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Wang L, Maharjan CK, Borcherding N, Master RP, Mo J, Tithi TI, Kim MC, Carelock ME, Master AP, Gibson-Corley KN, Kolb RH, Smith KA, Zhang W. Epithelial IL-2 is critical for NK cell-mediated cancer immunosurveillance in mammary glands. bioRxiv 2024:2024.04.25.591178. [PMID: 38712046 PMCID: PMC11071474 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.25.591178] [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: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
Interleukin 2 (IL-2) is the first identified cytokine and its interaction with receptors has been known to shape the immune responses in many lymphoid or non-lymphoid tissues for more than four decades. Active T cells are the primary cellular source for IL-2 production and epithelial cells have never been considered the major cellular source of IL-2 under physiological conditions. It is, however, tempting to speculate that epithelial cells could potentially express IL-2 that regulates the intricate interactions between epithelial cells and lymphocytes. Datamining our recently published single-cell RNAseq in the mouse mammary gland identified IL-2 expression in mammary epithelial cells, which is induced by prolactin via the STAT5 signaling pathway. Furthermore, epithelial IL-2 plays a crucial role in maintaining the physiological functions of natural killer (NK) cells within the mammary glands. IL-2 deletion in the mammary epithelial cells leads to a significant reduction in the number and function of NK cells, which in turn results in defective immunosurveillance, expansion of luminal epithelial cells, and tumor development. Interestingly, T cells in the mammary glands are not changed, indicating the specific regulation of NK cells by epithelial IL-2 production. In agreement, we also found that human epithelial cells express IL-2 and NK cells express the highest level of IL2RB among all the immune cells. Here, we provide the first evidence that epithelial cells produce IL-2, which is critical for maintaining the physiological functions of NK cells in immunosurveillance.
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Wang L, Xiao Y, Luo Y, Master RP, Mo J, Kim MC, Liu Y, Maharjan CK, Patel UM, De U, Carelock ME, Tithi TI, Li X, Shaffer DR, Guertin KR, Zhuang H, Moser E, Smalley KS, Lv D, Zhou D, Zheng G, Zhang W. PROTAC-mediated NR4A1 degradation as a novel strategy for cancer immunotherapy. J Exp Med 2024; 221:e20231519. [PMID: 38334978 PMCID: PMC10857906 DOI: 10.1084/jem.20231519] [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: 08/25/2023] [Revised: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
An effective cancer therapy requires killing cancer cells and targeting the tumor microenvironment (TME). Searching for molecules critical for multiple cell types in the TME, we identified NR4A1 as one such molecule that can maintain the immune suppressive TME. Here, we establish NR4A1 as a valid target for cancer immunotherapy and describe a first-of-its-kind proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC, named NR-V04) against NR4A1. NR-V04 degrades NR4A1 within hours in vitro and exhibits long-lasting NR4A1 degradation in tumors with an excellent safety profile. NR-V04 inhibits and frequently eradicates established tumors. At the mechanistic level, NR-V04 induces the tumor-infiltrating (TI) B cells and effector memory CD8+ T (Tem) cells and reduces monocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (m-MDSC), all of which are known to be clinically relevant immune cell populations in human melanomas. Overall, NR-V04-mediated NR4A1 degradation holds promise for enhancing anticancer immune responses and offers a new avenue for treating various types of cancers such as melanoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Yufeng Xiao
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Yuewan Luo
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Rohan P. Master
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Jiao Mo
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Myung-Chul Kim
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeju National University, Jeju-si, South Korea
| | - Yi Liu
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Chandra K. Maharjan
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Urvi M. Patel
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Umasankar De
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Madison E. Carelock
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Tanzia Islam Tithi
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | | | | | | | - Haoyang Zhuang
- Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Emily Moser
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Keiran S.M. Smalley
- Department of Tumor Biology, Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Dongwen Lv
- Department of Biochemistry and Structural Biology, Center of Innovative Drug Discovery, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Daohong Zhou
- Department of Biochemistry and Structural Biology, Center of Innovative Drug Discovery, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Guangrong Zheng
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- University of Florida Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Weizhou Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- University of Florida Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
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Wang L, Xiao Y, Luo Y, Master RP, Mo J, Kim MC, Liu Y, Patel UM, Li X, Shaffer D, Guertin KR, Moser E, Smalley KS, Zhou D, Zheng G, Zhang W. Unleashing the Power of NR4A1 Degradation as a Novel Strategy for Cancer Immunotherapy. bioRxiv 2023:2023.08.09.552650. [PMID: 37609171 PMCID: PMC10441411 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.09.552650] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
An effective cancer therapy requires both killing cancer cells and targeting tumor-promoting pathways or cell populations within the tumor microenvironment (TME). We purposely search for molecules that are critical for multiple tumor-promoting cell types and identified nuclear receptor subfamily 4 group A member 1 (NR4A1) as one such molecule. NR4A1 has been shown to promote the aggressiveness of cancer cells and maintain the immune suppressive TME. Using genetic and pharmacological approaches, we establish NR4A1 as a valid therapeutic target for cancer therapy. Importantly, we have developed the first-of-its kind proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC, named NR-V04) against NR4A1. NR-V04 effectively degrades NR4A1 within hours of treatment in vitro and sustains for at least 4 days in vivo, exhibiting long-lasting NR4A1-degradation in tumors and an excellent safety profile. NR-V04 leads to robust tumor inhibition and sometimes eradication of established melanoma tumors. At the mechanistic level, we have identified an unexpected novel mechanism via significant induction of tumor-infiltrating (TI) B cells as well as an inhibition of monocytic myeloid derived suppressor cells (m-MDSC), two clinically relevant immune cell populations in human melanomas. Overall, NR-V04-mediated NR4A1 degradation holds promise for enhancing anti-cancer immune responses and offers a new avenue for treating various types of cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Yufeng Xiao
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Yuewan Luo
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Current: Biotech Research and Innovation Centre, Department of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ole Maaløes Vej 5, Copenhagen N DK-2200, Denmark
| | - Rohan P Master
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Current: College of Medicine, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
| | - Jiao Mo
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Current: R & D, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Alachua, FL 32615, USA
| | - Myung-Chul Kim
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeju National University, Jeju-si, Jeju-do, South Korea 63243
| | - Yi Liu
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Urvi M Patel
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | | | | | - Kevin R Guertin
- Sanofi Integrated Drug Discovery, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 01890
| | - Emily Moser
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, the College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Keiran S Smalley
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Current: Biotech Research and Innovation Centre, Department of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Ole Maaløes Vej 5, Copenhagen N DK-2200, Denmark
- Current: College of Medicine, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
- Current: R & D, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Alachua, FL 32615, USA
- Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Jeju National University, Jeju-si, Jeju-do, South Korea 63243
- Sanofi Oncology, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 01890
- Sanofi Integrated Drug Discovery, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 01890
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, Department of Medicine, the College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- Department of Cutaneous Oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL 12902
- Department of Biochemistry & Structural Biology, Center of innovative Drug Discovery, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229
- University of Florida Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Daohong Zhou
- Department of Biochemistry & Structural Biology, Center of innovative Drug Discovery, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229
| | - Guangrong Zheng
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- University of Florida Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Weizhou Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
- University of Florida Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
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Wang L, Jin Z, Master RP, Maharjan CK, Carelock ME, Reccoppa TBA, Kim MC, Kolb R, Zhang W. Breast Cancer Stem Cells: Signaling Pathways, Cellular Interactions, and Therapeutic Implications. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:3287. [PMID: 35805056 PMCID: PMC9265870 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14133287] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Revised: 07/02/2022] [Accepted: 07/02/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) constitute a small population of cells within breast cancer and are characterized by their ability to self-renew, differentiate, and recapitulate the heterogeneity of the tumor. Clinically, BCSCs have been correlated with cancer progression, metastasis, relapse, and drug resistance. The tumorigenic roles of BCSCs have been extensively reviewed and will not be the major focus of the current review. Here, we aim to highlight how the crucial intrinsic signaling pathways regulate the fate of BCSCs, including the Wnt, Notch, Hedgehog, and NF-κB signaling pathways, as well as how different cell populations crosstalk with BCSCs within the TME, including adipocytes, endothelial cells, fibroblasts, and immune cells. Based on the molecular and cellular activities of BCSCs, we will also summarize the targeting strategies for BCSCs and related clinical trials. This review will highlight that BCSC development in breast cancer is impacted by both BCSC endogenous signaling and external factors in the TME, which provides an insight into how to establish a comprehensively therapeutic strategy to target BCSCs for breast cancer treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Wang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- Immunology Concentration, Biomedical Graduate Program, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Zeng Jin
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- Cancer Biology Concentration, Biomedical Graduate Program, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Rohan P. Master
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
| | - Chandra K. Maharjan
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
| | - Madison E. Carelock
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- Cancer Biology Concentration, Biomedical Graduate Program, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Tiffany B. A. Reccoppa
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- Department of Biology, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Myung-Chul Kim
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
| | - Ryan Kolb
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- UF Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
| | - Weizhou Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA; (L.W.); (Z.J.); (R.P.M.); (C.K.M.); (M.E.C.); (T.B.A.R.); (M.-C.K.); (R.K.)
- UF Health Cancer Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA
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