Oncology
Abstract
While immune checkpoint inhibition (CPI) has reshaped cancer treatment, the majority of cancer patients do not benefit from this approach, which can also cause immune-related adverse events. Induction of IFNγ responses is thought be necessary for anti-tumor immunity, but growing evidence also implicates IFNγ as a tumor-intrinsic mediator of CPI resistance. CPI-induced IFNγ mediates activation-induced cell death in T cells as an immune-intrinsic mechanism of resistance. In this study, we show that transient block of IFNγ signaling through administration of the JAK1 inhibitor ABT-317 enhances anti-tumor T cell responses with CPI in pre-clinical models. Importantly, sequential but not concomitant ABT-317 treatment led to significantly reduced toxicity and improved tumor efficacy. Sequential treatment reduced activation-induced T cell death and enhanced expansion of tumor-reactive T cell subsets with increased effector function in vivo and ex vivo. Only CPI in combination with ABT-317 also enhanced memory responses by protecting mice from tumor rechallenge. These results demonstrate that JAK inhibition within a discrete time window following CPI addresses an immune-intrinsic mechanism of therapeutic resistance.
Authors
Marcel Arias-Badia, PeiXi Chen, Yee May Lwin, Aahir Srinath, Aram Lyu, Zenghua Fan, Serena S. Kwek, Diamond N. Luong, Ali Setayesh, Mason Sakamoto, Matthew Clark, Averey Lea, Rachel M. Wolters, Andrew Goodearl, Fiona A. Harding, Jacob V. Gorman, Wendy Ritacco, Lawrence Fong
Abstract
Lynch syndrome (LS), caused by inherited mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes including MSH2, carries a 60% lifetime risk of developing endometrial cancer (EC). Beyond hypermutability, mechanisms driving LS-associated EC remain unclear. We investigated MSH2 loss in EC pathogenesis using a mouse model (PR-Cre Msh2LoxP/LoxP, abbreviated Msh2KO), primary cell lines, human tissues, and human EC cells with isogenic MSH2 knockdown. By eight months, 58% of Msh2KO mice developed endometrial atypical hyperplasia (AH), a precancerous lesion. At 12-16 months, 47% of Msh2KO mice exhibited either AH or ECs with histologic similarities to human LS-ECs. Transcriptomic profiling of EC from Msh2KO mice revealed mitochondrial dysfunction-related pathway alterations. Subsequent studies in vitro and in vivo revealed mitochondrial dysfunction based upon two mechanisms: mitochondrial content reduction and structural disruptions in retained mitochondria. Human LS-ECs also exhibited mitochondrial content reduction compared to non-LS-ECs. Functional studies demonstrated metabolic reprogramming of MSH2-deficient EC cells, including reduced oxidative phosphorylation and increased susceptibility to glycolysis suppression. These findings identified mitochondrial dysfunction and metabolic disruption as consequences of MSH2 deficiency in EC. Mitochondrial and metabolic aberrations should be evaluated as biomarkers for endometrial carcinogenesis or risk stratification and represent potential targets for cancer interception in women with LS.
Authors
Mikayla Borthwick Bowen, Brenda Melendez, Qian Zhang, Diana Moreno, Leah Peralta, Wai-Kin Chan, Collene Jeter, Lin Tan, M. Anna Zal, Philip L. Lorenzi, Kenneth Dunner Jr., Richard K. Yang, Russell R. Broaddus, Joseph Celestino, Nisha Gokul, Elizabeth Whitley, Deena M. Scoville, Tae Hoon KIM, Jae-Wook Jeong, Rosemarie Schmandt, Karen Lu, Hyun-Eui Kim, Melinda S. Yates
Abstract
The omentum is the primary site of metastasis for ovarian cancer (OC). Interactions between cancer cells and adipocytes drive an invasive and pro-metastatic phenotype. Here we studied cancer cell-adipocyte crosstalk by using a direct co-culture model with immortalized human visceral pre-adipocytes (VNPAD) and OC cells. We demonstrate increased proliferation, invasiveness, and resistance to cisplatin of co-cultured compared to mono-cultured OC cells. RNA-sequencing of OC cells from co-culture vs. mono-culture revealed significant transcriptomic changes, identifying over 200 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) common to OVCAR5 and OVCAR8 cell lines. Enriched pathways included PI3K/AKT and Complement activation. Lipid transfer into OC cells from adipocytes induced upregulation of complement C3 and C5 proteins. Inhibiting C3 or C5 reversed the invasive phenotype and C3 knockdown reduced tumor progression in-vivo. Increased C3 expression was observed in omental implants compared to primary ovarian tumors and C3 secretion was higher in OC ascites from high BMI vs. low BMI patients. C3 upregulation in OC cells involved activation of ATF4-mediated integrated stress response (ISR). Overall, adipocyte-cancer cell interactions promote invasiveness and tumorigenesis via lipid transfer, activating ISR, and upregulating complement proteins C3 and C5.
Authors
Andres Valdivia, Ana Isac, Horacio Cardenas, Guangyuan Zhao, Yaqi Zhang, Hao Huang, Jian-Jun Wei, Mauricio Cuello-Fredes, Sumie Kato, Fernán Gómez-Valenzuela, Francoise A. Gourronc, Aloysius J. Klingelhutz, Daniela Matei
Abstract
Colorectal pre-cancers in Lynch Syndrome (LS) exhibit a distinct immune profile, presenting unique opportunities for developing immune-interception strategies to prevent carcinogenesis. Epigenetic modulation by EZH2 of immune-related genes is implicated in the carcinogenesis of different cancer types including colorectal. This study utilizes a mouse model of LS and ex vivo colonic organoids to assess the effects of the EZH2 inhibitor GSK503 on immune regulatory pathways, tumorigenesis, and epigenetic reprogramming. Our findings revealed that GSK503 significantly increased CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in both splenocytes and colonic mucosa of treated mice compared to controls. Additionally, a preventive dose of GSK503 over 9 weeks notably reduced adenoma multiplicity, demonstrating its efficacy as a preventive modality. Single-cell RNA sequencing and molecular analyses showed activation of immune and apoptotic markers, along with a reduction in H3K27 methylation levels in colonic crypts. ChIP sequencing further revealed decreased levels of H3K27me3 and H3K4me1, while levels of the active enhancer marks H3K4me3 and H3K27Ac increased in treated mice. Collectively, these findings indicate that EZH2 inhibition enhances immune responses through epigenetic reprogramming in the genome of LS mice, establishing a promising framework for the clinical development of EZH2 inhibitors as a cancer prevention strategy for LS carriers.
Authors
Charles M. Bowen, Fahriye Duzagac, Abel Martel-Martel, Laura Reyes-Uribe, Mahira Zaheer, Jacklyn Thompson, Nan Deng, Ria Sinha, Soham Mazumdar, Melissa W. Taggart, Abhinav K. Jain, Winfried Edelmann, Krishna M. Sinha, Eduardo Vilar
Abstract
BACKGROUND. 80% of patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) develop duodenopancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (dpNETs), of whom, 15% to 25% die of metastasis. There is a need to identify biomarkers to predict aggressive disease. MEN1 genotype affords an attractive possibility as a biomarker as it remains constant during lifetime. Currently, patients are clinically diagnosed with MEN1 by the presence of ≥ 2 primary endocrine tumors (pituitary, parathyroid and pancreas) or ≥ 1 primary endocrine tumor(s) with a positive family history. 10-30% of patients diagnosed clinically with MEN1 have no pathogenic germline MEN1 variants. METHODS. Retrospective study of 162 index patients or probands with genotype-positive and 47 with genotype-negative MEN1 enrolled from 1977–2022. RESULTS. Compared to patients with genotype-negative disease, patients with genotype-positive disease were younger at diagnosis and had an increased frequency of recurrent parathyroid tumors, dpNETs and angiofibromas or collagenomas. We propose a novel weighted scoring system to diagnose genotype-positive MEN1 based on clinical characteristics. No evidence of MEN1 mosaicism was seen in 30 tumors from 17 patients with genotype-negative MEN1. Patients with germline MEN1 variants in exons 2 and 3 have a reduced risk of distant metastases. CONCLUSIONS. The clinical course of genotype-negative MEN1 is distinct from genotype-positive disease raising uncertainty about the benefits of lifetime surveillance inpatients with genotype-negative disease. MEN1 mosaicism is rare. TRIAL REGISTRATION. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04969926. FUNDING. Intramural Research Program of NIDDK (ZIA DK043006-46).
Authors
Charlita C. Worthy, Rana Tora, Chandra N. Uttarkar, James M. Welch, Lynn Bliss, Craig Cochran, Anisha Ninan, Sheila Kumar, Stephen Wank, Sungyoung Auh, Lee S. Weinstein, William F. Simonds, Sunita K. Agarwal, Jenny E. Blau, Smita Jha
Abstract
Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the most lethal adult brain tumors with limited effective therapeutic options. Immunotherapy targeting B7-H3 (CD276) has shown promising efficacy in the treatment of gliomas. However, the response to this treatment varies among glioma patients due to individual differences. It’s necessary to find an effective strategy to improve the efficacy of targeting B7-H3 immunotherapy for non-responders. In this study, we demonstrated a strong correlation between aurora kinase A (AURKA) and CD276 expression in glioma tissue samples. Additionally, both AURKA knockdown and overexpression resulted in parallel changes in B7-H3 expression levels in glioma cells. Mechanistically, AURKA elevated B7-H3 expression by promoting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) phosphorylation, which was validated in glioma cell lines and primary GBM cells. What’s more, the combination of AURKA inhibitor (alisertib) and anti-B7-H3 antibody markedly reduced tumor size and promoted CD8+ T cell infiltration and activation in mouse orthotopic syngeneic glioma models. To our knowledge, this study is the first to demonstrate AURKA-mediated B7-H3 upregulation in glioma cells; moreover, it proposes a promising therapeutic strategy combining the AURKA inhibitor alisertib with B7-H3-specific blocking mAbs.
Authors
Jinqiu Liu, Yuxuan Deng, Zhuonan Pu, Yazhou Miao, Zhaonian Hao, Herui Wang, Shaodong Zhang, Hanjie Liu, Jiejun Wang, Yifan Lv, Boyi Hu, Hong Wan, Zhengping Zhuang, Tai Sun, Shuyu Hao, Nan Ji, Jie Feng
Abstract
Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is one of the most common solid tumors in children and adolescents. Patients with relapsed/refractory RMS have limited treatment options, highlighting the urgency for the identification of novel therapeutic targets for RMS. In the present study, aurora kinase B (AURKB) was found to be highly expressed in RMS and associated with unfavorable prognosis of patients. Functional experiments indicated that inhibition of AURKB significantly reduced RMS cell proliferation, induced apoptosis and ferroptosis, and suppressed RMS growth in vivo. The highly expressed AURKB in RMS contributes to the apoptosis and ferroptosis resistance of tumor cells through the nucleophosmin 1 (NPM1)/Sp1 transcription factor (SP1)/acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 5 (ACSL5) axis. Furthermore, inhibition of AURKB exerted an anti-RMS effect together with vincristine both in vitro and in vivo, with tolerable toxicity. The above findings provide insights we believe are new into the tumorigenesis of RMS, especially with regard to apoptosis or ferroptosis resistance, indicating that AURKB may be a potential target for clinical intervention in patients with RMS.
Authors
Huimou Chen, Mengzhen Li, Yu Zhang, Mengjia Song, Yi Que, Juan Wang, Feifei Sun, Jia Zhu, Junting Huang, Juan Liu, Jiaqian Xu, Suying Lu, Yizhuo Zhang
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains the leading cause of cancer-related mortality necessitating the exploration of alternate therapeutic approaches. Tumor reactive or activated-by-cytokine killers (TRACK) are PD-L1+ highly cytolytic natural killer (NK) cells derived from umbilical cord blood NK cells and engineered to express soluble IL15 (sIL15), showing promise in preclinical studies against NSCLC. METHODS. We assessed safety, persistence, homing and cytotoxic activity in six patients with advanced, refractory, and progressing NSCLC who received a low dose of unmatched, allogeneic, off-the-shelf sIL15_TRACK NK cells. We evaluated NK cell presence and persistence with droplet digital (dd) PCR, flow cytometry, and immunofluorescent staining. RESULTS. sIL15_TRACK NK cells had peak measurements at one hour and became undetectable four hours after each in fusion. Cognate ligands to activating NK cell receptors were found in NSCLC. sIL15_TRACK NK cells were observed in a lung tumor biopsy seven days after the final infusion, confirming their sustainment and tumor-homing ability. They retained cytolytic function following isolation from the lung tumor. Three out of six patients achieved disease stabilization on repeat imaging, while the others progressed. CONCLUSION. Unmatched, allogeneic, cryopreserved, off-the-shelf sIL15_TRACK NK cells express activating receptors, home to tumor sites that express their cognate ligands, and retain cytolytic activity after infusion, underscoring their potential as a therapeutic approach in solid tumors. At low doses, the therapy was safely administered and showed preliminary evidence of activity in three of six patients with advanced and progressive NSCLC. Additional dose escalation cohorts and co-administration with atezolizumab are planned. TRIAL REGISTRATION. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05334329 FUNDING. Funding was provided by CytoImmune Therapeutics; CA266457; CA033572; CA210087.
Authors
Miguel A. Villalona-Calero, Lei Tian, Xiaochen Li, Joycelynne M. Palmer, Claudia Aceves, Hans Meisen, Catherine Cortez, Timothy W. Synold, Colt Egelston, Jeffrey VanDeusen, Ivone Bruno, Lei Zhang, Eliezer Romeu-Bonilla, Omer Butt, Stephen J. Forman, Michael A. Caligiuri, Jianhua Yu
Abstract
The standard-of-care treatment of locally advanced cervical cancer includes pelvic radiation therapy with concurrent cisplatin-based chemotherapy and is associated with a 30-50% failure rate. New prognostic and therapeutic targets are needed to improve clinical outcomes. The vaginal microbiome has been linked to the pathogenesis of cervical cancer, but little is known about the vaginal microbiome in locally advanced cervical cancer as it relates to chemoradiation. In this pilot study we utilized 16S rRNA gene community profiling to characterize the vaginal microbiomes of 26 postmenopausal women with locally advanced cervical cancer receiving chemoradiation. Our analysis revealed diverse anaerobe-dominated communities whose taxonomic composition, diversity or bacterial abundance did not change with treatment. We hypothesized that characteristics of the microbiome might correlate with treatment response. Pretreatment microbial diversity and bacterial abundance were not associated with disease recurrence. We observed a greater relative abundance of Fusobacterium in patients that later had cancer recurrence, suggesting that Fusobacterium could play a role in modifying treatment response. Taken together, this hypothesis generating pilot study provides insight into the composition and dynamics of the vaginal microbiome, offering proof-of-concept for future study of the microbiome and its relationship with treatment outcomes in locally advanced cervical cancer.
Authors
Brett A. Tortelli, Jessika Contreras, Stephanie Markovina, Li Ding, Kristine M. Wylie, Julie K. Schwarz
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Previously, we demonstrated that changes in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) are promising biomarkers for early response prediction (ERP) to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in metastatic urothelial cancer (mUC). In this study, we investigated the value of whole blood immunotranscriptomics for ERP-ICI and integrated both biomarkers into a multimodal model to boost accuracy. METHODS. Blood samples of 93 patients were collected at baseline and after 2-6 weeks of ICI for ctDNA (N=88) and immunotranscriptome (N=79) analyses. ctDNA changes were dichotomized into increase or no increase, the latter including patients with undetectable ctDNA. For RNA model development, the cohort was split into a discovery (N=29), test (N=29) and validation set (N=21). Finally, RNA- and ctDNA-based predictions were integrated in a multimodal model. Clinical benefit (CB) was defined as progression-free survival beyond 6 months. RESULTS. Sensitivity (SN) and specificity (SP) of ctDNA increase for predicting non-CB (N-CB) was 59% and 92%, respectively. Immunotranscriptome analysis revealed upregulation of T-cell activation, proliferation and interferon signalling during treatment in the CB group, contrary to N-CB patients. Based on these differences a 10-gene RNA model was generated, reaching a SN and SP of 73% and 79% in the test and 67% and 67% in the validation set for predicting N-CB. Multimodal model integration led to superior performance with a SN and SP of 79% and 100% in the validation cohort. CONCLUSION. The combination of whole blood immunotranscriptome and ctDNA in a multimodal model showed promise for ERP-ICI in mUC and accurately identified patients with N-CB. TRIAL REGISTRATION. 2016-3060, 2020-6778 FUNDING. Eurostars grant E! 114908 - PRECISE, Paul Speth Foundation (Bullseye project)
Authors
Sandra van Wilpe, Davide Croci, Sara S. Fonseca Costa, Iris B.A.W. te Paske, Sofie H. Tolmeijer, Jolique van Ipenburg, Leonie I. Kroeze, Simona Pavan, Sylvain Monnier-Benoit, Guido Coccia, Noushin Hadadi, Irma M. Oving, Tineke J. Smilde, Theo van Voorthuizen, Marieke Berends, Mira D. Franken, Marjolijn J.L. Ligtenberg, Sahar Hosseinian Ehrensberger, Laura Ciarloni, Pedro Romero, Niven Mehra
No posts were found with this tag.
