Macrophage-Based Approaches for Cancer Immunotherapy

circRanGAP1/miR-27b-3p/NRAS Axis may promote the progression of hepatocellular Carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Though circular RNAs (circRNAs) are the key regulators in tumor carcinogenesis, they remain largely unexplored in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS

The expression of RanGAP1-derived circRNAs (circ_0063531, circ_0063534, circ_0063513, circ_0063518, circ_0063507, circ_0063723) were evaluated in eight paired HCC and normal tissues, and the correlation between circRanGAP1 (circ_0063531) expression and clinicopathological characteristics in 40 HCC patients was determined. The association between miR-27b-3p and circRanGAP1 or NRAS was predicted using bioinformatics analysis. The expression of circRanGAP1, miR-27b-3p, and NRAS were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The potential oncogenic role of circ-RanGAP1 was assessed using CCK-8, colony formation, transwell assays in vitro, subcutaneous tumor mouse model, vein tail metastatic model, and orthotopically implanted intrahepatic HCC model in vivo. Luciferase reporter and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assays were used to explore the binding site between miR-27b-3p and circ-RanGAP1 or NRAS. Protein expression was detected using western blotting. The localization of miR-27b-3p and circ-RanGAP1 was investigated using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). The level of immune infiltration was assessed by bioinformatics analysis, flow cytometry, and orthotopically implanted intrahepatic HCC models.

RESULTS

Here, we found elevated circRanGAP1 in the cells and clinical tissues of patients with HCC. Increased circRanGAP1 levels are associated with enlarged tumors and the advanced stage of TNM. CircRanGAP1 promotes the growth, migration, and HCC cell invasion, concurrently with the growth and metastasis of tumors in-vivo. Moreover, circRanGAP1 is mainly located inside the cytoplasm. Mechanistically, circRanGAP1 as an oncogene promotes HCC progression by miR-27b-3p/NRAS/ERK axis, furthermore, affects the infiltration level of tumor-associated macrophages probably by sponging miR-27b-3p. Immune infiltration analysis shows that NRAS is positively correlated with the levels of CD68+ tumor-associated macrophages in HCC samples and that NRAS and CD68 are related to the poor outcome of HCC.

CONCLUSION

These results reveal that circRanGAP1 is a HCC oncogene that function by the miR-27b-3p/NRAS/ERK axis and regulates the infiltration levels of tumor-associated macrophages by sponging miR-27b-3p. Therefore, circRANGAP1/ NRAS axis may be an important potential treatment target against HCC.

Single-cell sequencing analysis and transcriptome analysis constructed the macrophage related gene-related signature in lung adenocarcinoma and verified by an independent cohort

BACKGROUND

Recent studies have emphasized the close relationship between macrophages and tumor immunity, and the prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients is intimately linked to this. Nonetheless, the prognostic signature and classification of different immune patterns in LUAD patients based on the macrophages is largely unexplored.

METHODS

Two sc-RNAseq datasets of LUAD patients were collected and reprocessed. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to macrophages between LUAD tissues and normal lung tissues were then identified. Based upon the above genes, three distinct immune patterns in the TCGA-LUAD cohort were identified. The ssGSEA and CIBERSORT were applied for immune profiling and characterization of different subtypes. A four-gene prognostic signature for LUAD patients was established based on the DEGs between the subtypes using stepwise multi-Cox regression. TCGA-LUAD cohort was used as training set. Five GEO-LUAD datasets and an independent cohort containing 112 LUAD samples were used for validation. TIDE (tumor immune dysfunction and exclusion) and drug sensitivity analyses were also performed.

RESULTS

Macrophage-related differentially expressed genes were found out using the publicly available scRNA-seq data of LUAD. Three different immune patterns which were proved to have distinct immune infiltration characteristics in the TCGA-LUAD cohort were recognized based on the above macrophage-related genes. Thereafter, 174 DEGs among the above three different immune patterns were figured out; on the basis of this, a four-gene prognostic signature was constructed. This signature distinguished the prognosis of LUAD patients well in various GSE datasets as well as our independent cohort. Further analyses revealed that patients which had a higher risk score also accompanied with a lower immune infiltration level and a worse response to several immunotherapy biomarkers.

CONCLUSION

This study highlighted that macrophage were significantly associated with TME diversity and complexity. The four-gene prognostic signature could be used for predicting outcomes and immune landscapes for patients with LUAD.

Cancer-associated fibroblasts-derived FMO2 as a biomarker of macrophage infiltration and prognosis in epithelial ovarian cancer

OBJECTIVE

Recent molecular profiling revealed that cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are essential for matrix remodeling and tumor progression. Our study aimed to investigate the role of flavin-containing monooxygenase 2 (FMO2) in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) as a novel CAF-derived prognostic biomarker.

METHODS

Primary fibroblasts were isolated from EOC samples. Microdissection and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets (including TCGA, GSE9891, GSE63885, GSE118828 and GSE178913) were retrieved to determine the expression profiles. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to explore the correlation between FMO2 and stromal activation as well as immune infiltration. The predictive value of FMO2 and combined macrophage infiltration level was verified in an independent EOC cohort (n = 113).

RESULTS

We demonstrated that FMO2 was upregulated in tumor stroma and correlated with fibroblast activation. Besides, FMO2 had the predictive power for worse clinical outcome of EOC patients. In the mesenchymal subtype of EOC, the FMO2-defined signature revealed that FMO2 contributed to infiltration of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. Moreover, we confirmed the positive correlation between FMO2 and CD163+ cell infiltration level in EOC tissues, and showed that combination of FMO2 expression with CD163+ cell infiltration level in the tumor stroma could predict poor overall survival (HR = 3.63, 95% CI = 1.93-6.84, p = 0.0008). Additionally, FMO2 also predicted the prognosis of patients with ovarian cancer based on the expression of immune checkpoints (such as PD-L1 and PD1).

CONCLUSION

Our results address the tumor-supporting role of FMO2 in EOC and its association with immune components, and it might be a prospective target for stroma-oriented therapies against EOC.

Prognosis prediction and tumor immune microenvironment characterization based on tryptophan metabolism-related genes signature in brain glioma

Glioma is the most common malignant tumor in the central nervous system with no significant therapeutic breakthrough in recent years. Most attempts to apply immunotherapy in glioma have failed. Tryptophan and its metabolism can regulate malignant features of cancers and reshape immune microenvironment of tumors. However, the role of tryptophan metabolism in glioma remains unclear. In current study, we explored the relationships between the expression pattern of tryptophan metabolism-related genes (TrMGs) and tumor characteristics, including prognosis and tumor microenvironment of gliomas through analyzing 1,523 patients' samples from multiple public databases and our own cohort. Based on expression of TrMGs, K-means clustering analysis stratified all glioma patients into two clusters with significantly different TrMG expression patterns, clinicopathological features and immune microenvironment. Furthermore, we constructed a tryptophan metabolism-related genes signature (TrMRS) based on seven essential TrMGs to classify the patients into TrMRS low- and high-risk groups and validated the prognostic value of the TrMRS in multiple cohorts. Higher TrMRS represented for potentially more active tryptophan catabolism, which could subsequently lead to less tryptophan in tumor. The TrMRS high-risk group presented with shorter overall survival, and further analysis confirmed TrMRS as an independent prognostic factor in gliomas. The nomograms uniting TrMRS with other prognostic factors manifested with satisfactory efficacy in predicting the prognosis of glioma patients. Additionally, analyses of tumor immune landscapes demonstrated that higher TrMRS was correlated with more immune cell infiltration and "hot" immunological phenotype. TrMRS was also demonstrated to be positively correlated with the expression of multiple immunotherapy targets, including PD1 and PD-L1. Finally, the TrMRS high-risk group manifested better predicted response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. In conclusion, our study illustrated the relationships between expression pattern of TrMGs and characteristics of gliomas, and presented a novel model based on TrMRS for prognosis prediction in glioma patients. The association between TrMRS and tumor immune microenvironment of gliomas indicated an important role of tryptophan and its metabolism in reshaping immune landscape and the potential ability to guide the application of immunotherapy for gliomas.

Remotely Guided Immunobots Engaged in Anti-Tumorigenic Phenotypes for Targeted Cancer Immunotherapy

Building medical microrobots from the body's own cells may circumvent the biocompatibility concern and hence presents more potential in clinical applications to improve the possibility of escaping from the host defense mechanism. More importantly, live cells can enable therapeutically relevant functions with significantly higher efficiency than synthetic systems. Here, live immune cell-derived microrobots from macrophages, i.e., immunobots, which can be remotely steered with externally applied magnetic fields and directed toward anti-tumorigenic (M1) phenotypes, are presented. Macrophages engulf the engineered magnetic decoy bacteria, composed of 0.5 µm diameter silica Janus particles with one side coated with anisotropic FePt magnetic nanofilm and the other side coated with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). This study demonstrates the torque-based surface rolling locomotion of the immunobots along assigned trajectories inside blood plasma, over a layer of endothelial cells, and under physiologically relevant flow rates. The immunobots secrete signature M1 cytokines, IL-12 p40, TNF-α, and IL-6, and M1 cell markers, CD80 and iNOS, via toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-mediated stimulation with bacterial LPS. The immunobots exhibit anticancer activity against urinary bladder cancer cells. This study further demonstrates such immunobots from freshly isolated primary bone marrow-derived macrophages since patient-derivable macrophages may have a strong clinical potential for future cell therapies in cancer.

DNAzyme-Assisted Nano-Herb Delivery System for Multiple Tumor Immune Activation

As a promising therapeutic strategy against cancer, immunotherapy faces critical challenges, especially in solid tumors. Immune checkpoint blockade therapy, particularly blocking the interaction of the programmed cell death 1 (PD1)-PD1 ligand 1 (PD-L1) axis, can reverse the suppression of T cells so as to destroy tumor cells and exert antitumor effects. Here, a strategy of multiple activation of immune pathways is developed, to provide supporting evidence for potential antitumor therapies. Briefly, a pH/glutathione responsive drug-loading hollow-manganese dioxide (H-MnO₂ )-based chlorine6 (Ce6)-modified DNAzyme therapeutic nanosystem for the combination of gene therapy and immunotherapy is established. The H-MnO₂ nanoparticles could efficiently deliver the DNAzyme and glycyrrhizic acid (GA) to enhance the tumor target effects. In the tumor microenvironments, the biodegradation of H-MnO₂ via pH-induced hydrolyzation allows the release of guest DNAzyme payloads and host Mn²⁺ ions, which serve as PD-L1 mRNA-targeting reagent and require DNAzyme cofactors for activating gene therapy. In addition, Mn²⁺ is also associated with the immune activation of thcGAS-STING pathway. Auxiliary photosensitizers Ce6 and GA could produce reactive oxygen species, resulting in immunogenic cell death. Overall, this study provides a general strategy for targeted gene inhibition and GA release, which is valuable for the development of potential tumor immunotherapies.

SIRPα antibody combined with oncolytic virus OH2 protects against tumours by activating innate immunity and reprogramming the tumour immune microenvironment

BACKGROUND

The combination of oncolytic viruses (OVs) with immune checkpoint blockades is a research hotspot and has shown good efficacy. Here, we present the first attempt to combine oncolytic herpes simplex virus 2 (OH2) with an anti-SIRPα antibody as an antitumour treatment. Our results provide unique insight into the combination of innate immunity with OV.

METHODS

We verified the polarization and activation of OH2 in RAW264.7 cells in vitro. Subsequently, we evaluated the antitumour ability of OH2 and anti-SIRPα combined therapy in a tumour-bearing mouse model. RNA-seq and Single-cell RNA-seq were used to characterize the changes in the tumour microenvironment.

RESULTS

The OH2 lysates effectively stimulated RAW264.7 cells to polarize towards the M1 but not the M2 phenotype and activated the function of the M1 phenotype in vitro. In the macrophage clearance experiment, OH2 therapy induced polarization of M1 macrophages and participated in the antitumour immune response in a tumour-bearing mouse model. Treatment with a combination of OH2 and anti-SIRPα effectively inhibited tumour growth and significantly prolonged the survival time of the mice, and this result was more obvious in the mouse model with a larger tumour volume at the beginning of the treatment. These results suggest that combination therapy can more profoundly reshape the TME and activate stronger innate and adaptive immune responses.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data support the feasibility of oncolytic virus therapy in combination with anti-SIRPα antibodies and suggest a new strategy for oncolytic virus therapy.

Immune checkpoint of B7-H3 in cancer: from immunology to clinical immunotherapy

Immunotherapy for cancer is a rapidly developing treatment that modifies the immune system and enhances the antitumor immune response. B7-H3 (CD276), a member of the B7 family that plays an immunoregulatory role in the T cell response, has been highlighted as a novel potential target for cancer immunotherapy. B7-H3 has been shown to play an inhibitory role in T cell activation and proliferation, participate in tumor immune evasion and influence both the immune response and tumor behavior through different signaling pathways. B7-H3 expression has been found to be aberrantly upregulated in many different cancer types, and an association between B7-H3 expression and poor prognosis has been established. Immunotherapy targeting B7-H3 through different approaches has been developing rapidly, and many ongoing clinical trials are exploring the safety and efficacy profiles of these therapies in cancer. In this review, we summarize the emerging research on the function and underlying pathways of B7-H3, the expression and roles of B7-H3 in different cancer types, and the advances in B7-H3-targeted therapy. Considering different tumor microenvironment characteristics and results from preclinical models to clinical practice, the research indicates that B7-H3 is a promising target for future immunotherapy, which might eventually contribute to an improvement in cancer immunotherapy that will benefit patients.

Cuproptosis-related gene signature stratifies lower-grade glioma patients and predicts immune characteristics

Cuproptosis is the most recently discovered type of regulated cell death and is mediated by copper ions. Studies show that cuproptosis plays a significant role in cancer development and progression. Lower-grade gliomas (LGGs) are slow-growing brain tumors. The majority of LGGs progress to high-grade glioma, which makes it difficult to predict the prognosis. However, the prognostic value of cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) in LGG needs to be further explored. mRNA expression profiles and clinical data of LGG patients were collected from public sources for this study. Univariate Cox regression analysis and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression model were used to build a multigene signature that could divide patients into different risk groups. The differences in clinical pathological characteristics, immune infiltration characteristics, and mutation status were evaluated in risk subgroups. In addition, drug sensitivity and immune checkpoint scores were estimated in risk subgroups to provide LGG patients with precision medication. We found that all CRGs were differentially expressed in LGG and normal tissues. Patients were divided into high- and low-risk groups based on the risk score of the CRG signature. Patients in the high-risk group had a considerably lower overall survival rate than those in the low-risk group. According to functional analysis, pathways related to the immune system were enriched, and the immune state differed across the two risk groups. Immune characteristic analysis showed that the immune cell proportion and immune scores were different in the different groups. High-risk group was characterized by low sensitivity to chemotherapy but high sensitivity to immune checkpoint inhibitors. The current study revealed that the novel CRG signature was related to the prognosis, clinicopathological features, immune characteristics, and treatment perference of LGG.

Circulating Tumor Cells and Breast Cancer Metastasis: From Enumeration to Somatic Mutational Profile

Aims: This study investigates the association between circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and breast cancer metastasis. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using patients with histologically confirmed breast cancer recruited from the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University during the period of August 2017−October 2020. We used adjusted logistic regression, the random forest algorithm, and sensitivity analysis to study the association between CTC enumeration and tumor metastasis. Further, we performed next-generation sequencing (NGS) on the CTCs obtained from two patients with breast cancer brain metastasis. Results: A total of 41 out of 116 enrolled patients were identified with tumor metastasis. CTC enumeration was significantly higher in patients with liver metastasis than in those without liver metastasis. Patients with CTCs ≥ 5 exhibited a higher risk of tumor metastasis than those with CTCs < 5 in the adjusted model (odds ratios (OR) = 6.25, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.63−15.58). The random forest model identified CTC enumeration as a significant metastasis-related variable with the highest mean decrease accuracy and mean decrease Gini score. No significant association was found between CTCs and visceral metastasis with an OR of 1.29 (95% CI = 0.98−2.05, p = 0.232). Upon further investigating organ-specific metastasis, we found that patients with high CTC levels were more likely to develop liver metastasis (OR = 4.87, 95% CI = 1.34−20.17, p = 0.021). The NGS study of CTCs identified a total of 120 indel mutations (e.g., CNGB1, NTSR1, ZG16). The enriched biological processes were mechanoreceptor differentiation and macrophage activation involved in the immune response. The enriched KEGG pathways included focal adhesion, the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and microRNAs involved in cancer. Conclusions: Our study revealed that CTCs ≥ 5 are a risk factor for tumor metastasis in breast cancer patients. In addition, we reported that CTCs ≥ 5 might be associated with a higher risk of liver metastasis in patients with metastatic breast cancer. We have provided the mutational profiles of CTCs based on next-generation sequencing.

Tumor-associated macrophages in tumor progression and the role of traditional Chinese medicine in regulating TAMs to enhance antitumor effects

Purpose

To emphasize the importance of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in tumor immunity and to describe the ways in which extracts from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) achieve tumor therapy by modulating macrophages.

Significance

By summarizing these available data, this review focused on TAMs and TCM and can build the foundation for future research on antitumor therapeutics.

Methods

In this review, we summarized the key functions of TAMs in cancer development and overviewed literature on TCM targeting TAMs together with other immune cells aiming to enhance antitumor immunity.

Conclusions

With an indispensable role in antitumor immunity, TAMs contribute to tumor progression, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, lymphangiogenesis, and immunosuppressive microenvironment. In recent years, TCM has gradually gained attention as a potential antitumor adjunctive therapy in preclinical and clinical trials. TCM is also a regulator of cytokine secretion and cell surface molecule expression in balancing the tumor microenvironment (TME), especially macrophage activation and polarization. Therefore, it is believed that TCM could serve as modifiers with immunomodulatory capability.

Influencing tumor-associated macrophages in malignant melanoma with monoclonal antibodies

The application of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for the treatment of melanoma has significantly improved the clinical management of this malignancy over the last decade. Currently approved mAbs for melanoma enhance T cell effector immune responses by blocking immune checkpoint molecules PD-L1/PD-1 and CTLA-4. However, more than half of patients do not benefit from treatment. Targeting the prominent myeloid compartment within the tumor microenvironment, and in particular the ever-abundant tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), may be a promising strategy to complement existing therapies and enhance treatment success. TAMs are a highly diverse and plastic subset of cells whose pro-tumor properties can support melanoma growth, angiogenesis and invasion. Understanding of their diversity, plasticity and multifaceted roles in cancer forms the basis for new promising TAM-centered treatment strategies. There are multiple mechanisms by which macrophages can be targeted with antibodies in a therapeutic setting, including by depletion, inhibition of specific pro-tumor properties, differential polarization to pro-inflammatory states and enhancement of antitumor immune functions. Here, we discuss TAMs in melanoma, their interactions with checkpoint inhibitor antibodies and emerging mAbs targeting different aspects of TAM biology and their potential to be translated to the clinic.

Engineered Bacterial Outer Membrane Vesicles as Controllable Two-Way Adaptors to Activate Macrophage Phagocytosis for Improved Tumor Immunotherapy

The most immune cells infiltrating tumor microenvironment (TME), tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) closely resemble immunosuppressive M2-polarized macrophages. Moreover, tumor cells exhibit high expression of CD47 "don't eat me" signal, which obstructs macrophage phagocytosis. The precise and efficient activation of TAMs is a promising approach to tumor immunotherapy; however, re-education of macrophages remains a challenge. Bacteria-derived outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are highly immunogenic nanovesicles that can robustly stimulate macrophages. Here, an OMV-based controllable two-way adaptor is reported, in which a CD47 nanobody (CD47nb) is fused onto OMV surface (OMV-CD47nb), with the outer surface coated with a polyethylene glycol (PEG) layer containing diselenide bonds (PEG/Se) to form PEG/Se@OMV-CD47nb. The PEG/Se layer modification not only mitigates the immunogenicity of OMV-CD47nb, thereby remarkedly increasing the dose that can be administered safely through intravenous injection, but also equips the formulation with radiation-triggered controlled release of OMV-CD47nb. Application of radiation to tumors in mice injected with the nanoformulation results in remodeling of TME. As two-way adaptors, OMV-CD47nb activates TAM phagocytosis of tumor cells via multiple pathways, including induction of M1 polarization and blockade of "don't eat me" signal. Moreover, this activation of TAMs results in the stimulation of T cell-mediated antitumor immunity through effective antigen presentation.

SLC7A5 is a lung adenocarcinoma-specific prognostic biomarker and participates in forming immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment

Background

Amino acid metabolism participates in forming immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Amino acid transporters (AATs), as a gate for admission, remains to be studied.

Materials and methods

We identified LUAD-specific prognostic AATs, SLC7A5 by differential expression analysis, logistic regression, machine learning, Kaplan-Meier analysis, AUC value filtrating and Cox regression. Then differential expression and distribution of SLC7A5 were depicted. Copy number variation, DNA methylation, transcriptional factors and ceRNA network were investigated to explore potential mechanism causing differential expression. The prognostic and clinical relation were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier analysis, Cox regression analysis. GSEA and GSVA were used to analyze altered pathways between SLC7A5 high- and low-groups. The expression of HLA-related genes and immune checkpoint genes, and immune cells infiltration were detected. SLC7A5 expression in immune cells was evaluated by single-cell sequencing data. IPS and an independent immunotherapy cohort assessed response rates of patients with distinct SLC7A5 expression. Proliferation assay and wound healing assay validated the effects of SLC7A5 on proliferation and migration of LUAD cells. Western blotting and cell viability assays were performed to detect mTORC1 pathway activity and sensitivity to rapamycin.

Results

SLC7A5 was a LUAD-specific prognostic AAT and had significant differential expression in transcription and translation level. Methylation levels of cg00728300, cg00858400, cg12408911, cg08710629 were negative correlation with SLC7A5 expression. FOXP3 and TFAP2A were possible transcription factors and miR-30a-5p, miR-184, miR-195-5p may target SLC7A5 mRNA. SLC7A5 high-expression indicated poor prognosis and was an independent prognostic factor. mTORC1, cell cycle, DNA damage repair, response to reactive oxygen, angiogenesis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and various growth factors signaling pathways were activated in SLC7A5 high-expression group. Interestingly, SLC7A5 high-expression group had less immune-related genes expression and immune cells infiltration. Single-cell sequencing data also suggested SLC7A5 was downregulated in various T cells, especially effector T cells. Moreover, high SLC7A5 expression indicated poor immunotherapy efficacy and higher sensitivity to inhibitors of mTORC1 pathway, cell cycle and angiogenesis. SLC7A5 deficiency abrogated proliferation, migration and mTORC1 pathway activity.

Conclusions

In summary, as a LUAD-specific prognostic AAT, SLC7A5 is involved in activation of multiple oncogenic pathways and indicates poor prognosis. Moreover, SLC7A5 may participate in forming immunosuppressive TME and is associated with low response of immunotherapy. SLC7A5 is promising to be a new diagnostic and prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in LUAD.

PTPRD/PTPRT mutation as a predictive biomarker of immune checkpoint inhibitors across multiple cancer types

Background

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are dramatically changing the treatment landscape of a variety of cancers. Nevertheless, the variability in ICI responses highlight the importance in identifying predictive biomarkers. PTPRD and PTPRT (PTPRD/PTPRT) are the phosphatases of JAK-STAT signaling, a critical pathway in anti-cancer immunity regulation. However, the pan-cancer association between PTPRD/PTPRT mutation and the efficacy of ICIs remains unclear across pan-cancer patients.

Methods

We analyzed the association between PTPRD/PTPRT mutations and patient outcomes using clinical data and genomic mutations from TCGA pan-cancer cohort. Furthermore, the ICI-treatment cohort was used to evaluate the relationship between PTPRD/PTPRT mutation and the efficacy of ICIs. Another ICIs-treatment cohort was used to validate the findings. The TCGA pan-cancer dataset was analyzed to explore the correlation between PTPRD/PTPRT mutations and immune signatures. Moreover, we combined four factors to construct a nomogram model that could be used to predict the survival of pan-cancer patients receiving ICI treatment. The calibration curves and area under the curve were applied to assess the performance of the model.

Results

PTPRD/PTPRT mutations were shown to be associated with a worse prognosis in TCGA cohort (P < 0.05). In the Samstein cohort, prolonged overall survival (OS) was observed in PTPRD/PTPRT mutant cancers, compared with wild-type cancers (mOS: 40.00 vs 16.00 months, HR = 0.570, 95%CI: 0.479-0.679, P < 0.0001). In the validation cohort, significant OS advantage was observed in PTPRD/PTPRT mutant patients (mOS: 31.32 vs 15.53 months, HR = 0.658, 95%CI: 0.464-0.934, P = 0.0292). Furthermore, PTPRD/PTPRT mutations were associated with a higher tumor mutational burden, MSI score, and TCR score (P < 0.0001). Enhanced immune signatures were found in the PTPRD/PTPRT mutant cancers (P < 0.05). Finally, we successfully established a nomogram model that could be used to predict the survival of NSCLC patients who received ICI treatment. Based on the risk score of the model, patients in the low-risk group showed a better mOS than those in the high-risk group (mOS: 2.75 vs 1.08 years, HR = 0.567, 95%CI: 0.492-0.654; P < 0.001).

Conclusions

PTPRD/PTPRT mutations may be a potential biomarker for predicting ICI treatment responsiveness in multiple cancer types.

Therapeutic strategies for gastric cancer targeting immune cells: Future directions

Gastric cancer (GC) is a malignancy with a high incidence and mortality, and the emergence of immunotherapy has brought survival benefits to GC patients. Compared with traditional therapy, immunotherapy has the advantages of durable response, long-term survival benefits, and lower toxicity. Therefore, targeted immune cells are the most promising therapeutic strategy in the field of oncology. In this review, we introduce the role and significance of each immune cell in the tumor microenvironment of GC and summarize the current landscape of immunotherapy in GC, which includes immune checkpoint inhibitors, adoptive cell therapy (ACT), dendritic cell (DC) vaccines, reduction of M2 tumor-associated macrophages (M2 TAMs), N2 tumor-associated neutrophils (N2 TANs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), effector regulatory T cells (eT_regs), and regulatory B cells (B_regs) in the tumor microenvironment and reprogram TAMs and TANs into tumor killer cells. The most widely used immunotherapy strategies are the immune checkpoint inhibitor programmed cell death 1/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) antibody, cytotoxic T lymphocyte–associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) antibody, and chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) in ACT, and these therapeutic strategies have significant anti-tumor efficacy in solid tumors and hematological tumors. Targeting other immune cells provides a new direction for the immunotherapy of GC despite the relatively weak clinical data, which have been confirmed to restore or enhance anti-tumor immune function in preclinical studies and some treatment strategies have entered the clinical trial stage, and it is expected that more and more effective immune cell–based therapeutic methods will be developed and applied.

Therapeutic targets and biomarkers of tumor immunotherapy: response versus non-response

Cancers are highly complex diseases that are characterized by not only the overgrowth of malignant cells but also an altered immune response. The inhibition and reprogramming of the immune system play critical roles in tumor initiation and progression. Immunotherapy aims to reactivate antitumor immune cells and overcome the immune escape mechanisms of tumors. Represented by immune checkpoint blockade and adoptive cell transfer, tumor immunotherapy has seen tremendous success in the clinic, with the capability to induce long-term regression of some tumors that are refractory to all other treatments. Among them, immune checkpoint blocking therapy, represented by PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors (nivolumab) and CTLA-4 inhibitors (ipilimumab), has shown encouraging therapeutic effects in the treatment of various malignant tumors, such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and melanoma. In addition, with the advent of CAR-T, CAR-M and other novel immunotherapy methods, immunotherapy has entered a new era. At present, evidence indicates that the combination of multiple immunotherapy methods may be one way to improve the therapeutic effect. However, the overall clinical response rate of tumor immunotherapy still needs improvement, which warrants the development of novel therapeutic designs as well as the discovery of biomarkers that can guide the prescription of these agents. Learning from the past success and failure of both clinical and basic research is critical for the rational design of studies in the future. In this article, we describe the efforts to manipulate the immune system against cancer and discuss different targets and cell types that can be exploited to promote the antitumor immune response.

ADAM-10 Regulates MMP-12 during Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Inflammatory Response in Macrophages

A disintegrin and metalloprotease 10 (ADAM-10), a member of the ADAM protease family, has biological activities related to TNF-α activation, cell adhesion, and migration, among other functions. Macrophages are important immune cells that are involved in the inflammatory response of the body. ADAM-10 is involved in inflammatory responses, but the specific regulatory mechanisms are not fully understood. In this study, we investigated the regulatory mechanism of ADAM-10 in the lipopolysaccharide-promoted proliferation (LPS) of the macrophage inflammatory response. Differentially expressed or regulated proteins were identified in interfered ADAM-10 (sh ADAM-10) macrophages using tandem mass tag (TMT) proteomics. The changes and regulatory role of ADAM-10 during LPS-induced inflammatory response in normal, interfering, and overexpressing ADAM-10 (EX ADAM-10) cells were determined. Results indicated that ADAM-10 interference affected inflammation-related pathways and reduced matrix metalloproteinase 12 (MMP-12) protein levels, as identified by TMT proteomics. In normal cells, LPS decreased ADAM-10 gene expression, but promoted ADAM-10 secretion, MMP-12 and TNF-α gene expression, and MMP-12, iNOS, IL-10, and cyclinD1 protein expression. Additionally, ADAM-10 knockdown decreased macrophage viability in sh-ADAM-10 cells. Moreover, an MMP-12 inhibitor had no impact on the viability effect of LPS on cells or the expression of ADAM-10. iNOS expression decreased, whereas IL-10 expression increased after ADAM-10 depletion. ADAM-10 knockdown decreased MMP-12, iNOS, TNF-α, IL-1β, and FKN, while overexpression had an opposite effect. ADAM-10 overexpression further increased MMP-12, iNOS, and TNF-α gene expression in response to LPS. Cell viability was increased in EX ADAM-10 cells, and ADAM-10 secretion was further increased in the EX and LPS groups. Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence staining revealed that EX-ADAM 10 cells had increased iNOS expression, which acted as an IL-6 expression driver. In summary, we found that ADAM-10 is activated by LPS and positively participates in LPS-stimulated macrophage inflammatory responses by positively regulating MMP-12 during the inflammatory process.

Mild dyslipidemia accelerates tumorigenesis through expansion of Ly6Chi monocytes and differentiation to pro-angiogenic myeloid cells

Cancer and cardiovascular disease (CVD) share common risk factors such as dyslipidemia, obesity and inflammation. However, the role of pro-atherogenic environment and its associated low-grade inflammation in tumor progression remains underexplored. Here we show that feeding C57BL/6J mice with a non-obesogenic high fat high cholesterol diet (HFHCD) for two weeks to induce mild dyslipidemia, increases the pool of circulating Ly6Chi monocytes available for initial melanoma development, in an IL-1β-dependent manner. Descendants of circulating myeloid cells, which accumulate in the tumor microenvironment of mice under HFHCD, heighten pro-angiogenic and immunosuppressive activities locally. Limiting myeloid cell accumulation or targeting VEGF-A production by myeloid cells decrease HFHCD-induced tumor growth acceleration. Reverting the HFHCD to a chow diet at the time of tumor implantation protects against tumor growth. Together, these data shed light on cross-disease communication between cardiovascular pathologies and cancer.

Tumor-derived exosomes deliver the tumor suppressor miR-3591-3p to induce M2 macrophage polarization and promote glioma progression

Exosomes can selectively secrete harmful metabolic substances from cells to maintain cellular homeostasis, and complex crosstalk occurs between exosomes and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in the glioma immune microenvironment. However, the precise mechanisms by which these exosome-encapsulated cargos create an immunosuppressive microenvironment remain unclear. Herein, we investigated the effect of glioma-derived exosomes (GDEs) on macrophage polarization and glioma progression. We performed sequencing analysis of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and tumor tissues from glioma patients to identify functional microRNAs (miRNAs). High levels of miR-3591-3p were found in CSF and GDEs but not in normal brain tissue or glial cells. Functionally, GDEs and miR-3591-3p significantly induced M2 macrophage polarization and increased the secretion of IL10 and TGFβ1, which in turn promoted glioma invasion and migration. Moreover, miR-3591-3p overexpression in glioma cell lines resulted in G2/M arrest and markedly increased apoptosis. Mechanistically, miR-3591-3p can directly target CBLB and MAPK1 in macrophages and glioma cells, respectively, and further activate the JAK2/PI3K/AKT/mTOR, JAK2/STAT3, and MAPK signaling pathways. In vivo experiments confirmed that macrophages lentivirally transduced with miR-3591-3p can significantly promote glioma progression. Thus, our study demonstrates that tumor-suppressive miR-3591-3p in glioma cells can be secreted via exosomes and target TAMs to induce the formation of an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Collectively, these findings provide new insights into the role of glioma exosomal miRNAs in mediating the establishment of an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and show that miR-3591-3p may be a valuable biomarker and that blocking the encapsulation of miR-3591-3p into exosomes may become a novel immunotherapeutic strategy for glioma.

Effects of propofol on macrophage activation and function in diseases

Macrophages work with monocytes and dendritic cells to form a monocyte immune system, which constitutes a powerful cornerstone of the immune system with their powerful antigen presentation and phagocytosis. Macrophages play an essential role in infection, inflammation, tumors and other pathological conditions, but these cells also have non-immune functions, such as regulating lipid metabolism and maintaining homeostasis. Propofol is a commonly used intravenous anesthetic in the clinic. Propofol has sedative, hypnotic, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidation effects, and it participates in the body’s immunity. The regulation of propofol on immune cells, especially macrophages, has a profound effect on the occurrence and development of human diseases. We summarized the effects of propofol on macrophage migration, recruitment, differentiation, polarization, and pyroptosis, and the regulation of these propofol-regulated macrophage functions in inflammation, infection, tumor, and organ reperfusion injury. The influence of propofol on pathology and prognosis via macrophage regulation is also discussed. A better understanding of the effects of propofol on macrophage activation and function in human diseases will provide a new strategy for the application of clinical narcotic drugs and the treatment of diseases.

The comprehensive expression and functional analysis of m6A modification "readers" in hepatocellular carcinoma

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification regulators are essential for the diagnosis and treatment of various cancers. However, the comprehensive analysis about roles of m6A "readers" in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. UALCAN, GEPIA2, HPA, Kaplan Meier plotter, cBioPortal, STRING WebGestalt, Metascape and TIMER 2.0 database and Cytoscape software were used to comprehensively analyze the bioinformatic data. We found that m6A "readers" were upregulated at the mRNA level and protein level in HCC patients. Highly expressed YTHDF1, IGF2BP3 and NKAP were positively correlated with advanced HCC stage and had a poor prognosis in OS and PFS. The gene alterations of m6A "readers" happened frequently, and YTHDF3 had the highest mutation rate. The function of m6A "readers" on HCC may be closely correlated with splicing related proteins (including HNRNP family, SNRP family, and SR family), metabolic process, protein binding and RNA splicing related signaling pathways. Moreover, although the correlation of YTHDF3 and CD8+ T cell infiltration, and the correlation of IGF2BP3 and infiltration of mast cells and CAF are negative, most m6A "readers" had a positive correlation with immune cells (including CD8+ T cell, CD4+ T cell, Tregs, B cell, neutrophil, monocyte, macrophage, myeloid dendritic cell, nature killer cell, mast cell, and CAF). Macrophages, CD4+ T cell, Treg, B cell, monocyte, and myeloid dendritic cell had a positively strong correlation (Rho>0.4) with most m6A "readers" (such as YTHDC1, YTHDC2, YTHDF1, IGF2BP3, HNRNPA2B1 and HNRNPC). In conclusion, by comprehensive analysis of m6A "readers", we found that they were involved in the prognosis of HCC, and m6A "readers" might regulate the development and progression of HCC by participating in some metabolism-related and RNA splicing-related signaling pathways as well as immune cell infiltration.

Phenotypic Alteration of BMDM In Vitro Using Small Interfering RNA

Autologous macrophage transfer is an emerging platform for cell therapy. It is anticipated that conventional macrophage reprogramming based on ex vivo polarization using cytokines and ligands of TLRs may enhance the therapeutic effect. We describe an alternative approach based on small interfering RNA (siRNA) knockdown of selected molecular cues of macrophage polarization, namely EGR2, IRF3, IRF5, and TLR4 in Raw264.7 monocyte/macrophage cell line and mouse-bone-marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs). The impact of IRF5 knockdown was most pronounced, curtailing the expression of other inflammatory mediators such as IL-6 and NOS2, especially in M1-polarized macrophages. Contrary to IRF5, EGR2 knockdown potentiated M1-associated markers while altogether abolishing M2 marker expression, which is indicative of the principal role of EGR2 in the maintenance of alternative phenotypes. IRF3 knockdown suppressed M1 polarization but upregulated Arg 1, a canonical marker of alternative polarization in M1 macrophages. As anticipated, the knockdown of TLR4 also attenuated the M1 phenotype but, akin to IRF3, significantly induced Arginase 1 in M0 and M1, driving the phenotype towards M2. This study validates RNAi as a viable option for the alteration and maintenance of macrophage phenotypes.

Application of nanosonosensitizer materials in cancer sono-dynamic therapy

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) is a novel non-invasive treatment for cancer combining low-intensity ultrasound and sonosensitizers. SDT activates sonosensitizers through ultrasound, releasing energy and generating reactive oxygen species to kill tumor cells. Compared with traditional photodynamic therapy (PDT), SDT is a promising anti-cancer therapy with the advantages of better targeting, deeper tissue penetration, and higher focusing ability. With the development and broad application of nanomaterials, novel sonosensitizers with tumor-targeting specificity can deliver to deep tumors and enhance the tumor microenvironment. In this review, we first review the mechanisms of sonodynamic therapy. In addition, we also focus on the current types of sonosensitizers and the latest design strategies of nanomaterials in sonosensitizers. Finally, we summarize the combined strategy of sonodynamic therapy.

Pan-Cancer Analysis of the Immunological Role of PDIA5: A Potential Target for Immunotherapy

The aberrant protein disulfide isomerase A5 (PDIA5) expression was relevant to the poor prognosis of patients with human cancers. However, its relationship with the epigenetic and genetic alterations and its effect on tumor immunity is still lacking. In the present study, we comprehensively analyzed the immune infiltration role of PDIA5 in human cancers based on large-scale bioinformatics analyses and in vitro experiments. Obvious DNA methylation and moderate alteration frequency of PDIA5 were observed in human cancers. The expression level of PDIA5 was significantly correlated with infiltrated immune cells, immune pathways, and other immune signatures. We found that cancer cells and macrophages exhibited high PDIA5 expression in human cancers using the single-cell RNA sequencing analysis. We also demonstrated the interaction between PDIA5 and immune cells in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). Multiplex immunofluorescence staining showed the upregulated expression level of PDIA5 and the increased number of M2 macrophage markers-CD163 positive cells in pan-cancer samples. Notably, PDIA5 silencing resulted in upregulated expression of PD-L1 and SPP1 in U251 cells. Silencing of PDIA5 in hepG2 cells, U251 cells, and PC3 cells contributed to a decline in their ability of proliferation, clone formation, and invasion and inhibited the migration of cocultured M2 macrophages. Additionally, PDIA5 also displayed predictive value in the immunotherapy response of both murine and human cancer cohorts. Overall, our findings indicated that PDIA5 might be a potential target for immunotherapies in cancers.

Dual-aptamer-engineered M1 macrophage with enhanced specific targeting and checkpoint blocking for solid-tumor immunotherapy

Chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell therapy has faced a series of challenges and has shown very little efficacy in solid tumors to date. Although genetically engineered macrophages have achieved definite therapeutic effect in solid tumors, heterogeneous expression of engineered proteins and the potential for toxicity limit further applications. Herein, we propose a nongenetic and simple macrophage cell engineering strategy through glycan metabolic labeling and click reaction for the treatment of solid tumors. The aptamer-engineered M1 macrophage (ApEn-M1) showed enhanced active targeting ability for tumor cells in vitro and in vivo, resulting in significant cytotoxicity effects. Moreover, ApEn-M1 exhibited superior antitumor efficacy in a breast cancer xenograft mouse model and a lung metastasis mouse model of breast cancer. Interestingly, the ApEn-M1 could reprogram the immunity microenvironment by increasing T cell infiltration and enhancing T cell activity in the tumor region. Additionally, the administration of ApEn-M1 showed no obvious systemic side effects. With glycan metabolic labeling, the macrophages could be efficiently labeled with aptamers on the cell surface via click reaction without genetic alteration or cell damage. Hence, this study serves as a proof of concept for cell-surface anchor engineering and expands the range of nongenetic macrophage cell engineering strategies.

Polypyrrole Nanoenzymes as Tumor Microenvironment Modulators to Reprogram Macrophage and Potentiate Immunotherapy

Nanozyme-based tumor catalytic therapy has attracted widespread attention in recent years, but its therapeutic outcome is drastically diminished by species of nanozyme, concentration of substrate, pH value, and reaction temperature, etc. Herein, a novel Cu-doped polypyrrole nanozyme (CuP) with trienzyme-like activities, including catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and peroxidase (POD), is first proposed by a straightforward one-step procedure, which can specifically promote O2 and ·OH elevation but glutathione (GSH) reduction in tumor microenvironment (TME), causing irreversible oxidative stress damage to tumor cells and reversing the redox balance. The PEGylated CuP nanozyme (CuPP) has been demonstrated to efficiently reverse immunosuppressive TME by overcoming tumor hypoxia and re-educating macrophage from pro-tumoral M2 to anti-tumoral M1 phenotype. More importantly, CuPP exhibits hyperthermia-enhanced enzyme-mimic catalytic and immunoregulatory activities, which results in intense immune responses and almost complete tumor inhibition by further combining with αPD-L1. This work opens intriguing perspectives not only in enzyme-catalytic nanomedicine but also in macrophage-based tumor immunotherapy.

Rationally Designed Heptamethine Cyanine Photosensitizers that Amplify Tumor-Specific Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Boost Antitumor Immunity

Cancer phototherapy activates immunogenic cell death (ICD) and elicits a systemic antitumor immune response, which is an emerging approach for tumor treatment. Most available photosensitizers require a combination of immune adjuvants or checkpoint inhibitors to trigger antitumor immunity because of the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and the limited phototherapeutic effect. A class of tumor-targeting heptamethine cyanine photosensitizers modified with an endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-targeting group (benzenesulfonamide) are synthesized. Phototherapy of tumor cells markedly amplifies ER stress and promotes tumor antigen release, as the ER is required for protein synthesis, secretion, and transport. More importantly, different electron-donating or -withdrawing substitutions are introduced into benzenesulfonamide to modulate the nonradiative decay pathways through intramolecular charge transfer, including singlet-triplet intersystem crossing (photodynamic effect) and internal thermal conversion (photothermal effect). Thus, a heptamethine cyanine photosensitizer containing a binitro-substituted benzenesulfonamide (ER-Cy-poNO₂ ) is identified that preferentially accumulates in the ER of tumor cells. It significantly enhances the phototherapeutic effect by inducing excessive ER stress and robust ICD. Consequently, this small molecular photosensitizer triggers a sufficient antitumor immune response and effectively suppresses the growth of both primary and distant metastatic tumors, whereas no apparent toxicity is observed. This heptamethine cyanine photosensitizer has the potential to enhance cancer-targeted immunotherapy.

Immunotherapy: Reshape the Tumor Immune Microenvironment

Tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) include tumor cells, immune cells, cytokines, etc. The interactions between these components, which are divided into anti-tumor and pro-tumor, determine the trend of anti-tumor immunity. Although the immune system can eliminate tumor through the cancer-immune cycle, tumors appear to eventually evade from immune surveillance by shaping an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Immunotherapy reshapes the TIME and restores the tumor killing ability of anti-tumor immune cells. Herein, we review the function of immune cells within the TIME and discuss the contribution of current mainstream immunotherapeutic approaches to remolding the TIME. Changes in the immune microenvironment in different forms under the intervention of immunotherapy can shed light on better combination treatment strategies.

Immunomodulatory roles of selenium nanoparticles: Novel arts for potential immunotherapy strategy development

Current chemotherapy strategies used in clinic appear with lots of disadvantages due to the low targeting effects of drugs and strong side effects, which significantly restricts the drug potency, causes multiple dysfunctions in the body, and even drives the emergence of diseases. Immunotherapy has been proved to boost the body’s innate and adaptive defenses for more effective disease control and treatment. As a trace element, selenium plays vital roles in human health by regulating the antioxidant defense, enzyme activity, and immune response through various specific pathways. Profiting from novel nanotechnology, selenium nanoparticles have been widely developed to reveal great potential in anticancer, antibacterial, and anti-inflammation treatments. More interestingly, increasing evidence has also shown that functional selenium nanoparticles can be applied for potential immunotherapy, which would achieve more effective treatment efficiency as adjunctive therapy strategies for the current chemotherapy. By directly interacting with innate immune cells, such as macrophages, dendritic cells, and natural killer cells, selenium nanoparticles can regulate innate immunity to intervene disease developments, which were reported to boost the anticancer, anti-infection, and anti-inflammation treatments. Moreover, selenium nanoparticles can also activate and recover different T cells for adaptive immunity regulations to enhance their cytotoxic to combat cancer cells, indicating the potential of selenium nanoparticles for potential immunotherapy strategy development. Here, aiming to enhance our understanding of the potential immunotherapy strategy development based on Se NPs, this review will summarize the immunological regulation effects of selenium nanoparticles and the application of selenium nanoparticle-based immunotherapy strategies. Furthermore, we will discuss the advancing perspective of selenium nanoparticle-based potential immunotherapy as a kind of novel adjunctive therapy to enhance the efficiency of current chemotherapies and also introduce the current obstacles for the development of selenium nanoparticles for potential immunotherapy strategy development. This work is expected to promote the future research on selenium nanoparticle-assisted immunotherapy and finally benefit the more effective disease treatments against the threatening cancer and infectious and chronic diseases.

The Role of Osteopontin in Tumor Progression Through Tumor-Associated Macrophages

Osteopontin (OPN) is a multifunctional phosphorylated protein. It is widely involved in solid tumor progression, such as intensification of macrophage recruitment, inhibition of T-cell activity, aggravation of tumor interstitial fibrosis, promotion of tumor metastasis, chemotherapy resistance, and angiogenesis. Most of these pathologies are affected by tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), an important component of the tumor microenvironment (TME). TAMs have been extensively characterized, including their subsets, phenotypes, activation status, and functions, and are considered a promising therapeutic target for cancer treatment. This review focuses on the interaction between OPN and TAMs in mediating tumor progression. We discuss the strategies for targeting OPN and TAMs to treat cancer and factors that may affect the therapeutic outcomes of blocking OPN or depleting TAMs. We also discuss the role of cancer cell- vs. TAM-derived OPN in tumorigenesis, the mechanisms of how OPN affects TAM recruitment and polarization, and why OPN could mediate anti-tumor and pro-tumor effects, as well as previously reported discrepancies.

Shaping Polarization Of Tumor-Associated Macrophages In Cancer Immunotherapy

Different stimuli can polarize macrophages into two basic types, M1 and M2. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in the tumor microenvironment (TME) are composed of heterogeneous subpopulations, which include the M1 anti-tumor and M2 pro-tumor phenotypes. TAMs predominantly play a M2-like tumor-promoting role in the TME and regulate various malignant effects, such as angiogenesis, immune suppression, and tumor metastasis; hence, TAMs have emerged as a hot topic of research in cancer therapy. This review focuses on three main aspects of TAMs. First, we summarize macrophage polarization along with the effects on the TME. Second, recent advances and challenges in cancer treatment and the role of M2-like TAMs in immune checkpoint blockade and CAR-T cell therapy are emphasized. Finally, factors, such as signaling pathways, associated with TAM polarization and potential strategies for targeting TAM repolarization to the M1 pro-inflammatory phenotype for cancer therapy are discussed.

Mapping the Tumor Microenvironment in TNBC and Deep Exploration for M1 Macrophages-Associated Prognostic Genes

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains the worst molecular subtype due to high heterogeneity and lack of effective therapeutic targets. Here we investigated the tumor and immune microenvironment heterogeneity of TNBC using scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq data from public databases and our cohort. Macrophage subpopulations accounted for a high proportion of tumor immune microenvironment (TIME), and M1 macrophages were associated with better clinical outcomes. Furthermore, three maker genes including IFI35, PSMB9, and SAMD9L showed a close connection with M1 macrophages. Specifically, IFI35 was positively associated with macrophage activation, chemotaxis, and migration. Also, patients with high IFI35 expression had a better prognosis. In vitro studies subsequently demonstrated that IFI35 was upregulated during the M1 subtype differentiation of macrophages. In summary, our data suggested that IFI35 maybe a promising novel target that helps to reshape macrophage polarization towards the M1 subtype for anti-tumor effects.

Live Macrophage-Delivered Doxorubicin-Loaded Liposomes Effectively Treat Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer is often aggressive and resistant to various cancer therapies, especially corresponding targeted drugs. It is shown that targeted delivery of chemotherapeutic drugs to tumor sites could enhance treatment outcome against triple-negative breast cancer. In this study, we exploited the active tumor-targeting capability of macrophages by loading doxorubicin-carrying liposomes on their surfaces via biotin-avidin interactions. Compared with conventional liposomes, this macrophage-liposome (MA-Lip) system further increased doxorubicin accumulation in tumor sites, penetrated deeper into tumor tissue, and enhanced antitumor immune response. As a result, the MA-Lip system significantly lengthened the survival rate of 4T1 cell-bearing mice with low toxicity. Besides, the MA-Lip system used highly biocompatible and widely approved materials, which ensured its long-term safety. This study provides a system for triple-negative breast cancer treatment and offers another macrophage-based strategy for tumor delivery.

Reactive Oxygen Species Bridge the Gap between Chronic Inflammation and Tumor Development

According to numerous animal studies, adverse environmental stimuli, including physical, chemical, and biological factors, can cause low-grade chronic inflammation and subsequent tumor development. Human epidemiological evidence has confirmed the close relationship between chronic inflammation and tumorigenesis. However, the mechanisms driving the development of persistent inflammation toward tumorigenesis remain unclear. In this study, we assess the potential role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and associated mechanisms in modulating inflammation-induced tumorigenesis. Recent reports have emphasized the cross-talk between oxidative stress and inflammation in many pathological processes. Exposure to carcinogenic environmental hazards may lead to oxidative damage, which further stimulates the infiltration of various types of inflammatory cells. In turn, increased cytokine and chemokine release from inflammatory cells promotes ROS production in chronic lesions, even in the absence of hazardous stimuli. Moreover, ROS not only cause DNA damage but also participate in cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis by modulating several transcription factors and signaling pathways. We summarize how changes in the redox state can trigger the development of chronic inflammatory lesions into tumors. Generally, cancer cells require an appropriate inflammatory microenvironment to support their growth, spread, and metastasis, and ROS may provide the necessary catalyst for inflammation-driven cancer. In conclusion, ROS bridge the gap between chronic inflammation and tumor development; therefore, targeting ROS and inflammation represents a new avenue for the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Alternative CAR Therapies: Recent Approaches in Engineering Chimeric Antigen Receptor Immune Cells to Combat Cancer

For nearly three decades, chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) have captivated the interest of researchers seeking to find novel immunotherapies to treat cancer. CARs were first designed to work with T cells, and the first CAR T cell therapy was approved to treat B cell lymphoma in 2017. Recent advancements in CAR technology have led to the development of modified CARs, including multi-specific CARs and logic gated CARs. Other immune cell types, including natural killer (NK) cells and macrophages, have also been engineered to express CARs to treat cancer. Additionally, CAR technology has been adapted in novel approaches to treating autoimmune disease and other conditions and diseases. In this article, we review these recent advancements in alternative CAR therapies and design, as well as their mechanisms of action, challenges in application, and potential future directions.

Peptidoglycan-Like Components in Z-100, Extracted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis Strain Aoyama B, Increase IL-12p40 via NOD2

Background. Z-100 is a hot-water extract of the human-type Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain Aoyama B. While Z-100’s macrophage-mediated immunomodulatory effects have been reported, the mechanistic details have not been fully clarified. Here, we studied the immunomodulatory effects of Z-100 on mouse bone marrow-derived cells, human CD14+ cells, and skin. Methods. Mouse bone marrow-derived cells and CD14+ cells were cultured in the presence of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, differentiated into macrophage-like cells, and then stimulated with Z-100. Furthermore, since Z-100 is subcutaneously administered clinically, we injected Z-100 into mice and measured gene expression in the skin. Results. While Z-100 stimulation increased the production of interleukin- (IL-) 12p40 and IL-1β in mouse bone marrow-derived macrophages, levels of IL-1β were low. In contrast, TNF-α production did not increase. Meanwhile, stimulation of human CD14+ cells with Z-100 increased production of IL-12p40, TNF-α, and IL-1β. Because Z-100 appeared to have the most stable effect on IL-12p40, we examined the components of Z-100 that induce IL-12p40 production. We found that Z-100 contained peptidoglycan-like components. In addition, an siRNA study showed that Z-100 increased the production of IL-12p40 via nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain 2 (NOD2). Further, subcutaneous administration of Z-100 to mice significantly elevated expression of IL-12p40 and IL-1β and showed a trend towards increasing TNF-α in the skin. Conclusion. Z-100 induced the production of immunomodulatory cytokines from various types of macrophages and specifically increased IL-12p40 production through peptidoglycan-like components via NOD2.

A Necroptosis-Related lncRNA Signature Predicts Prognosis and Indicates the Immune Microenvironment in Soft Tissue Sarcomas

Background: The necroptosis and long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) are critical in the occurrence and development of malignancy, while the association between the necroptosis-related lncRNAs (NRlncRNAs) and soft tissue sarcoma (STS) remains controversial. Therefore, the present study aims to construct a novel signature based on NRlncRNAs to predict the prognosis of STS patients and investigate its possible role.

Methods: The transcriptome data and clinical characteristics were extracted from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Genotype-Tissue Expression database (GTEx). A novel NRlncRNA signature was established and verified by the COX regression analysis and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis. Subsequently, the K-M survival analysis, ROC, univariate, multivariate Cox regression analysis, and nomogram were used to evaluate the predictive value of the signature. Also, a variety of bioinformatic analysis algorithms explored the differences between the potential mechanism, tumor immune status, and drug sensitivity in the two-risk group. Finally, the RT-qPCR was performed to evaluate the expression of signature NRlncRNAs.

Results: A novel signature consisting of seven NRlncRNAs was successfully established and verified with stable prediction performance and general applicability for STS. Next, the GSEA showed that the patients in the high-risk group were mainly enriched with tumor-related pathways, while the low-risk patients were significantly involved in immune-related pathways. In parallel, we found that the STS patients in the low-risk group had a better immune status than that in the high-risk group. Additionally, there were significant differences in the sensitivity to anti-tumor agents between the two groups. Finally, the RT-qPCR results indicated that these signature NRlncRNAs were abnormally expressed in STS.

Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, it is the first study to construct an NRlncRNA signature for STS. More importantly, the novel signature displays stable value and translational potential for predicting prognosis, tumor immunogenicity, and therapeutic response in STS.

Macrophages derived from pluripotent stem cells: prospective applications and research gaps

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) represent a valuable cell source able to give rise to different cell types of the body. Among the various pathways of iPSC differentiation, the differentiation into macrophages is a recently developed and rapidly growing technique. Macrophages play a key role in the control of host homeostasis. Their dysfunction underlies many diseases, including hereditary, infectious, oncological, metabolic and other disorders. Targeting macrophage activity and developing macrophage-based cell therapy represent promising tools for the treatment of many pathological conditions. Macrophages generated from human iPSCs (iMphs) provide great opportunities in these areas. The generation of iMphs is based on a step-wise differentiation of iPSCs into mesoderm, hematopoietic progenitors, myeloid monocyte-like cells and macrophages. The technique allows to obtain standardizable populations of human macrophages from any individual, scale up macrophage production and introduce genetic modifications, which gives significant advantages over the standard source of human macrophages, monocyte-derived macrophages. The spectrum of iMph applications is rapidly growing. iMphs have been successfully used to model hereditary diseases and macrophage-pathogen interactions, as well as to test drugs. iMph use for cell therapy is another promising and rapidly developing area of research. The principles and the details of iMph generation have recently been reviewed. This review systemizes current and prospective iMph applications and discusses the problem of iMph safety and other issues that need to be explored before iMphs become clinically applicable.

Silver nanoclusters show advantages in macrophage tracing in vivo and modulation of anti-tumor immuno-microenvironment

Macrophage-based nanomedicine represents an emerging powerful strategy for cancer therapy. Unfortunately, some obstacles and challenges limit the translational applications of macrophage-mediated nanodrug delivery system. For instance, tracking and effective cell delivery for targeted tumor sites remain to be overcome, and controlling the states of macrophages is still rather difficult due to their plastic nature in response to external stimuli. To address these critical issues, here, we reported a novel type of silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) with excellent fluorescent intensity, especially long-lasting cell labeling stability after endocytosis by macrophages, indicating promising applications in tracking macrophage-based nanomedicine delivery. Our mechanistic investigations uncovered that these merits originate from the escape of AgNCs from lysosomal degradation within macrophages. In addition, the AgNCs would prime the M1-like polarization of macrophages (at least in part) through the toll-like receptor 4 signaling pathway. The engineered macrophages laden with AgNCs could be employed for lung metastasis breast cancer treatment, showing the effective targeting propensity to metastatic tumors, remarkable regulation of tumor immune microenvironment and inhibition of tumor growth. Collectively, AgNC-trained macrophages appear to be a promising strategy for tumor immune-microenvironment regulation, which might be generalized to a wider spectrum of cancer therapeutics.

Prognostic value of p16, p53, and pcna in sarcoma and an evaluation of immune infiltration

Background

p16, p53, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (pcna) genes play significant roles in many chromatin modifications and have been found to be highly expressed in a variety of tumor tissues. Therefore, they have been used as target genes for some tumor therapies. However, the differential expressions of the p16, p53, and pcna genes in human sarcomas and their effects on prognosis have not been widely reported.

Methods

The Oncomine dataset was used to analyze the transcription levels of p16, p53, and pcna genes, and the gene expression profile interactive analysis (GEPIA) dataset was used to analyze the differential expressions of p16, p53, and pcna. The expression levels of p16, p53, and pcna were further analyzed by Western Blotting. GEPIA and Kaplan–Meier analyses were used to analyze the prognostic value of p16, p53, and pcna. Furthermore, p16, p53, and pcna gene mutations and their association with overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were analyzed using cBioPortal datasets. In addition, genes co-expressed with p16, p53, and pcna were analyzed using Oncomine. The DAVID dataset was used to analyze the functional enrichment of p16, p53, pcna, and their co-expressed genes by Gene Ontology (GO) and Metascape were used to construct a network map. Finally, the immune cell infiltration of p16, p53, and pcna in patients with sarcoma was reported by Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER).

Results

p16, p53, and pcna were up-regulated in human sarcoma tissues and almost all sarcoma cell lines. Western Blotting showed that the expression of p16, p53, and pcna was elevated in osteosarcoma cell lines. The expression of pcna was correlated with OS, the expression of p16, p53, and pcna was correlated with relapse-free survival, and the genetic mutation of p16 was negatively correlated with OS and DFS. We also found that p16, p53, and pcna genes were positively/negatively correlated with immune cell infiltration in sarcoma.

Conclusions

The results of this study showed that p16, p53, and pcna can significantly affect the survival and immune status of sarcoma patients. Therefore, p16, p53, and pcna could be used as potential biomarkers of prognosis and immune infiltration in human sarcoma and provide a possible therapeutic target for sarcoma.

Roles of exosomal circRNAs in tumour immunity and cancer progression

Tumour immunity plays an important role in the development of cancer. Tumour immunotherapy is an important component of antitumour therapy. Exosomes, a type of extracellular vesicle, act as mediators of intercellular communication and molecular transfer and play an essential role in tumour immunity. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a new type of noncoding RNA that are enriched within exosomes. In this review, we describe the effects of exosomal circRNAs on various immune cells and the mechanisms of these effects, including macrophages, neutrophils, T cells, and Natural killer (NK) cells. Next, we elaborate on the latest progress of exosome extraction. In addition, the function of exosomal circRNAs as a potential prognostic and drug sensitivity marker is described. We present the great promise of exosomal circRNAs in regulating tumour immunity, predicting patient outcomes, and evaluating drug efficacy.

Targeting tumor-associated macrophages for cancer treatment

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are abundant, nearly accounting for 30–50% of stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment. TAMs exhibit an immunosuppressive M2-like phenotype in advanced cancer, which plays a crucial role in tumor growth, invasion and migration, angiogenesis and immunosuppression. Consequently, the TAM-targeting therapies are particularly of significance in anti-cancer strategies. The application of TAMs as anti-cancer targets is expected to break through traditional tumor-associated therapies and achieves favorable clinical effect. However, the heterogeneity of TAMs makes the strategy of targeting TAMs variable and uncertain. Discovering the subset specificity of TAMs might be a future option for targeting TAMs therapy. Herein, the review focuses on highlighting the different modalities to modulate TAM’s functions, including promoting the phagocytosis of TAMs, TAMs depletion, blocking TAMs recruitment, TAMs reprogramming and suppressing immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. We also discuss about several ways to improve the efficacy of TAM-targeting therapy from the perspective of combination therapy and specificity of TAMs subgroups.

Targeting tumor-associated macrophages for cancer treatment

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are abundant, nearly accounting for 30-50% of stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment. TAMs exhibit an immunosuppressive M2-like phenotype in advanced cancer, which plays a crucial role in tumor growth, invasion and migration, angiogenesis and immunosuppression. Consequently, the TAM-targeting therapies are particularly of significance in anti-cancer strategies. The application of TAMs as anti-cancer targets is expected to break through traditional tumor-associated therapies and achieves favorable clinical effect. However, the heterogeneity of TAMs makes the strategy of targeting TAMs variable and uncertain. Discovering the subset specificity of TAMs might be a future option for targeting TAMs therapy. Herein, the review focuses on highlighting the different modalities to modulate TAM's functions, including promoting the phagocytosis of TAMs, TAMs depletion, blocking TAMs recruitment, TAMs reprogramming and suppressing immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. We also discuss about several ways to improve the efficacy of TAM-targeting therapy from the perspective of combination therapy and specificity of TAMs subgroups.

Pan-Cancer Analysis of the Oncogenic and Immunological Role of RCN3: A Potential Biomarker for Prognosis and Immunotherapy

Despite emerging publications have elucidated a functional association between RCN3 and tumors, no evidence about a pan-cancer analysis of RCN3 is available. Our study first conducted a comprehensive assessment of its expression profiles, prognosis value, immune infiltration, and relevant cellular pathways via bioinformatics techniques based on the public database of TCGA (The Cancer Genome Atlas). RCN3 is highly expressed in most tumors, and it is associated with poor prognosis. Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox regression analysis suggested that the high expression of RCN3 was associated with poor overall survival (OS) in pan-cancer, Cox regression analysis also indicated high RCN3 expression was correlated with disease-specific survival (DSS) and progression-free interval (PFI) in most tumors. We observed a regulation function of RCN3 at genetic and epigenetic levels through CNA and DNA methylation using cBioPortal database. Based on Gene Set Enrichment Analysis, we first identified related pathways of RCN3 and its potential biological functions in pan-cancer, RCN3 was implicated in oncogenic pathways, and was related to extracellular matrix and immune regulation. We found that RCN3 positively correlated with the levels of infiltrating cells such as TAMs and CAFs, but negatively correlated with CD8⁺ T-cells by analyzing immune cell infiltration data we downloaded from published work and online databases, further investigation of the correlation between immunosuppressive genes, chemokines, chemokines receptors, and high RCN3 expression showed a significant positive association in the vast majority of TCGA cancer types. These results indicated its role as an immune regulatory in cancers and suggested that RCN3 is a potential biomarker for immunotherapy. Also, we found that expression of RCN3 was much higher in CRC tissues than in normal tissues with a higher expression level of RCN3 closely correlating to advanced American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage, poor differentiation, increased tumor size, and poor prognosis of CRC. Biological function experiments showed that RCN3 regulated CRC cells’ proliferation and metastasis ability. Upregulation of RCN3 in CRC cells increased the expression of immune related factor, including TGFβ1, IL-10, and IL-6. Thus, our pan-cancer analysis offers a deep understanding of potential oncogenic roles of RCN3 in different cancers.

Macrophage-mediated anti-tumor immunity against high-risk neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial childhood solid tumor. The majority of high-risk neuroblastoma is resistant/refractory to the current high intensity therapy. Neuroblastoma lacks classical HLA Class I expression and exhibits low mutation burden, allowing neuroblastoma cells to evade CD8+ T cell-mediated immunity. Neuroblastoma cells do not express PD-L1, and tumor-associated macrophages are the predominant PD-L1+ cells in the tumor. In this study, we performed gene expression profiling and survival analyses on large neuroblastoma datasets to address the prognostic effect of PD-L1 gene expression and the possible involvement of the SLAMF7 pathway in the anti-neuroblastoma immunity. High-level expression of PD-L1 was found significantly associated with better outcome of high-risk neuroblastoma patients; two populations of PD-1+ PD-L1+ macrophages could be present in high-risk tumors with PD-1/PD-L1 ratios, ≈1 and >1. Patients with the PD-1/PD-L1 ratio >1 tumor showed inferior survival. High-level co-expression of SLAMF7 and SH2D1B was significantly associated with better survival of the high-risk neuroblastoma patients. Together, this study supports the hypothesis that macrophages are important effector cells in the anti-high-risk neuroblastoma immunity, that PD-1 blockade therapy can be beneficial to the high-risk neuroblastoma subset with the PD-1/PD-L1 expression ratio >1, and that SLAMF7 is a new therapeutic target of high-risk neuroblastoma.