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Diamant G, Simchony Goldman H, Gasri Plotnitsky L, Roitman M, Shiloach T, Globerson-Levin A, Eshhar Z, Haim O, Pencovich N, Grossman R, Ram Z, Volovitz I. T Cells Retain Pivotal Antitumoral Functions under Tumor-Treating Electric Fields. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2021; 207:709-719. [PMID: 34215656 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.2100100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Tumor-treating fields (TTFields) are a localized, antitumoral therapy using alternating electric fields, which impair cell proliferation. Combining TTFields with tumor immunotherapy constitutes a rational approach; however, it is currently unknown whether TTFields' locoregional effects are compatible with T cell functionality. Healthy donor PBMCs and viably dissociated human glioblastoma samples were cultured under either standard or TTFields conditions. Select pivotal T cell functions were measured by multiparametric flow cytometry. Cytotoxicity was evaluated using a chimeric Ag receptor (CAR)-T-based assay. Glioblastoma patient samples were acquired before and after standard chemoradiation or standard chemoradiation + TTFields treatment and examined by immunohistochemistry and by RNA sequencing. TTFields reduced the viability of proliferating T cells, but had little or no effect on the viability of nonproliferating T cells. The functionality of T cells cultured under TTFields was retained: they exhibited similar IFN-γ secretion, cytotoxic degranulation, and PD1 upregulation as controls with similar polyfunctional patterns. Glioblastoma Ag-specific T cells exhibited unaltered viability and functionality under TTFields. CAR-T cells cultured under TTFields exhibited similar cytotoxicity as controls toward their CAR target. Transcriptomic analysis of patients' glioblastoma samples revealed a significant shift in the TTFields-treated versus the standard-treated samples, from a protumoral to an antitumoral immune signature. Immunohistochemistry of samples before and after TTFields treatment showed no reduction in T cell infiltration. T cells were found to retain key antitumoral functions under TTFields settings. Our data provide a mechanistic insight and a rationale for ongoing and future clinical trials that combine TTFields with immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gil Diamant
- The Cancer Immunotherapy Laboratory, Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University Tel-Aviv, Israel.,Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
| | - Hadar Simchony Goldman
- The Cancer Immunotherapy Laboratory, Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Lital Gasri Plotnitsky
- The Cancer Immunotherapy Laboratory, Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Marina Roitman
- The Cancer Immunotherapy Laboratory, Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Tamar Shiloach
- Laboratory for Cancer Research and Immunotherapy, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Anat Globerson-Levin
- Laboratory for Cancer Research and Immunotherapy, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Zelig Eshhar
- Laboratory for Cancer Research and Immunotherapy, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
| | - Oz Haim
- Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
| | - Niv Pencovich
- Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
| | - Rachel Grossman
- Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
| | - Zvi Ram
- Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
| | - Ilan Volovitz
- The Cancer Immunotherapy Laboratory, Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University Tel-Aviv, Israel; .,Neurosurgery Department, Tel-Aviv Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; and
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