Immunization with a GM3 ganglioside nanoparticulated vaccine confers an effector CD8(+) T cells-mediated protection against melanoma B16 challenge

Chemoenzymatic synthesis and biological evaluation of ganglioside GM3 and lyso-GM3 as potential agents for cancer therapy

A highly efficient chemoenzymatic method for synthesizing ganglioside GM3 and lyso-GM3 was reported here. Enzymatic extension of the chemically synthesized lactosyl sphingosine using efficient one-pot multienzyme (OPME) reaction allowed glycosylation to be carried out in aqueous solutions realizing the greening of reactions. Ganglioside GM3 was synthesized through 10 steps with a total yield of 22%. Lyso-GM3 was very useful for kinds of derivatization. The anti-proliferation activity studies demonstrated that these compounds 14-16 with sphingosine exhibited more potency than the corresponding lyso-GM3 with ceramide. All ganglioside GM3 and lyso-GM3 can effectively inhibit the migration of melanoma B16-F10 cells. These chemoenzymaticlly synthesized GM3 and lyso-GM3 exhibited antitumor activities, which can provide valuable sights to search new antitumor agents for cancer therapy.

Chemoenzymatic Synthesis and Facile Purification of Gangliosides

Gangliosides are biologically important sialic acid-containing glycolipids found commonly in human and other vertebrates. Isolation of pure gangliosides from cells or tissues is difficult, and chemical synthesis of gangliosides usually involves numerous steps with low synthetic yields. We report here a chemoenzymatic synthesis and purification protocol for two ganglioside cancer antigens, GM3 and GD3. One-pot multienzyme glycosylation reactions are used to sequentially prepare GM3 and GD3 sphingosines from chemically synthesized lactosyl sphingosine. A facile C18-cartridge purification procedure after each glycosylation reaction provides the desired pure glycosyl sphingosine product, which is readily acylated to form the target ganglioside. © 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol: Chemoenzymatic synthesis and purification of GM3 and GD3 gangliosides Support Protocol: Monitoring reactions by thin-layer chromatography.

Novel Sphingolipid-Based Cancer Therapeutics in the Personalized Medicine Era

Sphingolipids are bioactive lipids that participate in a wide variety of biological mechanisms, including cell death and proliferation. The myriad of pro-death and pro-survival cellular pathways involving sphingolipids provide a plethora of opportunities for dysregulation in cancers. In recent years, modulation of these sphingolipid metabolic pathways has been in the forefront of drug discovery for cancer therapeutics. About two decades ago, researchers first showed that standard of care treatments, e.g., chemotherapeutics and radiation, modulate sphingolipid metabolism to increase endogenous ceramides, which kill cancer cells. Strikingly, resistance to these treatments has also been linked to altered sphingolipid metabolism, favoring lipid species that ultimately lead to cell survival. To this end, many inhibitors of sphingolipid metabolism have been developed to further define not only our understanding of these pathways but also to potentially serve as therapeutic interventions. Therefore, understanding how to better use these new drugs that target sphingolipid metabolism, either alone or in combination with current cancer treatments, holds great potential for cancer control. While sphingolipids in cancer have been reviewed previously (Hannun & Obeid, 2018; Lee & Kolesnick, 2017; Morad & Cabot, 2013; Newton, Lima, Maceyka, & Spiegel, 2015; Ogretmen, 2018; Ryland, Fox, Liu, Loughran, & Kester, 2011) in this chapter, we present a comprehensive review on how standard of care therapeutics affects sphingolipid metabolism, the current landscape of sphingolipid inhibitors, and the clinical utility of sphingolipid-based cancer therapeutics.

Induction of leukocyte infiltration at metastatic site mediates the protective effect of NGcGM3-based vaccine

While the NGcGM3/VSSP vaccine, a preparation consisting in very small sized proteoliposomes (VSSP) obtained by the incorporation of the NGcGM3 ganglioside into the outer membrane protein (OMP) complex of Neisseria meningitides, is currently studied in late stage clinical trials in breast cancer and melanoma patients, mechanisms involved in the vaccine's antitumor effect are insufficiently understood. Here we have addressed the role of adaptive and innate immune cells in mediating the protective effect of the vaccine. To this aim we selected the 3LL-D122 Lewis lung spontaneous metastasis model. Unexpectedly, inoculation of the vaccine in tumor bearing C57BL/6 mice, either by subcutaneous (sc) or intraperitoneal (ip) routes, induced similar anti-metastatic effect. Regardless the T-independent nature of NGcGM3 ganglioside as antigen, the antimetastatic effect of NGcGM3/VSSP is dependent on CD4(+) T cells. In a further step we found that the vaccine was able to promote the increase, maturation, and cytokine secretion of conventional DCs and the maturation of Bone Marrow-derived plasmacytoid DCs. In line with this result the in vivo IFNα serum level in ip vaccinated mice increased as soon as 2h after treatment. On the other hand the infiltration of NK1.1(+)CD3(-) and NK1.1(+)CD3(+) cells in lungs of vaccinated mice was significantly increased, compared with the presence of these cells in control animal lungs. In the same way NGcGM3/VSSP mobilized acquired immunity effector cells into the lungs of vaccinated tumor bearing mice. Finally and not less noteworthy, leukocyte infiltration in lungs of tumor bearing mice correlates with vaccine induced inhibition of lung metastization.

Human dendritic cell activation induced by a permannosylated dendron containing an antigenic GM3-lactone mimetic

Vaccination strategies based on dendritic cells (DCs) armed with specific tumor antigens have been widely exploited due the properties of these immune cells in coordinating an innate and adaptive response. Here, we describe the convergent synthesis of the bifunctional multivalent glycodendron 5, which contains nine residues of mannose for DC targeting and one residue of an immunogenic mimetic of a carbohydrate melanoma associated antigen. The immunological assays demonstrated that the glycodendron 5 is able to induce human immature DC activation in terms of a phenotype expression of co-stimulatory molecules expression and MHCII. Furthermore, DCs activated by the glycodendron 5 stimulate T lymphocytes to proliferate in a mixed lymphocytes reaction (MLR).

Immune system targeting by biodegradable nanoparticles for cancer vaccines

The concept of therapeutic cancer vaccines is based on the activation of the immune system against tumor cells after the presentation of tumor antigens. Nanoparticles (NPs) have shown great potential as delivery systems for cancer vaccines as they potentiate the co-delivery of tumor-associated antigens and adjuvants to dendritic cells (DCs), insuring effective activation of the immune system against tumor cells. In this review, the immunological mechanisms behind cancer vaccines, including the role of DCs in the stimulation of T lymphocytes and the use of Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands as adjuvants will be discussed. An overview of each of the three essential components of a therapeutic cancer vaccine - antigen, adjuvant and delivery system - will be provided with special emphasis on the potential of particulate delivery systems for cancer vaccines, in particular those made of biodegradable aliphatic polyesters, such as poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL). Some of the factors that can influence NP uptake by DCs, including size, surface charge, surface functionalization and route of administration, will also be considered.

Immunology in the clinic review series; focus on cancer: glycolipids as targets for tumour immunotherapy

Research into aberrant glycosylation and over-expression of glycolipids on the surface of the majority of cancers, coupled with a knowledge of glycolipids as functional molecules involved in a number of cellular physiological pathways, has provided a novel area of targets for cancer immunotherapy. This has resulted in the development of a number of vaccines and monoclonal antibodies that are showing promising results in recent clinical trials.

The prioritization of cancer antigens: a national cancer institute pilot project for the acceleration of translational research

The purpose of the National Cancer Institute pilot project to prioritize cancer antigens was to develop a well-vetted, priority-ranked list of cancer vaccine target antigens based on predefined and preweighted objective criteria. An additional aim was for the National Cancer Institute to test a new approach for prioritizing translational research opportunities based on an analytic hierarchy process for dealing with complex decisions. Antigen prioritization involved developing a list of "ideal" cancer antigen criteria/characteristics, assigning relative weights to those criteria using pairwise comparisons, selecting 75 representative antigens for comparison and ranking, assembling information on the predefined criteria for the selected antigens, and ranking the antigens based on the predefined, preweighted criteria. Using the pairwise approach, the result of criteria weighting, in descending order, was as follows: (a) therapeutic function, (b) immunogenicity, (c) role of the antigen in oncogenicity, (d) specificity, (e) expression level and percent of antigen-positive cells, (f) stem cell expression, (g) number of patients with antigen-positive cancers, (h) number of antigenic epitopes, and (i) cellular location of antigen expression. None of the 75 antigens had all of the characteristics of the ideal cancer antigen. However, 46 were immunogenic in clinical trials and 20 of them had suggestive clinical efficacy in the "therapeutic function" category. These findings reflect the current status of the cancer vaccine field, highlight the possibility that additional organized efforts and funding would accelerate the development of therapeutically effective cancer vaccines, and accentuate the need for prioritization.

Anti-ganglioside anti-idiotypic monoclonal antibody-based cancer vaccine induces apoptosis and antiangiogenic effect in a metastatic lung carcinoma

Anti-idiotype monoclonal antibody (mAb) 1E10 was generated by immunizing BALB/c mice with an Ab1 mAb which recognizes NeuGc-containing gangliosides, sulfatides and some tumor antigens. 1E10 mAb induces therapeutic effects in a primary breast carcinoma and a melanoma model. However, the tumor immunity mechanisms have not been elucidated. Here we show that aluminum hydroxide-precipitated 1E10 mAb immunization induced anti-metastatic effect in the 3LL-D122 Lewis Lung carcinoma, a poorly immunogenic and highly metastatic model in C57BL/6 mice. The therapeutic effect was associated to the increment of T cells infiltrating metastases, the reduction of new blood vessels formation and the increase of apoptotic tumor cells in lung nodules. Interestingly, active immunization does not induce measurable antibodies to the 1E10 mAb, the NeuGc-GM3 or tumor cells, which may suggest a different mechanism which has to be elucidated. These findings may support the relevance of this target for cancer biotherapy.