Peritoneal Gene Transfection of Tumor Necrosis Factor-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand for Tumor Surveillance and Prophylaxis

Autologous tumoral esterase-driven therapeutic polymers sequentially orchestrated antigen-induction, STING activation and anti-angiogenesis for systemic cancer immune therapy

Effective cancer immune therapy requires the orchestration of antigen induction, presentation and T-cell activation, further enhanced by anti-angiogenesis treatment; therefore, multiple therapeutics are generally used for such combination therapy. Herein, we report esterase-hydrolysable cationic polymers, N-[3-((4-acetoxy benzyl) oxy)-3-oxopropyl]-N-methyl-quaternized PEI (ERP) and poly{N-[2-(acryloyl-oxy) ethyl]-N-[p-acetyloxyphenyl]-N,N-dimethylammonium chloride} (PQDMA), capable of simultaneously inducing tumor cell immunogenic cell death (ICD) to release antigens, activating the cGAS-STING pathways of tumor macrophages and dendritic cells, and releasing antiangiogenic agent p-hydroxybenzyl alcohol (HBA). Thus, intratumoral injection of ERP or PQDMA systemically boosted the anti-cancer immunities and inhibited tumor angiogenesis in mouse hepatocellular carcinoma and melanoma bilateral tumor models, leading to more effective tumor growth inhibition of both treated and abscopal untreated tumors than ICD alone induced by mitoxantrone and control cationic polymers. Further study using gene knockout mice and transcriptome sequencing analysis confirmed the involvement of cGAS-STING and type I IFN signaling pathways. This work demonstrates ERP and PQDMA as the first examples of inherent therapeutic polymers, accomplishing systemic tumor inhibition without combining other therapeutic agents.

G-LERP/miR-374i-b Attenuates IRI and Suppresses Hepatocellular Carcinoma Progression

BACKGROUND

Liver transplantation (LT) is the most effective therapeutic strategy for late-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but it is prone to ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI), leading to poor prognosis. Previous articles have reported that miR-374b-5p expression is increased in HCC tissues, and its relationship with IRI and HCC carcinoma progression is unclear.

METHODS

Previous reports have shown that miR-374b-5p expression is significantly upregulated in HCC tissues. The effect of miR-374b-5p on patient symptoms and prognosis were analyzed from The Cancer Genome Atlas database and liver specimens from LT patients. To further explore its therapeutic potential, a liver-targeted esterase-responsive gene delivery system (G-LERP/miR-374i-b) was developed to downregulate miR-374b-5p expression in the mouse hepatic IRI (HIRI) model. An orthotopic HCC model was further established to mimic the postoperative recurrence of HCC.

RESULTS

In this study, we found that miR-374b-5p expression correlates with tumor size and microvascular invasion based on patients' clinical information. Patients with low miR-374b-5p expression had a higher Milan criteria score and a lower Model for End-stage Liver Disease score. We verified the positive correlation between miR-374b-5p expression and the proliferation and invasion of HCC cells. Effective downregulation of miR-374b-5p simultaneously alleviated HIRI and reduced tumor burden by 56%, whereas miR-374b-5p upregulation promoted HCC progression. Furthermore, we found G-LERP/miR-374i-b attenuated hepatic inflammation by downregulating the nuclear factor kappa-B pathway, thereby reducing HIRI and the risk of HCC recurrence.

CONCLUSIONS

This research is the first to demonstrate miR-374b-5p as a dual therapeutic target during LT and postoperative recurrence of HCC. Preintervention of miR-374b-5p using an esterase-responsive gene delivery system during the preoperative period simultaneously alleviates IRI and suppresses HCC progression.

Cascade-Targeting Apoptosis via Synergy of TRAIL-Specific Bystander Effect and Mitochondrial Photodamage in Cancer Therapy

Tumor-specific apoptosis exerts considerable curative efficacy in cancer, particularly with TRAIL, which has been approved in the clinic; however, therapeutic outcome is compromised due to apoptosis evasion and the short half-life of exogenously infused TRAIL. Herein, we propose a synergistic apoptosis strategy of orthotopic TRAIL expression for enhancing the bystander effect and mitochondrial photodamage for intrinsic apoptosis activation. To actualize synergetic apoptosis, we develop cascade-targeting nanoparticles to perform cell-to-mitochondria shuttling, in which TRAIL-expressing plasmid (pTRAIL) is coprecipitated with calcium phosphate on a glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)-modified graphene oxide nanosheet. For apoptosis synergy, GA mediates tumor accumulation of nanoparticles, followed by structure dissociation for efficient pTRAIL release and expression (cascade module I). Thereafter, GA-modified graphene carriers perform mitochondria distribution for laser-triggered photodamage (cascade module II). The nanoparticles yield tumor inhibition of 86.78% in the melanoma model and demonstrate metastasis blocking activity. Collectively, a cascade-targeting apoptosis technology via a combination of TRAIL-specific bystander effects and mitochondrial photodamage provides innovative oncotherapy synergy.

The multifaceted roles of GSDME-mediated pyroptosis in cancer: therapeutic strategies and persisting obstacles

Pyroptosis is a novel regulated cell death (RCD) mode associated with inflammation and innate immunity. Gasdermin E (GSDME), a crucial component of the gasdermin (GSDM) family proteins, has the ability to convert caspase-3-mediated apoptosis to pyroptosis of cancer cells and activate anti-tumor immunity. Accumulating evidence indicates that GSDME methylation holds tremendous potential as a biomarker for early detection, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of tumors. In fact, GSDME-mediated pyroptosis performs a dual role in anti-tumor therapy. On the one side, pyroptotic cell death in tumors caused by GSDME contributes to inflammatory cytokines release, which transform the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) from a 'cold' to a 'hot' state and significantly improve anti-tumor immunotherapy. However, due to GSDME is expressed in nearly all body tissues and immune cells, it can exacerbate chemotherapy toxicity and partially block immune response. How to achieve a balance between the two sides is a crucial research topic. Meanwhile, the potential functions of GSDME-mediated pyroptosis in anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) therapy, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) therapy, and chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells) therapy have not yet been fully understood, and how to improve clinical outcomes persists obscure. In this review, we systematically summarize the latest research regarding the molecular mechanisms of pyroptosis and discuss the role of GSDME-mediated pyroptosis in anti-tumor immunity and its potential applications in cancer treatment.