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Xiaolong Yang
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada; (A.P.); (T.K.); (M.C.); (C.N.)
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Guo M, Abd-Rabbo D, Bertol BC, Carew M, Lukhele S, Snell LM, Xu W, Boukhaled GM, Elsaesser H, Halaby MJ, Hirano N, McGaha TL, Brooks DG. Molecular, metabolic, and functional CD4 T cell paralysis in the lymph node impedes tumor control. Cell Rep 2023; 42:113047. [PMID: 37651234 PMCID: PMC10578141 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [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: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023] Open
Abstract
CD4 T cells are central effectors of anti-cancer immunity and immunotherapy, yet the regulation of CD4 tumor-specific T (TTS) cells is unclear. We demonstrate that CD4 TTS cells are quickly primed and begin to divide following tumor initiation. However, unlike CD8 TTS cells or exhaustion programming, CD4 TTS cell proliferation is rapidly frozen in place by a functional interplay of regulatory T cells and CTLA4. Together these mechanisms paralyze CD4 TTS cell differentiation, redirecting metabolic circuits, and reducing their accumulation in the tumor. The paralyzed state is actively maintained throughout cancer progression and CD4 TTS cells rapidly resume proliferation and functional differentiation when the suppressive constraints are alleviated. Overcoming their paralysis established long-term tumor control, demonstrating the importance of rapidly crippling CD4 TTS cells for tumor progression and their potential restoration as therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengdi Guo
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Diala Abd-Rabbo
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Bruna C Bertol
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Madeleine Carew
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sabelo Lukhele
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Laura M Snell
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Microbiology and Immunology and Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Wenxi Xu
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Giselle M Boukhaled
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Heidi Elsaesser
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Marie Jo Halaby
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Naoto Hirano
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tracy L McGaha
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - David G Brooks
- Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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Guo M, Abd-Rabbo D, Bertol B, Carew M, Lukhele S, Snell LM, Xu W, Boukhaled GM, Elsaesser H, Halaby MJ, Hirano N, McGaha TL, Brooks DG. Molecular, metabolic and functional CD4 T cell paralysis impedes tumor control. bioRxiv 2023:2023.04.15.536946. [PMID: 37131587 PMCID: PMC10153152 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.15.536946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
CD4 T cells are important effectors of anti-tumor immunity, yet the regulation of CD4 tumor-specific T (T TS ) cells during cancer development is still unclear. We demonstrate that CD4 T TS cells are initially primed in the tumor draining lymph node and begin to divide following tumor initiation. Distinct from CD8 T TS cells and previously defined exhaustion programs, CD4 T TS cell proliferation is rapidly frozen in place and differentiation stunted by a functional interplay of T regulatory cells and both intrinsic and extrinsic CTLA4 signaling. Together these mechanisms paralyze CD4 T TS cell differentiation, redirecting metabolic and cytokine production circuits, and reducing CD4 T TS cell accumulation in the tumor. Paralysis is actively maintained throughout cancer progression and CD4 T TS cells rapidly resume proliferation and functional differentiation when both suppressive reactions are alleviated. Strikingly, Treg depletion alone reciprocally induced CD4 T TS cells to themselves become tumor-specific Tregs, whereas CTLA4 blockade alone failed to promote T helper differentiation. Overcoming their paralysis established long-term tumor control, demonstrating a novel immune evasion mechanism that specifically cripples CD4 T TS cells to favor tumor progression.
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Lukhele S, Rabbo DA, Guo M, Shen J, Elsaesser HJ, Quevedo R, Carew M, Gadalla R, Snell LM, Mahesh L, Ciudad MT, Snow BE, You-Ten A, Haight J, Wakeham A, Ohashi PS, Mak TW, Cui W, McGaha TL, Brooks DG. The transcription factor IRF2 drives interferon-mediated CD8 + T cell exhaustion to restrict anti-tumor immunity. Immunity 2022; 55:2369-2385.e10. [PMID: 36370712 PMCID: PMC9809269 DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2022.10.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [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: 02/03/2022] [Revised: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Type I and II interferons (IFNs) stimulate pro-inflammatory programs that are critical for immune activation, but also induce immune-suppressive feedback circuits that impede control of cancer growth. Here, we sought to determine how these opposing programs are differentially induced. We demonstrated that the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 2 (IRF2) was expressed by many immune cells in the tumor in response to sustained IFN signaling. CD8+ T cell-specific deletion of IRF2 prevented acquisition of the T cell exhaustion program within the tumor and instead enabled sustained effector functions that promoted long-term tumor control and increased responsiveness to immune checkpoint and adoptive cell therapies. The long-term tumor control by IRF2-deficient CD8+ T cells required continuous integration of both IFN-I and IFN-II signals. Thus, IRF2 is a foundational feedback molecule that redirects IFN signals to suppress T cell responses and represents a potential target to enhance cancer control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabelo Lukhele
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada.
| | - Diala Abd Rabbo
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Mengdi Guo
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8 Canada
| | - Jian Shen
- Blood Research Institute, Versiti Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA
| | - Heidi J Elsaesser
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Rene Quevedo
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Madeleine Carew
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Ramy Gadalla
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Laura M Snell
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA
| | - Lawanya Mahesh
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - M Teresa Ciudad
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Bryan E Snow
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Annick You-Ten
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Jillian Haight
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Andrew Wakeham
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada
| | - Pamela S Ohashi
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8 Canada
| | - Tak W Mak
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8 Canada
| | - Weiguo Cui
- Blood Research Institute, Versiti Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA; Department of Pathology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Tracy L McGaha
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8 Canada
| | - David G Brooks
- Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, M5G 2M9 Canada; Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8 Canada.
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Carew M, Schiffer M, Umina P, Weeks A, Hoffmann A. Molecular markers indicate that the wheat curl mite, Aceria tosichella Keifer, may represent a species complex in Australia. Bull Entomol Res 2009; 99:479-86. [PMID: 19224660 DOI: 10.1017/s0007485308006512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The wheat curl mite (WCM), Aceria tosichella Keifer, is an eriophyoid pest of cereals, and the vector responsible for transmitting wheat streak mosaic virus. Several authors have suggested cryptic species of this mite identified through morphological variation, but this has never been conclusively demonstrated. Here, we use the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene and two nuclear markers (internal transcribed spacer 1 and adenine nucleotide translocase) to show that WCM from Australia consists of at least two separate lineages that may represent putative species. In our study, both WCM variants were widespread and the only eriophyoids found on wheat varieties. The WCM variants were also found on alternate host plants, including some plants not known to host WCM. These results have implications for the control of this pest within Australian cereal crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Carew
- Centre for Environmental Stress and Adaptation Research, Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
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