1
|
Wang J, Dong T, Gong X, Li D, Sun J, Luo Y, Wu H. Safety and Pharmacokinetic Assessment of the FIC CLDN18.2/4-1BB Bispecific Antibody in Rhesus Monkeys. Int J Toxicol 2024; 43:291-300. [PMID: 38115178 DOI: 10.1177/10915818231221282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
Gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide, particularly in China, with over half a million new cases and over 400 thousand deaths in 2022. Zolbetuximab, a first-in-class investigational monoclonal antibody (mAb) targeting tumor-associated antigen CLDN18.2 which is highly expressed on gastric cancer cells, was recently reported to meet the primary endpoint in Phase III trial as first-line treatment in CLDN18.2 positive and HER2-negative gastric cancers. In the present study, we developed a humanized bispecific antibody (bsAb) CLDN18.2/4-1BB named PM1032. PM1032 activates immune cells via CLDN18.2 mediated crosslinking of 4-1BB, a potent stimulator of T/NK cells. It induced strong immunological memory in multiple tumor-bearing animal models, indicating significant potential as an effective treatment for CLDN18.2 positive cancers such as gastric cancer. Since liver and gastrointestinal (GI) related toxicities were reported in 4-1BB and CLDN18.2 targeting programs during the clinical development, respectively, extensive pharmacokinetics (PK) and safety profile characterization of PM1032 was performed in rhesus monkeys. PM1032 had a half-life comparable to a conventional IgG1 mAb, and serum drug concentration increased in a dose-dependent pattern. Furthermore, PM1032 was generally well tolerated, with no significant abnormalities observed in toxicity studies, including the liver and stomach. In summary, PM1032 demonstrated good PK and an exceptional safety profile in rhesus monkeys supporting further investigation in clinical studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jing Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
- TriApex Laboratories Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China
| | - Tiantian Dong
- New Drug Technology Department, Biotheus Inc., Zhuhai, China
- TriApex Laboratories Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China
| | - Xinjiang Gong
- New Drug Technology Department, Biotheus Inc., Zhuhai, China
- TriApex Laboratories Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China
| | - Deli Li
- TriApex Laboratories Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China
| | - Joanne Sun
- New Drug Technology Department, Biotheus Inc., Zhuhai, China
| | - Yi Luo
- New Drug Discovery and Development, Biotheus Inc., Zhuhai, China
- Clinical Pharmacy Innovation Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Huazhang Wu
- School of Life Sciences, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Toadere TM, Ţichindeleanu A, Bondor DA, Topor I, Trella ŞE, Nenu I. Bridging the divide: unveiling mutual immunological pathways of cancer and pregnancy. Inflamm Res 2024; 73:793-807. [PMID: 38492049 DOI: 10.1007/s00011-024-01866-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024] Open
Abstract
The juxtaposition of two seemingly disparate physiological phenomena within the human body-namely, cancer and pregnancy-may offer profound insights into the intricate interplay between malignancies and the immune system. Recent investigations have unveiled striking similarities between the pivotal processes underpinning fetal implantation and successful gestation and those governing tumor initiation and progression. Notably, a confluence of features has emerged, underscoring parallels between the microenvironment of tumors and the maternal-fetal interface. These shared attributes encompass establishing vascular networks, cellular mobilization, recruitment of auxiliary tissue components to facilitate continued growth, and, most significantly, the orchestration of immune-suppressive mechanisms.Our particular focus herein centers on the phenomenon of immune suppression and its protective utility in both of these contexts. In the context of pregnancy, immune suppression assumes a paramount role in shielding the semi-allogeneic fetus from the potentially hostile immune responses of the maternal host. In stark contrast, in the milieu of cancer, this very same immunological suppression fosters the transformation of the tumor microenvironment into a sanctuary personalized for the neoplastic cells.Thus, the striking parallels between the immunosuppressive strategies deployed during pregnancy and those co-opted by malignancies offer a tantalizing reservoir of insights. These insights promise to inform novel avenues in the realm of cancer immunotherapy. By harnessing our understanding of the immunological events that detrimentally impact fetal development, a knowledge grounded in the context of conditions such as preeclampsia or miscarriage, we may uncover innovative immunotherapeutic strategies to combat cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Teodora Maria Toadere
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
| | - Andra Ţichindeleanu
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
| | - Daniela Andreea Bondor
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Ioan Topor
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Şerban Ellias Trella
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Iuliana Nenu
- Department of Physiology, "Iuliu Haţieganu" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Haugh A, Daud AI. Therapeutic Strategies in BRAF V600 Wild-Type Cutaneous Melanoma. Am J Clin Dermatol 2024; 25:407-419. [PMID: 38329690 DOI: 10.1007/s40257-023-00841-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
There have been many recent advances in melanoma therapy. While 50% of melanomas have a BRAF mutation and are a target for BRAF inhibitors, the remaining 50% are BRAF wild-type. Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting PD-1, cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA4) and lymphocyte activated gene-3 (Lag-3) are all approved for the treatment of patients with advanced BRAF wild-type melanoma; however, treatment of this patient population following initial immune checkpoint blockade is a current therapeutic challenge given the lack of other efficacious options. Here, we briefly review available US FDA-approved therapies for BRAF wild-type melanoma and focus on developing treatment avenues for this heterogeneous group of patients. We review the basics of genomic features of both BRAF mutant and BRAF wild-type melanoma as well as efforts underway to develop new targeted therapies involving the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway for patients with BRAF wild-type tumors. We then focus on novel immunotherapies, including developing checkpoint inhibitors and agonists, cytokine therapies, oncolytic viruses and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, all of which represent potential therapeutic avenues for patients with BRAF wild-type melanoma who progress on currently approved immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Haugh
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, 550 16th Street, 6809, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Adil I Daud
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, 550 16th Street, 6809, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA.
- Department of Dermatology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Guo J, Yu F, Zhang K, Jiang S, Zhang X, Wang T. Beyond inhibition against the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway: development of PD-L1 inhibitors targeting internalization and degradation of PD-L1. RSC Med Chem 2024; 15:1096-1108. [PMID: 38665824 PMCID: PMC11042118 DOI: 10.1039/d3md00636k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Tumor cells hijack the programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) pathway to suppress the immune response through overexpressing PD-L1 to interact with PD-1 of T cells. With in-depth ongoing research, tumor-intrinsic PD-L1 is found to play important roles in tumor progression without interaction with PD-1 expressed on T cells, which provides an additional important target and therapeutic approach for development of PD-L1 inhibitors. Existing monoclonal antibody (mAb) drugs against the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway generally behave by conformationally blocking the interactions of PD-1 with PD-L1 on the cell surface. Beyond general inhibition of the protein-protein interaction (PPI), inhibitors targeting PD-L1 currently focus on the functional inhibition of the interaction between PD-1/PD-L1 and degradation of tumor-intrinsic PD-L1. This perspective will clarify the evolution of PD-L1 inhibitors and provide insights into the current development of PD-L1 inhibitors, especially targeting internalization and degradation of PD-L1.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jiazheng Guo
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| | - Fengyi Yu
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| | - Kuojun Zhang
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| | - Sheng Jiang
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| | - Xiangyu Zhang
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| | - Tianyu Wang
- School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University Nanjing 210009 China
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Trotter TN, Wilson A, McBane J, Dagotto CE, Yang XY, Wei JP, Lei G, Thrash H, Snyder JC, Lyerly HK, Hartman ZC. Overcoming Xenoantigen Immunity to Enable Cellular Tracking and Gene Regulation with Immune-competent "NoGlow" Mice. CANCER RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 2024; 4:1050-1062. [PMID: 38592453 PMCID: PMC11003454 DOI: 10.1158/2767-9764.crc-24-0062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
The ability to temporally regulate gene expression and track labeled cells makes animal models powerful biomedical tools. However, sudden expression of xenobiotic genes [e.g., GFP, luciferase (Luc), or rtTA3] can trigger inadvertent immunity that suppresses foreign protein expression or results in complete rejection of transplanted cells. Germline exposure to foreign antigens somewhat addresses these challenges; however, native fluorescence and bioluminescence abrogates the utility of reporter proteins and highly spatiotemporally restricted expression can lead to suboptimal xenoantigen tolerance. To overcome these unwanted immune responses and enable reliable cell tracking/gene regulation, we developed a novel mouse model that selectively expresses antigen-intact but nonfunctional forms of GFP and Luc, as well as rtTA3, after CRE-mediated recombination. Using tissue-specific CREs, we observed model and sex-based differences in immune tolerance to the encoded xenoantigens, illustrating the obstacles of tolerizing animals to foreign genes and validating the utility of these "NoGlow" mice to dissect mechanisms of central and peripheral tolerance. Critically, tissue unrestricted NoGlow mice possess no detectable background fluorescence or luminescence and exhibit limited adaptive immunity against encoded transgenic xenoantigens after vaccination. Moreover, we demonstrate that NoGlow mice allow tracking and tetracycline-inducible gene regulation of triple-transgenic cells expressing GFP/Luc/rtTA3, in contrast to transgene-negative immune-competent mice that eliminate these cells or prohibit metastatic seeding. Notably, this model enables de novo metastasis from orthotopically implanted, triple-transgenic tumor cells, despite high xenoantigen expression. Altogether, the NoGlow model provides a critical resource for in vivo studies across disciplines, including oncology, developmental biology, infectious disease, autoimmunity, and transplantation. SIGNIFICANCE Multitolerant NoGlow mice enable tracking and gene manipulation of transplanted tumor cells without immune-mediated rejection, thus providing a platform to investigate novel mechanisms of adaptive immunity related to metastasis, immunotherapy, and tolerance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrea Wilson
- Department of Pathology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Jason McBane
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | | | - Xiao-Yi Yang
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Jun-Ping Wei
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Gangjun Lei
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Hannah Thrash
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Joshua C. Snyder
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Herbert Kim Lyerly
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Department of Pathology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Department of Integrative Immunobiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Zachary C. Hartman
- Department of Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Department of Pathology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- Department of Integrative Immunobiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Li T, Niu M, Zhou J, Wu K, Yi M. The enhanced antitumor activity of bispecific antibody targeting PD-1/PD-L1 signaling. Cell Commun Signal 2024; 22:179. [PMID: 38475778 PMCID: PMC10935874 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-024-01562-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
The programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) signaling pathway, a key player in immune checkpoint regulation, has become a focal point in cancer immunotherapy. In the context of cancer, upregulated PD-L1 on tumor cells can result in T cell exhaustion and immune evasion, fostering tumor progression. The advent of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor has demonstrated clinical success by unleashing T cells from exhaustion. Nevertheless, challenges such as resistance and adverse effects have spurred the exploration of innovative strategies, with bispecific antibodies (BsAbs) emerging as a promising frontier. BsAbs offer a multifaceted approach to cancer immunotherapy by simultaneously targeting PD-L1 and other immune regulatory molecules. We focus on recent advancements in PD-1/PD-L1 therapy with a particular emphasis on the development and potential of BsAbs, especially in the context of solid tumors. Various BsAb products targeting PD-1 signaling are discussed, highlighting their unique mechanisms of action and therapeutic potential. Noteworthy examples include anti-TGFβ × PD-L1, anti-CD47 × PD-L1, anti-VEGF × PD-L1, anti-4-1BB × PD-L1, anti-LAG-3 × PD-L1, and anti-PD-1 × CTLA-4 BsAbs. Besides, we summarize ongoing clinical studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of these innovative BsAb agents. By unraveling the intricacies of the tumor microenvironment and harnessing the synergistic effects of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 BsAbs, there exists the potential to elevate the precision and efficacy of cancer immunotherapy, ultimately enabling the development of personalized treatment strategies tailored to individual patient profiles.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tianye Li
- Department of Gynecology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310009, People's Republic of China
- Zhejiang Provincial Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hangzhou, China
| | - Mengke Niu
- Cancer Center, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Science, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, People's Republic of China
| | - Jianwei Zhou
- Department of Gynecology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310009, People's Republic of China
- Zhejiang Provincial Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hangzhou, China
| | - Kongming Wu
- Cancer Center, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Science, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, People's Republic of China.
| | - Ming Yi
- Department of Breast Surgery, College of Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310000, People's Republic of China.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Li C, Wang Z, Yao L, Lin X, Jian Y, Li Y, Zhang J, Shao J, Tran PD, Hagman JR, Cao M, Cong Y, Li HY, Goding CR, Xu ZX, Liao X, Miao X, Cui R. Mi-2β promotes immune evasion in melanoma by activating EZH2 methylation. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2163. [PMID: 38461299 PMCID: PMC10924921 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46422-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent development of new immune checkpoint inhibitors has been particularly successfully in cancer treatment, but still the majority patients fail to benefit. Converting resistant tumors to immunotherapy sensitive will provide a significant improvement in patient outcome. Here we identify Mi-2β as a key melanoma-intrinsic effector regulating the adaptive anti-tumor immune response. Studies in genetically engineered mouse melanoma models indicate that loss of Mi-2β rescues the immune response to immunotherapy in vivo. Mechanistically, ATAC-seq analysis shows that Mi-2β controls the accessibility of IFN-γ-stimulated genes (ISGs). Mi-2β binds to EZH2 and promotes K510 methylation of EZH2, subsequently activating the trimethylation of H3K27 to inhibit the transcription of ISGs. Finally, we develop an Mi-2β-targeted inhibitor, Z36-MP5, which reduces Mi-2β ATPase activity and reactivates ISG transcription. Consequently, Z36-MP5 induces a response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in otherwise resistant melanoma models. Our work provides a potential therapeutic strategy to convert immunotherapy resistant melanomas to sensitive ones.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cang Li
- Skin Disease Research Institute, The 2nd Hospital and School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
- Research Center for Life Science and Human Health, Binjiang Institute of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310053, China
| | - Zhengyu Wang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Arkansas for Medical Science, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA
| | - Licheng Yao
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Xingyu Lin
- Zhuhai Yu Fan Biotechnologies Co. Ltd, Zhuhai, Guangdong, 51900, China
| | - Yongping Jian
- School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475000, China
| | - Yujia Li
- School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475000, China
| | - Jie Zhang
- National Key Laboratory for Novel Software Technology, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Jingwei Shao
- National & Local Joint Engineering Research Center of Targeted and Innovative Therapeutics, International Academy of Targeted Therapeutics and Innovation, College of Pharmacy, Chongqing University of Arts and Sciences, Chongqing, 402160, China
| | - Phuc D Tran
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Arkansas for Medical Science, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA
| | - James R Hagman
- Department of Immunology and Genomic Medicine, National Jewish Health, Denver, CO, 80206, USA
| | - Meng Cao
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, School of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Yusheng Cong
- Key Laboratory of Aging and Cancer Biology of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Normal University School of Basic Medical Sciences, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Hong-Yu Li
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Arkansas for Medical Science, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA.
| | - Colin R Goding
- Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Oxford, Headington, Oxford, OX3 7DQ, UK.
| | - Zhi-Xiang Xu
- School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475000, China.
| | - Xuebin Liao
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China.
| | - Xiao Miao
- Department of Dermatology, Shuguang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 200437, China.
- The MOE Basic Research and Innovation Center for the Targeted Therapeutics of Solid Tumors, Jiangxi Medical College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China.
| | - Rutao Cui
- Skin Disease Research Institute, The 2nd Hospital and School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Barboy O, Bercovich A, Li H, Eyal-Lubling Y, Yalin A, Shapir Itai Y, Abadie K, Zada M, David E, Shlomi-Loubaton S, Katzenelenbogen Y, Jaitin DA, Gur C, Yofe I, Feferman T, Cohen M, Dahan R, Newell EW, Lifshitz A, Tanay A, Amit I. Modeling T cell temporal response to cancer immunotherapy rationalizes development of combinatorial treatment protocols. NATURE CANCER 2024:10.1038/s43018-024-00734-z. [PMID: 38429414 DOI: 10.1038/s43018-024-00734-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
Successful immunotherapy relies on triggering complex responses involving T cell dynamics in tumors and the periphery. Characterizing these responses remains challenging using static human single-cell atlases or mouse models. To address this, we developed a framework for in vivo tracking of tumor-specific CD8+ T cells over time and at single-cell resolution. Our tools facilitate the modeling of gene program dynamics in the tumor microenvironment (TME) and the tumor-draining lymph node (tdLN). Using this approach, we characterize two modes of anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) activity, decoupling induced differentiation of tumor-specific activated precursor cells from conventional type 1 dendritic cell (cDC1)-dependent proliferation and recruitment to the TME. We demonstrate that combining anti-PD-1 therapy with anti-4-1BB agonist enhances the recruitment and proliferation of activated precursors, resulting in tumor control. These data suggest that effective response to anti-PD-1 therapy is dependent on sufficient influx of activated precursor CD8+ cells to the TME and highlight the importance of understanding system-level dynamics in optimizing immunotherapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Oren Barboy
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Akhiad Bercovich
- Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics and Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Hanjie Li
- Department of Synthetic Immunology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yaniv Eyal-Lubling
- Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Li Ka Shing Centre, Cambridge, UK
| | - Adam Yalin
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Yuval Shapir Itai
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Kathleen Abadie
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Mor Zada
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Eyal David
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Shir Shlomi-Loubaton
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | | | - Diego Adhemar Jaitin
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Chamutal Gur
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ido Yofe
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Tali Feferman
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Merav Cohen
- Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Rony Dahan
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Evan W Newell
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Aviezer Lifshitz
- Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics and Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Amos Tanay
- Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics and Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
| | - Ido Amit
- Department of Systems Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Baudouin R, Tartour E, Badoual C, Hans S. Hypothesis of a CD137/Eomes activating axis for effector T cells in HPV oropharyngeal cancers. Mol Med 2024; 30:26. [PMID: 38355394 PMCID: PMC10868089 DOI: 10.1186/s10020-024-00796-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) infection is supplanting alcohol and tobacco intoxications as the leading cause of oropharyngeal cancer in developed countries. HPV-related squamous cell carcinomas of the oropharynx (HPV + OSC) present better survival and respond better to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Regulatory T cells (TREG) are mainly described as immunosuppressive and protumoral in most solid cancers. However, TREG are paradoxically associated with a better prognosis in HPV + OSCs. The transcription factor FoxP3 is the basis for the identification of TREG. Among CD4 + FoxP3 + T cells, some have effector functions. A medical hypothesis is formulated here: the existence of a CD137 (4.1BB)-Eomesodermin (Eomes) activated pathway downstream of TCR-specific activation in a subpopulation of CD4 + FoxP3 + T cells may explain this effector function. Evidence suggest that this axis may exist either in CD4 + FoxP3 + T cells or CD8 + T cells. This pathway could lead T cells to strong antitumor cytotoxic activity in a tumor-specific manner. Furthermore, CD137 is one of the most expected targets for the development of agonist immunotherapies. The identification of CD137 + Eomes + FoxP3+/- T cells could be a key element in the selective activation of the most anti-tumor cells in the HPV + OSC microenvironment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Baudouin
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Foch Hospital, 40 rue Worth, 92 150, Suresnes, France.
- School of Medicine, UFR Simone Veil, Université Versailles Saint-Quentin-en- Yvelines (Paris Saclay University), 2 Av. de la Source de la Bièvre, Montigny- le-Bretonneux, 78 180, France.
| | - Eric Tartour
- Université Paris Cite, INSERM, PARCC, Hôpital européen Georges Pompidou, Service d'Immunologie biologique, 20, Rue Leblanc, Paris, 75015, France
| | - Cécile Badoual
- Hôpital européen Georges Pompidou, Service d'anatomopathologie, 20, Rue Leblanc, Paris, 75015, France
| | - Stéphane Hans
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Foch Hospital, 40 rue Worth, 92 150, Suresnes, France
- School of Medicine, UFR Simone Veil, Université Versailles Saint-Quentin-en- Yvelines (Paris Saclay University), 2 Av. de la Source de la Bièvre, Montigny- le-Bretonneux, 78 180, France
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Tao H, Jin C, Zhou L, Deng Z, Li X, Dang W, Fan S, Li B, Ye F, Lu J, Kong X, Liu C, Luo C, Zhang Y. PRMT1 Inhibition Activates the Interferon Pathway to Potentiate Antitumor Immunity and Enhance Checkpoint Blockade Efficacy in Melanoma. Cancer Res 2024; 84:419-433. [PMID: 37991725 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-23-1082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023]
Abstract
Despite the immense success of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) in cancer treatment, many tumors, including melanoma, exhibit innate or adaptive resistance. Tumor-intrinsic T-cell deficiency and T-cell dysfunction have been identified as essential factors in the emergence of ICB resistance. Here, we found that protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) expression was inversely correlated with the number and activity of CD8+ T cells within melanoma specimen. PRMT1 deficiency or inhibition with DCPT1061 significantly restrained refractory melanoma growth and increased intratumoral CD8+ T cells in vivo. Moreover, PRMT1 deletion in melanoma cells facilitated formation of double-stranded RNA derived from endogenous retroviral elements (ERV) and stimulated an intracellular interferon response. Mechanistically, PRMT1 deficiency repressed the expression of DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) by attenuating modification of H4R3me2a and H3K27ac at enhancer regions of Dnmt1, and DNMT1 downregulation consequently activated ERV transcription and the interferon signaling. Importantly, PRMT1 inhibition with DCPT1061 synergized with PD-1 blockade to suppress tumor progression and increase the proportion of CD8+ T cells as well as IFNγ+CD8+ T cells in vivo. Together, these results reveal an unrecognized role and mechanism of PRMT1 in regulating antitumor T-cell immunity, suggesting PRMT1 inhibition as a potent strategy to increase the efficacy of ICB. SIGNIFICANCE Targeting PRMT1 stimulates interferon signaling by increasing expression of endogenous retroviral elements and double-stranded RNA through repression of DNMT1, which induces antitumor immunity and synergizes with immunotherapy to suppress tumor progression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hongru Tao
- School of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China
| | - Chen Jin
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
| | - Liyuan Zhou
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China
- Drug Discovery and Design Center, The Center for Chemical Biology, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhenzhong Deng
- Department of Oncology, Xinhua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai JiaoTong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiao Li
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wenzhen Dang
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Shijie Fan
- Zhongshan Institute for Drug Discovery, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhongshan, China
| | - Bing Li
- Drug Discovery and Design Center, The Center for Chemical Biology, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Fei Ye
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Junyan Lu
- Medical Faculty Heidelberg, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Xiangqian Kong
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chuanpeng Liu
- School of Life Science and Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China
| | - Cheng Luo
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China
- Drug Discovery and Design Center, The Center for Chemical Biology, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Zhongshan Institute for Drug Discovery, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhongshan, China
| | - Yuanyuan Zhang
- Drug Discovery and Design Center, The Center for Chemical Biology, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Mestiri S, El-Ella DMA, Fernandes Q, Bedhiafi T, Almoghrabi S, Akbar S, Inchakalody V, Assami L, Anwar S, Uddin S, Gul ARZ, Al-Muftah M, Merhi M, Raza A, Dermime S. The dynamic role of immune checkpoint molecules in diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of head and neck cancers. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 171:116095. [PMID: 38183744 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.116095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Head and neck cancer (HNC) is the sixth most common cancer type, accounting for approximately 277,597 deaths worldwide. Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) agents targeting programmed death-1 (PD-1) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) as a treatment regimen for head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC). Studies have reported the role of immune checkpoint inhibitors as targeted therapeutic regimens that unleash the immune response against HNSCC tumors. However, the overall response rates to immunotherapy vary between 14-32% in recurrent or metastatic HNSCC, with clinical response and treatment success being unpredictable. Keeping this perspective in mind, it is imperative to understand the role of T cells, natural killer cells, and antigen-presenting cells in modulating the immune response to immunotherapy. In lieu of this, these immune molecules could serve as prognostic and predictive biomarkers to facilitate longitudinal monitoring and understanding of treatment dynamics. These immune biomarkers could pave the path for personalized monitoring and management of HNSCC. In this review, we aim to provide updated immunological insight on the mechanism of action, expression, and the clinical application of immune cells' stimulatory and inhibitory molecules as prognostic and predictive biomarkers in HNC. The review is focused mainly on CD27 and CD137 (members of the TNF-receptor superfamily), natural killer group 2 member D (NKG2D), tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 4 (TNFRSF4 or OX40), S100 proteins, PD-1, PD-L1, PD-L2, T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM-3), cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4), lymphocyte-activation gene 3 (LAG-3), indoleamine-pyrrole 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), B and T lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA). It also highlights the importance of T, natural killer, and antigen-presenting cells as robust biomarker tools for understanding immune checkpoint inhibitor-based treatment dynamics. Though a comprehensive review, all aspects of the immune molecules could not be covered as they were beyond the scope of the review; Further review articles can cover other aspects to bridge the knowledge gap.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sarra Mestiri
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Dina Moustafa Abo El-Ella
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Queenie Fernandes
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; College of Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Takwa Bedhiafi
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Salam Almoghrabi
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Shayista Akbar
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Varghese Inchakalody
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Laila Assami
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Shaheena Anwar
- Department of Biosciences, Salim Habib University, Karachi, Pakistan
| | - Shahab Uddin
- Translational Research Institute and Dermatology Institute, Academic Health System, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; Laboratory Animal Research Center, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Abdul Rehman Zar Gul
- National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Mariam Al-Muftah
- Translational Cancer and Immunity Centre, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar; College of Health and Life Sciences, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Maysaloun Merhi
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
| | - Afsheen Raza
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health Science, Abu Dhabi University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Said Dermime
- Translational Cancer Research Facility, National Center for Cancer Care and Research/ Translational Research Institute, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; National Center for Cancer Care and Research, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Wright QG, Sinha D, Wells JW, Frazer IH, Gonzalez Cruz JL, Leggatt GR. Peritumoral administration of immunomodulatory antibodies as a triple combination suppresses skin tumor growth without systemic toxicity. J Immunother Cancer 2024; 12:e007960. [PMID: 38296598 PMCID: PMC10831460 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2023-007960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Skin cancers, particularly keratinocyte cancers, are the most commonly diagnosed tumors. Although surgery is often effective in early-stage disease, skin tumors are not always easily accessible, can reoccur and have the ability to metastasize. More recently, immunotherapies, including intravenously administered checkpoint inhibitors, have been shown to control some skin cancers, but with off-target toxicities when used in combination. Our study investigated whether peritumoral administration of an antibody combination targeting PD-1, 4-1BB (CD137) and VISTA might control skin tumors and lead to circulating antitumor immunity without off-target toxicity. METHODS The efficacy of combination immunotherapy administered peritumorally or intravenously was tested using transplantable tumor models injected into mouse ears (primary tumors) or subcutaneously in flank skin (secondary tumors). Changes to the tumor microenvironment were tracked using flow cytometry while tumor-specific, CD8 T cells were identified through enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assays. Off-target toxicity of the combination immunotherapy was assessed via serum alanine aminotransferase ELISA and histological analysis of liver sections. RESULTS The data showed that local administration of antibody therapy eliminated syngeneic murine tumors transplanted in the ear skin at a lower dose than required intravenously, and without measured hepatic toxicity. Tumor elimination was dependent on CD8 T cells and was associated with an increased percentage of CD8 T cells expressing granzyme B, KLRG1 and Eomes, and a decreased population of CD4 T cells including CD4+FoxP3+ cells in the treated tumor microenvironment. Importantly, untreated, distal tumors regressed following antibody treatment of a primary tumor, and immune memory prevented growth of subcutaneous flank tumors administered 50 days after regression of a primary tumor. CONCLUSIONS Together, these data suggest that peritumoral immunotherapy for skin tumors offers advantages over conventional intravenous delivery, allowing antibody dose sparing, improved safety and inducing long-term systemic memory. Future clinical trials of immunotherapy for primary skin cancer should focus on peritumoral delivery of combinations of immune checkpoint antibodies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Quentin G Wright
- Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Debottam Sinha
- Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - James W Wells
- Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Ian H Frazer
- Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
Kienzl M, Maitz K, Sarsembayeva A, Valadez-Cosmes P, Gruden E, Ristic D, Herceg K, Kargl J, Schicho R. Comparative Study of the Immune Microenvironment in Heterotopic Tumor Models. Cancers (Basel) 2024; 16:295. [PMID: 38254785 PMCID: PMC10813609 DOI: 10.3390/cancers16020295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Revised: 01/05/2024] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
The tumor microenvironment (TME) is pivotal in cancer progression and the response to immunotherapy. A "hot" tumor typically contains immune cells that promote anti-tumor immunity, predicting positive prognosis. "Cold" tumors lack immune cells, suggesting a poor outlook across various cancers. Recent research has focused on converting "cold" tumors into "hot" tumors to enhance the success of immunotherapy. A prerequisite for the studies of the TME is an accurate knowledge of the cell populations of the TME. This study aimed to describe the immune TME of lung and colorectal cancer and melanoma, focusing on lymphoid and myeloid cell populations. We induced heterotopic immunocompetent tumors in C57BL/6 mice, using KP and LLC (Lewis lung carcinoma) cells for lung cancer, MC38 cells for colorectal cancer, and B16-F10 cells for melanoma. Immune cell infiltration was analyzed using multicolor flow cytometry in single-cell suspensions after tumor excision. KP cell tumors showed an abundance of neutrophils and eosinophils; however, they contained much less adaptive immune cells, while LLC cell tumors predominated in monocytes, neutrophils, and monocyte-derived dendritic cells. Monocytes and neutrophils, along with a significant T cell infiltration, were prevalent in MC38 tumors. Lastly, B16-F10 tumors were enriched in macrophages, while showing only moderate T cell presence. In conclusion, our data provide a detailed overview of the immune TME of various heterotopic tumors, highlighting the variabilities in the immune cell profiles of different tumor entities. Our data may be a helpful basis when investigating new immunotherapies, and thus, this report serves as a helpful tool for preclinical immunotherapy research design.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Kienzl
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Kathrin Maitz
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Arailym Sarsembayeva
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Paulina Valadez-Cosmes
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Eva Gruden
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Dusica Ristic
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Karolina Herceg
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Julia Kargl
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
- BioTechMed, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Rudolf Schicho
- Division of Pharmacology, Otto Loewi Research Center, Medical University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
- BioTechMed, 8010 Graz, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Pernot S, Tomé M, Galeano-Otero I, Evrard S, Badiola I, Delom F, Fessart D, Smani T, Siegfried G, Villoutreix BO, Khatib AM. Sulconazole inhibits PD-1 expression in immune cells and cancer cells malignant phenotype through NF-κB and calcium activity repression. Front Immunol 2024; 14:1278630. [PMID: 38250065 PMCID: PMC10796450 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1278630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The overexpression of the immunoinhibitory receptor programmed death-1 (PD1) on T-cells is involved in immune evasion in cancer. The use of anti-PD-1/PDL-1 strategy has deeply changed the therapies of cancers and patient survival. However, their efficacy diverges greatly along with tumor type and patient populations. Thereby, novel treatments are needed to interfere with the anti-tumoral immune responses and propose an adjunct therapy. In the current study, we found that the antifungal drug Sulconazole (SCZ) inhibits PD-1 expression on activated PBMCs and T cells at the RNA and protein levels. SCZ repressed NF-κB and calcium signaling, both, involved in the induction of PD-1. Further analysis revealed cancer cells treatment with SCZ inhibited their proliferation, and migration and ability to mediate tumor growth in zebrafish embryos. SCZ found also to inhibit calcium mobilization in cancer cells. These results suggest the SCZ therapeutic potential used alone or as adjunct strategy to prevent T-cell exhaustion and promotes cancer cell malignant phenotype repression in order to improve tumor eradication.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simon Pernot
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| | - Mercedes Tomé
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Isabel Galeano-Otero
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
| | - Serge Evrard
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| | - Iker Badiola
- Department of Cell Biology and Histology, Faculty of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Spain
| | - Frederic Delom
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| | - Delphine Fessart
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| | - Tarik Smani
- Group of Cardiovascular Pathophysiology, Institute of Biomedicine of Seville, University Hospital of Virgen del Rocío/University of Seville/CSIC, Seville, Spain
| | - Geraldine Siegfried
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| | - Bruno O. Villoutreix
- Integrative Computational Pharmacology and Data Mining, INSERM UMR 1141, Rob-ert-Debré Hospital, Paris, France
| | - Abdel-Majid Khatib
- Reprograming tumor activitY and associaTed MicroenvironmEnt (Rytme), Bordeaux Institute of Oncology (BRIC)-UMR1312 Inserm, Université of Bordeaux, Pessac, France
- Institut Bergonié, Bordeaux, France
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Yan H, Jiang A, Huang Y, Zhang J, Yang W, Zhang W, Liu T. Exercise sensitizes PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy as a hypoxia modulator in the tumor microenvironment of melanoma. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1265914. [PMID: 37876940 PMCID: PMC10590877 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1265914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Hypoxia is associated with unfavorable prognoses in melanoma patients, and the limited response rates of patients to PD-1/PD-L1 blockade could be attributed to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment induced by hypoxia. Exercise offers numerous benefits in the anti-tumor process and has the potential to alleviate hypoxia; however, the precise mechanisms through which it exerts its anti-tumor effects remain unclear, and the presence of synergistic effects with PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy is yet to be definitively established. Methods We established a B16F10 homograft malignant melanoma model and implemented two distinct exercise treatments (low/moderate-intensity swim) based on the mice's exercise status. The specific function manner of exercise-induced anti-tumor effects was determined through RNA sequencing and analysis of changes in the tumor microenvironment. Furthermore, moderate-intensity swim that exhibited superior tumor suppression effects was combined with Anti-PD-1 treatment to evaluate its in vivo efficacy in mouse models. Results Exercise intervention yielded a considerable effect in impeding tumor growth and promoting apoptosis. Immunohistochemistry and RNA sequencing revealed improvements in tumor hypoxia and down-regulation of hypoxia-related pathways. Cellular immunofluorescence and ELISA analyses demonstrated a notable increase of cytotoxic T cell amount and a decrease of regulatory T cells, indicating an improvement of tumor immune microenvironment. In comparison to Anti-PD-1 monotherapy, tumor suppressive efficacy of exercise combination therapy was found to be enhanced with improvements in both the hypoxic tumor microenvironment and T cell infiltration. Conclusion Exercise has the potential to function as a hypoxia modulator improving the tumor immune microenvironment, resulting in the promotion of anti-tumor efficacy and the facilitation of biologically safe sensitization of PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Huiyu Yan
- National & Local Joint Engineering Research Center of Biodiagnosis and Biotherapy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
- Center for Physical Education, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Aimin Jiang
- Department of Medical Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Yinong Huang
- Shaanxi Institute of Pediatric Diseases, Xi’an Children’s Hospital, Xi’an, China
| | - Jun Zhang
- Center for Physical Education, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Wenguang Yang
- Department of Medical Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
- Department of Talent Highland, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Military Physical Education Teaching and Research Section of Air Force Medical Service Training Base, Air Force Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Tianya Liu
- Institute for Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Battin C, De Sousa Linhares A, Leitner J, Grossmann A, Lupinek D, Izadi S, Castilho A, Waidhofer-Söllner P, Grabmeier-Pfistershammer K, Stritzker J, Steinberger P. Engineered soluble, trimerized 4-1BBL variants as potent immunomodulatory agents. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2023; 72:3029-3043. [PMID: 37310433 PMCID: PMC10412504 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-023-03474-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Targeting co-stimulatory receptors promotes the activation and effector functions of anti-tumor lymphocytes. 4-1BB (CD137/TNFSF9), a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily (TNFR-SF), is a potent co-stimulatory receptor that plays a prominent role in augmenting effector functions of CD8+ T cells, but also CD4+ T cells and NK cells. Agonistic antibodies against 4-1BB have entered clinical trials and shown signs of therapeutic efficacy. Here, we have used a T cell reporter system to evaluate various formats of 4-1BBL regarding their capacity to functionally engage its receptor. We found that a secreted 4-1BBL ectodomain harboring a trimerization domain derived from human collagen (s4-1BBL-TriXVIII) is a strong inducer of 4-1BB co-stimulation. Similar to the 4-1BB agonistic antibody urelumab, s4-1BBL-TriXVIII is very potent in inducing CD8+ and CD4+ T cell proliferation. We provide first evidence that s4-1BBL-TriXVIII can be used as an effective immunomodulatory payload in therapeutic viral vectors. Oncolytic measles viruses encoding s4-1BBL-TriXVIII significantly reduced tumor burden in a CD34+ humanized mouse model, whereas measles viruses lacking s4-1BBL-TriXVIII were not effective. Natural soluble 4-1BB ligand harboring a trimerization domain might have utility in tumor therapy especially when delivered to tumor tissue as systemic administration might induce liver toxicity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claire Battin
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Annika De Sousa Linhares
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Judith Leitner
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Anna Grossmann
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniela Lupinek
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria
| | - Shiva Izadi
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute for Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alexandra Castilho
- Department of Applied Genetics and Cell Biology, Institute for Plant Biotechnology and Cell Biology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Petra Waidhofer-Söllner
- Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Jochen Stritzker
- Themis Bioscience GmbH, Vienna, Austria; a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.
- Loop Lab Bio GmbH, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Peter Steinberger
- Division of Immune Receptors and T Cell Activation, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology, Institute of Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Zhao L, Chen X, Wu H, He Q, Ding L, Yang B. Strategies to synergize PD-1/PD-L1 targeted cancer immunotherapies to enhance antitumor responses in ovarian cancer. Biochem Pharmacol 2023; 215:115724. [PMID: 37524205 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2023.115724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/02/2023]
Abstract
Anti-programmed cell death 1/programmed cell death ligand 1 (anti-PD-1/PD-L1) antibodies have developed rapidly but exhibited modest activity in ovarian cancer (OC), achieving a clinical response rate ranging from 5.9% to 19%. Current evidence indicate that the establishment of an integrated cancer-immunity cycle is a prerequisite for anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies. Any impairment in this cycle, including lack of cancer antigens release, impaired antigen-presenting, decreased T cell priming and activation, less T cells that are trafficked or infiltrated in tumor microenvironment (TME), and low tumor recognition and killings, will lead to decreased infiltrated cytotoxic T cells to tumor bed and treatment failure. Therefore, combinatorial strategies aiming to modify cancer-immunity cycle and reprogram tumor immune microenvironment are of great interest. By far, various strategies have been studied to enhance responsiveness to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in OC. Platinum-based chemotherapy increases neoantigens release; poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors (PARPis) improve the function of antigen-presenting cells and promote the trafficking of T cells into tumors; epigenetic drugs help to complete the immune cycle by affecting multiple steps; immunotherapies like anti-cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) antibodies reactivate T cells, and other treatment strategies like radiotherapy helps to increase the expression of tumor antigens. In this review, we will summarize the preclinical studies by analyzing their contribution in modifying the cancer immunity cycle and remodeling tumor environment, and we will also summarize recent progress in clinical trials and discuss some perspectives to improve these treatment strategies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Zhao
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Xi Chen
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Honghai Wu
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Qiaojun He
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China; The Innovation Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310018, China; Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Ling Ding
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
| | - Bo Yang
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China; The Innovation Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310018, China; Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Huang PL, Kan HT, Hsu CH, Hsieh HT, Cheng WC, Huang RY, You JJ. A bispecific antibody AP203 targeting PD-L1 and CD137 exerts potent antitumor activity without toxicity. J Transl Med 2023; 21:346. [PMID: 37226226 PMCID: PMC10210478 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-023-04193-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 05/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bispecific antibody has garnered considerable attention in the recent years due to its impressive preliminary efficacy in hematological malignancies. For solid tumors, however, the main hindrance is the suppressive tumor microenvironment, which effectively impedes the activation of infiltrating T cells. Herein, we designed a bispecific antibody AP203 with high binding affinity to PD-L1 and CD137 and assessed its safety and anti-tumor efficacy, as well as explored the mechanism of action. METHODS The optimal antibody binders against PD-L1 and CD137 were screened from the OmniMab phagemid library. The binding affinity of the constructed AP203 were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and biolayer interferometry (BLI). T-cell stimulatory capacity was assessed using the allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR), antigen-specific recall response, and coculture with PD-L1-expressing cells. In vivo antitumor efficacy was evaluated using two models of tumor-xenografted humanized mice with profiling of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). The possible toxicity of AP203 was examined using in vitro cytokine release assay by human PBMCs. RESULTS AP203, which simultaneously targeted PD-L1 and costimulatory CD137, elicit superior agonistic effects over parental antibodies alone or in combination in terms of T cell activation, enhanced memory recall responses, and overcoming Treg-mediated immunosuppression (P < 0.05). The agonistic activity of AP203 was further demonstrated PD-L1-dependent by coculturing T cells with PD-L1-expressing cells. In vivo animal studies using immunodeficient or immunocompetent mice both showed a dose-related antitumor efficacy superior to parental antibodies in combination (P < 0.05). Correspondingly, AP203 significantly increased tumor infiltrating CD8 + T cells, while decreased CD4 + T cells, as well as Treg cells (P < 0.05), resulting in a dose-dependent increase in the CD8 + /CD4 + ratio. Moreover, either soluble or immobilized AP203 did not induce the production of inflammatory cytokines by human PBMCs. CONCLUSIONS AP203 exerts potent antitumor activity not only by blocking PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitory signaling, but also by activating CD137 costimulatory signaling in effector T cells that consequently counteracts Treg-mediated immunosuppression. Based on promising preclinical results, AP203 should be a suitable candidate for clinical treatment of solid tumors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Po-Lin Huang
- AP Biosciences, Inc., 17F., No. 3, Yuanqu St., Nangang Dist., Taipei, 115603, Taiwan.
| | - Hung-Tsai Kan
- AP Biosciences, Inc., 17F., No. 3, Yuanqu St., Nangang Dist., Taipei, 115603, Taiwan
| | - Ching-Hsuan Hsu
- AP Biosciences, Inc., 17F., No. 3, Yuanqu St., Nangang Dist., Taipei, 115603, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Ta Hsieh
- AP Biosciences, Inc., 17F., No. 3, Yuanqu St., Nangang Dist., Taipei, 115603, Taiwan
| | - Wan-Chien Cheng
- Department of Periodontology, School of Dentistry, Tri-Service General Hospital and National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Ren-Yeong Huang
- Department of Periodontology, School of Dentistry, Tri-Service General Hospital and National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Jhong-Jhe You
- AP Biosciences, Inc., 17F., No. 3, Yuanqu St., Nangang Dist., Taipei, 115603, Taiwan.
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Beck RJ, Sloot S, Matsushita H, Kakimi K, Beltman JB. Mathematical modeling identifies LAG3 and HAVCR2 as biomarkers of T cell exhaustion in melanoma. iScience 2023; 26:106666. [PMID: 37182110 PMCID: PMC10173735 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 04/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) control tumors via lysis of antigen-presenting targets or through secretion of cytokines such as interferon-γ (IFNG), which inhibit tumor cell proliferation. Improved understanding of CTL interactions within solid tumors will aid the development of immunotherapeutic strategies against cancer. In this study, we take a systems biology approach to compare the importance of cytolytic versus IFNG-mediated cytostatic effects in a murine melanoma model (B16F10) and to dissect the contribution of immune checkpoints HAVCR2, LAG3, and PDCD1/CD274 to CTL exhaustion. We integrated multimodal data to inform an ordinary differential equation (ODE) model of CTL activities inside the tumor. Our model predicted that CTL cytotoxicity played only a minor role in tumor control relative to the cytostatic effects of IFNG. Furthermore, our analysis revealed that within B16F10 melanomas HAVCR2 and LAG3 better characterize the development of a dysfunctional CTL phenotype than does the PDCD1/CD274 axis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard J. Beck
- Division of Drug Discovery and Safety, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Sander Sloot
- Division of Drug Discovery and Safety, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Hirokazu Matsushita
- Translational Oncoimmunology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Kazuhiro Kakimi
- Department of Immunotherapeutics, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Joost B. Beltman
- Division of Drug Discovery and Safety, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Corresponding author
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Demerlé C, Gorvel L, Mello M, Pastor S, Degos C, Zarubica A, Angelis F, Fiore F, Nunes JA, Malissen B, Greillier L, Guittard G, Luche H, Barlesi F, Olive D. Anti-HVEM mAb therapy improves antitumoral immunity both in vitro and in vivo, in a novel transgenic mouse model expressing human HVEM and BTLA molecules challenged with HVEM expressing tumors. J Immunother Cancer 2023; 11:jitc-2022-006348. [PMID: 37230538 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2022-006348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tumor necrosis factor superfamily member 14 (TNFRSF14)/herpes virus entry mediator (HVEM) is the ligand for B and T lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA) and CD160-negative immune co-signaling molecules as well as viral proteins. Its expression is dysregulated with an overexpression in tumors and a connection with tumors of adverse prognosis. METHODS We developed C57BL/6 mouse models co-expressing human (hu)BTLA and huHVEM as well as antagonistic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that completely prevent the interactions of HVEM with its ligands. RESULTS Here, we show that the anti-HVEM18-10 mAb increases primary human αβ-T cells activity alone (CIS-activity) or in the presence of HVEM-expressing lung or colorectal cancer cells in vitro (TRANS-activity). Anti-HVEM18-10 synergizes with antiprogrammed death-ligand 1 (anti-PD-L1) mAb to activate T cells in the presence of PD-L1-positive tumors, but is sufficient to trigger T cell activation in the presence of PD-L1-negative cells. In order to better understand HVEM18-10 effects in vivo and especially disentangle its CIS and TRANS effects, we developed a knockin (KI) mouse model expressing human BTLA (huBTLA+/+) and a KI mouse model expressing both huBTLA+/+/huHVEM+/+ (double KI (DKI)). In vivo preclinical experiments performed in both mouse models showed that HVEM18-10 treatment was efficient to decrease human HVEM+ tumor growth. In the DKI model, anti-HVEM18-10 treatment induces a decrease of exhausted CD8+ T cells and regulatory T cells and an increase of effector memory CD4+ T cells within the tumor. Interestingly, mice which completely rejected tumors (±20%) did not develop tumors on rechallenge in both settings, therefore showing a marked T cell-memory phenotype effect. CONCLUSIONS Altogether, our preclinical models validate anti-HVEM18-10 as a promising therapeutic antibody to use in clinics as a monotherapy or in combination with existing immunotherapies (antiprogrammed cell death protein 1/anti-PD-L1/anti-cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4)).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Clémence Demerlé
- Department of Immunomonitoring, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Marseille, France
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | - Laurent Gorvel
- Department of Immunomonitoring, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Marseille, France
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | - Marielle Mello
- Centre d'Immunophénomique-CIPHE (PHENOMIN), Marseille, France
| | - Sonia Pastor
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | - Clara Degos
- Department of Immunomonitoring, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Marseille, France
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | - Ana Zarubica
- Centre d'Immunophénomique-CIPHE (PHENOMIN), Marseille, France
| | - Fabien Angelis
- Centre d'Immunophénomique-CIPHE (PHENOMIN), Marseille, France
| | - Frédéric Fiore
- Centre d'Immunophénomique-CIPHE (PHENOMIN), Marseille, France
| | - Jacques A Nunes
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | | | | | - Geoffrey Guittard
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| | - Hervé Luche
- Centre d'Immunophénomique-CIPHE (PHENOMIN), Marseille, France
| | - Fabrice Barlesi
- Department of Multidisciplinary Oncology and Therapeutic Innovations, CHU NORD, Marseille, France
| | - Daniel Olive
- Department of Immunomonitoring, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, Marseille, France
- Team Immunity and Cancer, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille, Marseille, France
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Song K, Nguyen DC, Luu T, Yazdani O, Roy D, Stayton PS, Pun SH. A mannosylated polymer with endosomal release properties for peptide antigen delivery. J Control Release 2023; 356:232-241. [PMID: 36878319 PMCID: PMC10693254 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023]
Abstract
Peptide cancer vaccines have had limited clinical success despite their safety, characterization and production advantages. We hypothesize that the poor immunogenicity of peptides can be surmounted by delivery vehicles that overcome the systemic, cellular and intracellular drug delivery barriers faced by peptides. Here, we introduce Man-VIPER, a self-assembling (40-50 nm micelles), pH-sensitive, mannosylated polymeric peptide delivery platform that targets dendritic cells in the lymph nodes, encapsulates peptide antigens at physiological pH, and facilitates endosomal release of antigens at acidic endosomal pH through a conjugated membranolytic peptide melittin. We used d-melittin to improve the safety profile of the formulation without compromising the lytic properties. We evaluated polymers with both releasable (Man-VIPER-R) or non-releasable (Man-VIPER-NR) d-melittin. Both Man-VIPER polymers exhibited superior endosomolysis and antigen cross-presentation compared to non-membranolytic d-melittin-free analogues (Man-AP) in vitro. In vivo, Man-VIPER polymers demonstrated an adjuvanting effect, induced the proliferation of antigen-specific cytotoxic T cells and helper T cells compared to free peptides and Man-AP. Remarkably, antigen delivery with Man-VIPER-NR generated significantly more antigen-specific cytotoxic T cells than Man-VIPER-R in vivo. As our candidate for a therapeutic vaccine, Man-VIPER-NR exerted superior efficacy in a B16F10-OVA tumor model. These results highlight Man-VIPER-NR as a safe and powerful peptide cancer vaccine platform for cancer immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kefan Song
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA
| | - Dinh Chuong Nguyen
- Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, University of Washington, USA
| | - Tran Luu
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA
| | - Omeed Yazdani
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA
| | - Debashish Roy
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA
| | - Patrick S Stayton
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA; Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, University of Washington, USA.
| | - Suzie H Pun
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, USA; Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, University of Washington, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Su W, Tan M, Wang Z, Zhang J, Huang W, Song H, Wang X, Ran H, Gao Y, Nie G, Wang H. Targeted Degradation of PD-L1 and Activation of the STING Pathway by Carbon-Dot-Based PROTACs for Cancer Immunotherapy. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202218128. [PMID: 36647763 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202218128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Revised: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) technology is an emerging approach to degrade disease-associated proteins. Here, we report carbon-dot (CD)-based PROTACs (CDTACs) that degrade membrane proteins via the ubiquitin-proteasome system. CDTACs can bind to programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), recruit cereblon (CRBN) to induce PD-L1 ubiquitination, and degrade them with proteasomes. Fasting-mimicking diet (FMD) is also used to enhance the cellular uptake and proteasome activity. More than 99 % or 90 % of PD-L1 in CT26 or B16-F10 tumor cells can be degraded by CDTACs, respectively. Furthermore, CDTACs can activate the stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathway to trigger immune responses. Thus, CDTACs with FMD treatment effectively inhibit the growth of CT26 and B16-F10 tumors. Compared with small-molecule-based PROTACs, CDTACs offer several advantages, such as efficient membrane protein degradation, targeted tumor accumulation, immune system activation, and in vivo detection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wen Su
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Mixiao Tan
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Ultrasound Molecular Imaging, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China
| | - Zhihang Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Jie Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Wenping Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Haohao Song
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Xinye Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Haitao Ran
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Ultrasound Molecular Imaging, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400010, China
| | - Yanfeng Gao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Guangjun Nie
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Hai Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials & Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, 100190, China
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Hu X, Shui Y, Hirano H, Kusano K, Guo WZ, Fujino M, Li XK. PD-L1 antibody enhanced β-glucan antitumor effects via blockade of the immune checkpoints in a melanoma model. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2023; 72:719-731. [PMID: 36053290 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-022-03276-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
In the tumor microenvironment (TME), one of the major functions of tumor-recruited CD11b+ cells are the suppression of the T-cell-mediated anti-tumor immune response. β-glucan could convert the phenotype of tumor-recruited CD11b+ cells from the suppressive to the promotive, and enhanced their anti-tumor effects. However, β-glucan could enhance the PD-1/PD-L1 expression on CD11b+ cells, while PD-1 could inhibit macrophage phagocytosis and PD-L1 could induce a co-inhibitory signal in T-cells and lead to T-cell apoptosis and anergy. These protumor effects may be reversed by PD-1/PD-L1 block therapy. In the present study, we focused on the efficacy of β-glucan anti-tumor therapy combined with anti-PD-L1 mAb treatment, and the mechanism of their synergistic effects could be fully verified. We verified the effect of β-glucan (i.e., inflammatory cytokine secretion of TNF-α, IL-12, IL-6, IL-1β and the expression of immune checkpoint PD-1/PD-L1) in naïve mouse peritoneal exudate CD11b+ cells. In our mouse melanoma model, treatment with a PD-L1 blocking antibody with β-glucan synergized tumor regression. After treatment with β-glucan and anti-PD-L1 mAb antibody, tumor infiltrating leukocyte (TILs) not only showed a competent T-cell function (CD107a, perforin, IL-2, IFN-γ and Ki67) and CTL population, but also showed enhanced tumor-recruited CD11b+ cell activity (IL-12, IL-6, IL-1β and PD-1). This effect was also verified in the peritoneal exudate CD11b+ cells of tumor-bearing mice. PD-1/PD-L1 blockade therapy enhanced the β-glucan antitumor effects via the blockade of tumor-recruited CD11b+ cell immune checkpoints in the melanoma model.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xin Hu
- Division of Transplantation Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan
| | - Yifang Shui
- Division of Transplantation Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan.,Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Hiroshi Hirano
- Division of Transplantation Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan
| | | | - Wen-Zhi Guo
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Masayuki Fujino
- Division of Transplantation Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan. .,Laboratory Animal, and Pathogen Bank, Management Department of Biosafety, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1-23-1, Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 162-8640, Japan.
| | - Xiao-Kang Li
- Division of Transplantation Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan. .,Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
van Elsas MJ, Labrie C, Etzerodt A, Charoentong P, van Stigt Thans JJC, Van Hall T, van der Burg SH. Invasive margin tissue-resident macrophages of high CD163 expression impede responses to T cell-based immunotherapy. J Immunother Cancer 2023; 11:jitc-2022-006433. [PMID: 36914207 PMCID: PMC10016286 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2022-006433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Primary and secondary resistance is a major hurdle in cancer immunotherapy. Therefore, a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved in immunotherapy resistance is of pivotal importance to improve therapy outcome. METHOD Here, two mouse models with resistance against therapeutic vaccine-induced tumor regression were studied. Exploration of the tumor microenvironment by high dimensional flow cytometry in combination with therapeutic in vivo settings allowed for the identification of immunological factors driving immunotherapy resistance. RESULTS Comparison of the tumor immune infiltrate during early and late regression revealed a change from tumor-rejecting toward tumor-promoting macrophages. In concert, a rapid exhaustion of tumor-infiltrating T cells was observed. Perturbation studies identified a small but discernible CD163hi macrophage population, with high expression of several tumor-promoting macrophage markers and a functional anti-inflammatory transcriptome profile, but not other macrophages, to be responsible. In-depth analyses revealed that they localize at the tumor invasive margins and are more resistant to Csf1r inhibition when compared with other macrophages. In vivo studies validated the activity of heme oxygenase-1 as an underlying mechanism of immunotherapy resistance. The transcriptomic profile of CD163hi macrophages is highly similar to a human monocyte/macrophage population, indicating that they represent a target to improve immunotherapy efficacy. CONCLUSIONS In this study, a small population of CD163hi tissue-resident macrophages is identified to be responsible for primary and secondary resistance against T-cell-based immunotherapies. While these CD163hi M2 macrophages are resistant to Csf1r-targeted therapies, in-depth characterization and identification of the underlying mechanisms driving immunotherapy resistance allows the specific targeting of this subset of macrophages, thereby creating new opportunities for therapeutic intervention with the aim to overcome immunotherapy resistance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marit J van Elsas
- Department of Medical Oncology, Oncode Institute, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Camilla Labrie
- Department of Medical Oncology, Oncode Institute, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Anders Etzerodt
- Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Pornpimol Charoentong
- Department of Medical Oncology, National Center for Tumor Diseases, University Hospital Heidelberg, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jordi J C van Stigt Thans
- Department of Medical Oncology, Oncode Institute, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Thorbald Van Hall
- Department of Medical Oncology, Oncode Institute, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Sjoerd H van der Burg
- Department of Medical Oncology, Oncode Institute, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Nanodrug enhances post-ablation immunotherapy of hepatocellular carcinoma via promoting dendritic cell maturation and antigen presentation. Bioact Mater 2023; 21:57-68. [PMID: 36017073 PMCID: PMC9399385 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.07.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
|
26
|
Nan Y, Zhang X, Wang S, Xu C, Wang Y, Han L, Luan J, Hu X, Chen W, Cao Z, Zhu Z, Zeng X, Fan J, Ye L, Shi X, Ju D. Targeting CD47 enhanced the antitumor immunity of PD-L1 blockade in B-cell lymphoma. Immunotherapy 2023; 15:175-187. [PMID: 36727256 DOI: 10.2217/imt-2022-0087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Only a subset of B-cell lymphoma (BCL) patients can benefit from immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting PD-1/PD-L1. Materials & methods: In the A20 model, SIRPα-Fc and anti-PD-L1 were employed to target CD47 and PD-L1 simultaneously. Flow cytometry, immunofluorescence and quantitative polymerase chain reaction were used to unravel the potential mechanisms. Results: Simultaneously targeting CD47 and PD-L1 activated CD8+ T cells with an increased release of effector molecules. Furthermore, infiltration of F4/80+iNOS+ M1 macrophages was enhanced by the dual therapy. Conclusion: Anti-CD47 therapy could sensitize BCL tumors to anti-PD-L1 therapy in a CD8+ T-cell- and M1-macrophage-dependent manner by promoting cytotoxic lymphocyte infiltration, which may provide a potential strategy for BCL treatment by simultaneously targeting CD47 and PD-L1.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yanyang Nan
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Xuyao Zhang
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Shaofei Wang
- Department of Cellular & Genetic Medicine, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Caili Xu
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Yichen Wang
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Lei Han
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jingyun Luan
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Xiaozhi Hu
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Zhonglian Cao
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Zeguo Zhu
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Xian Zeng
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jiajun Fan
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Li Ye
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Xunlong Shi
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Dianwen Ju
- Department of Biological Medicines & Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201203, China
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Awadasseid A, Zhou Y, Zhang K, Tian K, Wu Y, Zhang W. Current studies and future promises of PD-1 signal inhibitors in cervical cancer therapy. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 157:114057. [PMID: 36463828 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2022.114057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Revised: 11/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
PD-1 (Programmed cell death-1) is a receptor that inhibits the activation of T cells and is an important target for cancer immunotherapy. PD-1 expression stays high on antigen-specific T cells that have been stimulated for a long time, making them less responsive to stimuli. Consequently, there has been a recent surge in the number of researchers focusing on how the PD-1 axis delivers inhibitory signals to uncover new therapeutic targets. As an inhibitory signaling mechanism, the PD-1 axis controls immunological responses. Blocking the PD-1 axis has been shown to have long-lasting effects on various cancers, demonstrating the crucial role of PD-1 in blocking anti-tumor immunity. Despite this role, most patients do not respond to PD-1 monotherapy, and some have experienced adverse events. Many challenges remain regarding the PD-1 signaling axis to be addressed. In this review, we outline the most recent research and prospects of PD-1 signal inhibitors to enhance cervical cancer therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Annoor Awadasseid
- Lab of Chemical Biology and Molecular Drug Design, College of Pharmaceutical Science, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China; Moganshan Institute ZJUT, Deqing 313202, China; Institute of Drug Development & Chemical Biology, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China; Department of Biochemistry & Food Sciences, University of Kordofan, El-Obeid 51111, Sudan
| | - Yongnan Zhou
- Lab of Chemical Biology and Molecular Drug Design, College of Pharmaceutical Science, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China; Institute of Drug Development & Chemical Biology, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
| | - Koutian Zhang
- Zhejiang Jianing Pharmaceutical Technology Co., Ltd, Hangzhou 310051, China
| | - Kaiming Tian
- Lab of Chemical Biology and Molecular Drug Design, College of Pharmaceutical Science, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China; Institute of Drug Development & Chemical Biology, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
| | - Yanling Wu
- Lab of Molecular Immunology, Virus Inspection Department, Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou 310051, China.
| | - Wen Zhang
- Lab of Chemical Biology and Molecular Drug Design, College of Pharmaceutical Science, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China; Institute of Drug Development & Chemical Biology, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Tatsumi M, Soeda F, Naka S, Kurimoto K, Ooe K, Fukui H, Katayama D, Watabe T, Kato H, Tomiyama N. Advantages of FBPA PET in evaluating early response of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in B16F10 melanoma-bearing mice: Comparison to FDG PET. Front Oncol 2022; 12:1026608. [PMID: 36620558 PMCID: PMC9815495 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1026608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose PET with L-4-borono-2-[18F] fluoro-phenylalanine (FBPA) was reported to be useful to differentiate malignant tumors and inflammation. Although immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has been applied to cancer treatment recently, FDG PET may not be suitable to determine the effect of ICIs because of false-positive findings caused by treatment-related inflammation. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate that FBPA PET allowed detection of the early response of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in tumor-bearing mice, comparing the results with those of FDG PET. Materials and methods Mice with B16F10 melanoma tumor xenografts were prepared. Anti-mouse PD-1 antibody or PBS was administered twice intraperitoneally to the tumor-bearing mice on Day 0 (3 days after inoculation) and Day 5 (treatment or control group ). PET/CT imaging was performed twice for each mouse on Day 0 before the anti-PD-1 antibody/PBS administration and on Day 7 using a micro-PET/CT scanner. FBPA and FDG PET/CT studies were conducted separately. SUVmax and the tumor to liver ratio (T/L ratio) were used as parameters exhibiting tumor activity. Tumor uptake volume (TUV) and metabolic tumor volume (MTV) were also calculated for FBPA and FDG, respectively. Changes between pre- and posttreatment SUVmax or T/L ratio were observed using the formula as follows: [(posttreatment parameter values/pretreatment values - 1) × 100] (%). Results Tumors in TrG were smaller than those in CoG on Day 7. SUVmax and T/L ratio represented no differences between TrG and CoG in FBPA and FDG PET before treatment. FBPA PET on Day 7 demonstrated that SUVmax, T/L ratio, and TUV in TrG were statistically smaller than those in CoG. %T/L ratio and %SUVmax exhibited the same trend in FBPA PET. However, FDG PET on Day 7 revealed no differences in all parameters between TrG and CoG. T/L ratio and %SUVmax in TrG represented larger values than those in CoG without statistical significances. Conclusion This study demonstrated that FBPA PET allowed detection of the early response of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in B16F10 melanoma-bearing mice. FDG PET did not detect the response. Further studies are required to determine whether FBPA PET is useful in evaluating the treatment effect of ICIs in humans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuaki Tatsumi
- Department of Radiology, Osaka University Hospital, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Fumihiko Soeda
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Sadahiro Naka
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Kenta Kurimoto
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Kazuhiro Ooe
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Hideyuki Fukui
- Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Daisuke Katayama
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Tadashi Watabe
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Hiroki Kato
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Tracer Kinetics, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Noriyuki Tomiyama
- Department of Radiology, Osaka University Hospital, Suita, Osaka, Japan
- Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Triggering of lymphocytes by CD28, 4-1BB, and PD-1 checkpoints to enhance the immune response capacities. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0275777. [PMID: 36480493 PMCID: PMC9731445 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2022] [Accepted: 09/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) usually become exhausted and dysfunctional owing to chronic contact with tumor cells and overexpression of multiple inhibitor receptors. Activation of TILs by targeting the inhibitory and stimulatory checkpoints has emerged as one of the most promising immunotherapy prospectively. We investigated whether triggering of CD28, 4-1BB, and PD-1 checkpoints simultaneously or alone could enhance the immune response capacity of lymphocytes. In this regard, anti-PD-1, CD80-Fc, and 4-1BBL-Fc proteins were designed and produced in CHO-K1 cells as an expression host. Following confirmation of the Fc fusion proteins' ability to bind to native targets expressed on engineered CHO-K1 cells (CHO-K1/hPD-1, CHO-K1/hCD28, CHO-K1/hCTLA4, and CHO-K1/h4-1BB), the effects of each protein, on its own and in various combinations, were assessed in vitro on T cell proliferation, cytotoxicity, and cytokines secretion using the Mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) assay, 7-AAD/CFSE cell-mediated cytotoxicity assay, and a LEGENDplex™ Human Th Cytokine Panel, respectively. MLR results demonstrated that T cell proliferation in the presence of the combinations of anti-PD-1/CD80-Fc, CD80-Fc/4-1BBL-Fc, and anti-PD-1/CD80-Fc/4-1BBL-Fc proteins was significantly higher than in the untreated condition (1.83-, 1.91-, and 2.02-fold respectively). Furthermore, anti-PD-1 (17%), 4-1BBL-Fc (19.2%), anti-PD-1/CD80-Fc (18.6%), anti-PD-1/4-1BBL-Fc (21%), CD80-Fc/4-1BBL-Fc (18.5%), and anti-PD-1/CD80-Fc/4-1BBL-Fc (17.3%) significantly enhanced cytotoxicity activity compared to untreated condition (7.8%). However, concerning the cytokine production, CD80-Fc and 4-1BBL-Fc alone or in combination significantly increased the secretion of IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-2 compared with the untreated conditions. In conclusion, this research establishes that the various combinations of produced anti-PD-1, CD80-Fc, and 4-1BBL-Fc proteins can noticeably induce the immune response in vitro. Each of these combinations may be effective in killing or destroying cancer cells depending on the type and stage of cancer.
Collapse
|
30
|
Ning H, Huang S, Lei Y, Zhi R, Yan H, Jin J, Hu Z, Guo K, Liu J, Yang J, Liu Z, Ba Y, Gao X, Hu D. Enhancer decommissioning by MLL4 ablation elicits dsRNA-interferon signaling and GSDMD-mediated pyroptosis to potentiate anti-tumor immunity. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6578. [PMID: 36323669 PMCID: PMC9630274 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34253-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Enhancer deregulation is a well-established pro-tumorigenic mechanism but whether it plays a regulatory role in tumor immunity is largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that tumor cell ablation of mixed-lineage leukemia 3 and 4 (MLL3 and MLL4, also known as KMT2C and KMT2D, respectively), two enhancer-associated histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4) mono-methyltransferases, increases tumor immunogenicity and promotes anti-tumor T cell response. Mechanistically, MLL4 ablation attenuates the expression of RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) and DNA methyltransferases through decommissioning enhancers/super-enhancers, which consequently lead to transcriptional reactivation of the double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-interferon response and gasdermin D (GSDMD)-mediated pyroptosis, respectively. More importantly, we reveal that both the dsRNA-interferon signaling and GSDMD-mediated pyroptosis are of critical importance to the increased anti-tumor immunity and improved immunotherapeutic efficacy in MLL4-ablated tumors. Thus, our findings establish tumor cell enhancers as an additional layer of immune evasion mechanisms and suggest the potential of targeting enhancers or their upstream and/or downstream molecular pathways to overcome immunotherapeutic resistance in cancer patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hanhan Ning
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Shan Huang
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yang Lei
- grid.506261.60000 0001 0706 7839State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China
| | - Renyong Zhi
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Han Yan
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Jiaxing Jin
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhenyu Hu
- grid.506261.60000 0001 0706 7839State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China
| | - Kaimin Guo
- grid.506261.60000 0001 0706 7839State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China
| | - Jinhua Liu
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Jie Yang
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhe Liu
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yi Ba
- grid.411918.40000 0004 1798 6427Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin’s Clinical Research Center for Cancer, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin, China
| | - Xin Gao
- grid.506261.60000 0001 0706 7839State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China
| | - Deqing Hu
- grid.265021.20000 0000 9792 1228The Province and Ministry Co-sponsored Collaborative Innovation Center for Medical Epigenetics, State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease of Ministry of Education, Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China ,grid.506261.60000 0001 0706 7839State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, National Clinical Research Center for Blood Diseases, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China ,grid.411918.40000 0004 1798 6427Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Therapy, Tianjin’s Clinical Research Center for Cancer, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin, China
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Haddad AF, Young JS, Gill S, Aghi MK. Resistance to immune checkpoint blockade: Mechanisms, counter-acting approaches, and future directions. Semin Cancer Biol 2022; 86:532-541. [PMID: 35276342 PMCID: PMC9458771 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcancer.2022.02.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Immunotherapies seek to unleash the immune system against cancer cells. While a variety of immunotherapies exist, one of the most commonly used is immune checkpoint blockade, which refers to the use of antibodies to interfere with immunosuppressive signaling through immune checkpoint molecules. Therapies against various checkpoints have had success in the clinic across cancer types. However, the efficacy of checkpoint inhibitors has varied across different cancer types and non-responsive patient populations have emerged. Non-responders to these therapies have highlighted the importance of understanding underlying mechanisms of resistance in order to predict which patients will respond and to tailor individual treatment paradigms. In this review we discuss the literature surrounding tumor mediated mechanisms of immune checkpoint resistance. We also describe efforts to overcome resistance and combine checkpoint inhibitors with additional immunotherapies. Finally, we provide insight into the future of immune checkpoint blockade, including the need for improved preclinical modeling and predictive biomarkers to facilitate personalized cancer treatments for patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Manish K. Aghi
- Corresponding author at: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Ave, M-779, San Francisco, CA 94143-0112, USA. (M.K. Aghi)
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Gao Y, Yang T, Liu H, Song N, Dai C, Ding Y. Development and characterization of a novel human CD137 agonistic antibody with anti-tumor activity and a good safety profile in non-human primates. FEBS Open Bio 2022; 12:2166-2178. [PMID: 36176235 PMCID: PMC9714380 DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.13494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
CD137 (4-1BB, TNFRSF9), an inducible T-cell costimulatory receptor, is expressed on activated T cells, activated NK cells, Treg cells, and several innate immune cells, including DCs, monocytes, neutrophils, mast cells, and eosinophils. In animal models and clinical trials, anti-CD137 agonistic monoclonal antibodies have shown anti-tumor potential, but balancing the efficacy and toxicity of anti-CD137 agonistic monoclonal antibodies is a considerable hindrance for clinical applications. Here, we describe a novel fully human CD137 agonistic antibody (PE0116) generated from immunized harbor H2L2 human transgenic mice. PE0116 is a ligand blocker, which is also the case for Utomilumab (one of the leading CD137 agonistic drugs); PE0116 partially overlaps with Urelumab's recognized epitope. In vitro, PE0116 activates NF-κB signaling, significantly promotes T-cell proliferation, and increases cytokine secretion in the presence of cross-linking. Importantly, PE0116 possesses robust anti-tumor activity in the MC38 tumor model. In vivo, PE0116 exhibits a good safety profile and has typical pharmacokinetic characteristics of an IgG antibody in preclinical studies of non-human primates. In summary, PE0116 is a promising anti-CD137 antibody with a good safety profile in preclinical studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yingying Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life SciencesFudan UniversityShanghaiChina,Biologics DiscoveryShanghai ChemPartner Co., Ltd.China
| | - Teddy Yang
- Biologics DiscoveryShanghai ChemPartner Co., Ltd.China
| | - Hu Liu
- Biologics DiscoveryShanghai ChemPartner Co., Ltd.China
| | - Ningning Song
- Biologics DiscoveryShanghai ChemPartner Co., Ltd.China
| | - Chaohui Dai
- Biologics DiscoveryShanghai Hyamab Biotechnology Co., Ltd.China
| | - Yu Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, School of Life SciencesFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Lau P, Zhang G, Zhao S, Liang L, Zhang H, Zhou G, Hung MC, Chen X, Liu H. Sphingosine kinase 1 promotes tumor immune evasion by regulating the MTA3-PD-L1 axis. Cell Mol Immunol 2022; 19:1153-1167. [PMID: 36050478 PMCID: PMC9508236 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-022-00911-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) exhibits considerable benefits in malignancies, but its overall response rate is limited. Previous studies have shown that sphingosine kinases (SPHKs) are critical in the tumor microenvironment (TME), but their role in immunotherapy is unclear. We performed integrative analyses including bioinformatics analysis, functional study, and clinical validation to investigate the role of SPHK1 in tumor immunity. Functionally, we demonstrated that the inhibition of SPHK1 significantly suppressed tumor growth by promoting antitumor immunity in immunocompetent melanoma mouse models and tumor T-cell cocultures. A mechanistic analysis revealed that MTA3 functions as the downstream target of SPHK1 in transcriptionally regulating tumor PD-L1. Preclinically, we found that anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment significantly rescued tumor SPHK1 overexpression or tumor MTA3 overexpression-mediated immune evasion. Significantly, we identified SPHK1 and MTA3 as biological markers for predicting the efficacy of anti-PD-1 mAb therapy in melanoma patients. Our findings revealed a novel role for SPHK1 in tumor evasion mediated by regulating the MTA3-PD-L1 axis, identified SPHK1 and MTA3 as predictors for assessing the efficacy of PD-1 mAb treatment, and provided a therapeutic possibility for the treatment of melanoma patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Poyee Lau
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China
| | - Guanxiong Zhang
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China
| | - Shuang Zhao
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China
| | - Long Liang
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Medical Genetics & School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410078, China
| | - Hailun Zhang
- Department of Research and Development, Beijing GAP Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Beijing, 102600, China
| | - Guowei Zhou
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China
| | - Mien-Chie Hung
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Research Center for Cancer Biology and Center for Molecular Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, China
- Department of Biotechnology, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan, China
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Xiang Chen
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China.
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China.
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China.
- Xiangya Clinical Research Center for Cancer Immunotherapy, Central South University, Changsha, China.
| | - Hong Liu
- Department of Dermatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
- National Engineering Research Center of Personalized Diagnostic and Therapeutic Technology, Changsha, China.
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Skin Cancer and Psoriasis, Changsha, China.
- Hunan Engineering Research Center of Skin Health and Disease, Changsha, China.
- Xiangya Clinical Research Center for Cancer Immunotherapy, Central South University, Changsha, China.
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Kim AMJ, Nemeth MR, Lim SO. 4-1BB: A promising target for cancer immunotherapy. Front Oncol 2022; 12:968360. [PMID: 36185242 PMCID: PMC9515902 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.968360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapy, powered by its relative efficacy and safety, has become a prominent therapeutic strategy utilized in the treatment of a wide range of diseases, including cancer. Within this class of therapeutics, there is a variety of drug types such as immune checkpoint blockade therapies, vaccines, and T cell transfer therapies that serve the purpose of harnessing the body’s immune system to combat disease. Of these different types, immune checkpoint blockades that target coinhibitory receptors, which dampen the body’s immune response, have been widely studied and established in clinic. In contrast, however, there remains room for the development and improvement of therapeutics that target costimulatory receptors and enhance the immune response against tumors, one of which being the 4-1BB (CD137/ILA/TNFRSF9) receptor. 4-1BB has been garnering attention as a promising therapeutic target in the setting of cancer, amongst other diseases, due to its broad expression profile and ability to stimulate various signaling pathways involved in the generation of a potent immune response. Since its discovery and demonstration of potential as a clinical target, major progress has been made in the knowledge of 4-1BB and the development of clinical therapeutics that target it. Thus, we seek to summarize and provide a comprehensive update and outlook on those advancements in the context of cancer and immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alyssa Min Jung Kim
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Macy Rose Nemeth
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Seung-Oe Lim
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
- Purdue Institute of Drug Discovery, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
- Purdue Center for Cancer Research, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
- *Correspondence: Seung-Oe Lim,
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Cheng LS, Cheng YF, Liu WT, Shen A, Zhang D, Xu T, Yin W, Cheng M, Ma X, Wang F, Zhao Q, Zeng X, Zhang Y, Shen G. A humanized 4-1BB-targeting agonistic antibody exerts potent antitumor activity in colorectal cancer without systemic toxicity. Lab Invest 2022; 20:415. [PMID: 36076251 PMCID: PMC9461191 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-022-03619-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Background Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignancies and the patient survival rate remains unacceptably low. The anti-programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody-based immune checkpoint inhibitors have been added to CRC treatment regimens, however, only a fraction of patients benefits. As an important co-stimulatory molecule, 4-1BB/CD137 is mainly expressed on the surface of immune cells including T and natural killer (NK) cells. Several agonistic molecules targeting 4-1BB have been clinically unsuccessful due to systemic toxicity or weak antitumor effects. We generated a humanized anti-4-1BB IgG4 antibody, HuB6, directed against a unique epitope and hypothesized that it would promote antitumor immunity with high safety. Methods The antigen binding specificity, affinity and activity of HuB6 were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), biolayer interferometry (BLI) and flow cytometry. The antitumor effects were evaluated in humanized mice bearing syngeneic tumors, and possible toxicity was evaluated in humanized mice and cynomolgus monkeys. Results HuB6 showed high specificity and affinity for a binding epitope distinct from those of other known 4-1BB agonists, including utomilumab and urelumab, and induced CD8 + T, CD4 + T and NK cell stimulation dependent on Fcγ receptor (FcγR) crosslinking. HuB6 inhibited CRC tumor growth in a dose-dependent manner, and the antitumor effect was similar with urelumab and utomilumab in humanized mouse models of syngeneic CRC. Furthermore, HuB6 combined with an anti-PD-L1 antibody significantly inhibited CRC growth in vivo. Additionally, HuB6 induced antitumor immune memory in tumor model mice rechallenged with 4 × 106 tumor cells. Toxicology data for humanized 4-1BB mice and cynomolgus monkeys showed that HuB6 could be tolerated up to a 180 mg/kg dose without systemic toxicity. Conclusions This study demonstrated that HuB6 should be a suitable candidate for further clinical development and a potential agent for CRC immunotherapy. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12967-022-03619-w.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lian-Sheng Cheng
- Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Gerontology Institute of Anhui Province, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.,Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China.,Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China
| | - Yong-Feng Cheng
- Department of Genetics, School of Life Science, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, Anhui, China
| | - Wen-Ting Liu
- Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China
| | - Aolin Shen
- Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, Anhui, China
| | - Dayan Zhang
- Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China
| | - Tingjuan Xu
- Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Gerontology Institute of Anhui Province, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.,Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China
| | - Wu Yin
- Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Gerontology Institute of Anhui Province, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.,Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China
| | - Min Cheng
- Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Gerontology Institute of Anhui Province, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.,Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China
| | - Xiaopeng Ma
- Department of Thyroid and Breast Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.
| | - Fengrong Wang
- Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China
| | - Qun Zhao
- Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China
| | - Xiaoli Zeng
- Hefei HankeMab Biotechnology Limited, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- School of Health Service Management, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, Anhui, China.
| | - Guodong Shen
- Department of Geriatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China, Gerontology Institute of Anhui Province, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China. .,Anhui Provincial Key Laboratory of Tumor Immunotherapy and Nutrition Therapy, Hefei, 230001, Anhui, China.
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Yang C, Liu Y, Hu Y, Fang L, Huang Z, Cui H, Xie J, Hong Y, Chen W, Xiao N, Li Q, Liu WH, Xiao C. Myc inhibition tips the immune balance to promote antitumor immunity. Cell Mol Immunol 2022; 19:1030-1041. [PMID: 35962189 PMCID: PMC9424194 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-022-00898-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Aberrant expression of Myc is one of the most common oncogenic events in human cancers. Scores of Myc inhibitors are currently under development for treating Myc-driven cancers. In addition to directly targeting tumor cells, Myc inhibition has been shown to modulate the tumor microenvironment to promote tumor regression. However, the effect of Myc inhibition on immune cells in the tumor microenvironment remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the adaptive immune system plays a vital role in the antitumor effect of pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Combining genetic and pharmacologic approaches, we found that Myc inhibition enhanced CD8 T cell function by suppressing the homeostasis of regulatory T (Treg) cells and the differentiation of resting Treg (rTreg) cells to activated Treg (aTreg) cells in tumors. Importantly, we demonstrated that different Myc expression levels confer differential sensitivity of T cell subsets to pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Although ablation of the Myc gene has been shown to suppress CD8 T cell function, Treg cells, which express much less Myc protein than CD8 T cells, are more sensitive to Myc inhibitors. The differential sensitivity of CD8 T and Treg cells to Myc inhibitors resulted in enhanced CD8 T cell function upon Myc inhibition. Our findings revealed that Myc inhibitors can induce an antitumor immune response during tumor progression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chao Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China.
| | - Yun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China
| | - Yudi Hu
- Institute of Hematology, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China
| | - Liang Fang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Gene Regulation and Systems Biology, School of Life Sciences and Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518005, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhe Huang
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
- Sanofi Institute for Biomedical Research, Suzhou, 215123, Jiangsu, China
| | - Huanhuan Cui
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Gene Regulation and Systems Biology, School of Life Sciences and Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518005, Guangdong, China
| | - Jun Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China
| | - Yazhen Hong
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Gene Regulation and Systems Biology, School of Life Sciences and Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518005, Guangdong, China
| | - Nengming Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China
| | - Qiyuan Li
- Institute of Hematology, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China.
| | - Wen-Hsien Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China.
| | - Changchun Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361102, Fujian, China.
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
- Sanofi Institute for Biomedical Research, Suzhou, 215123, Jiangsu, China.
| |
Collapse
|
37
|
Yan P, Li Z, Xian S, Wang S, Fu Q, Zhu J, Yue X, Zhang X, Chen S, Zhang W, Lu J, Yin H, Huang R, Huang Z. Construction of the prognostic enhancer RNA regulatory network in osteosarcoma. Transl Oncol 2022; 25:101499. [PMID: 36001923 PMCID: PMC9421318 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2022.101499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Our enhancer RNAs-based prognostic model showed good predictive ability in osteosarcoma. CCAAT enhancer binding protein alpha (CEBPA) may regulate CD8A molecule (CD8A). CD8A activation may promote CD3E molecule (CD3E) expression and activate allograft rejection in CD8+ T cells. Above signal axis provided new insights in the mechanism of osteosarcoma tumorigenesis.
Background Osteosarcoma (OS) is a common malignant tumor in osteoarticular system, the 5-year overall survival of which is poor. Enhancer RNAs (eRNAs) have been implicated in the tumorigenesis of various cancer types, whereas their roles in OS tumorigenesis remains largely unclear. Methods Differentially expressed eRNAs (DEEs), transcription factors (DETFs), target genes (DETGs) were identified using limma (Linear Models for Microarray Analysis) package. Prognosis-related DEEs were accessed by univariate Cox regression analysis. A multivariate model was constructed to evaluate the prognosis of OS samples. Prognosis-related DEEs, DETFs, DETGs, immune cells, and hallmark gene sets were co-analyzed to construct an regulatory network. Specific inhibitors were also filtered by connectivity Map analysis. External validation and scRNA-seq analysis were performed to verify our key findings. Results 3,981 DETGs, 468 DEEs, 51 DETFs, and 27 differentially expressed hallmark gene sets were identified. A total of Multivariate risk predicting model based on 18 prognosis-related DEEs showed a high accuracy (area under curve (AUC) = 0.896). GW-8510 was the candidate inhibitor targeting prognosis-related DEEs (mean = 0.670, p < 0.001). Based on the OS tumorigenesis-related regulation network, we identified that CCAAT enhancer binding protein alpha (CEBPA, DETF) may regulate CD8A molecule (CD8A, DEE), thereby promoting the transcription of CD3E molecule (CD3E, DETG), which may affect allograft rejection based on CD8+ T cells. Conclusion We constructed an eRNA-based prognostic model for predicting the OS patients’ prognosis and explored the potential regulation network for OS tumorigenesis by an integrated bioinformatics analysis, providing promising therapeutic targets for OS patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Penghui Yan
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China
| | - Zhenyu Li
- Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China
| | - Shuyuan Xian
- Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China
| | - Siqiao Wang
- Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China; Division of Spine, Department of Orthopedics, Tongji Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200065, China
| | - Qing Fu
- Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China
| | - Jiwen Zhu
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China
| | - Xi Yue
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China
| | - Xinkun Zhang
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China; Department of Orthopedics, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200072, China
| | - Shaofeng Chen
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Burn Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Jianyu Lu
- Department of Burn Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Huabin Yin
- Department of Orthopedics, Shanghai General Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai 200065, China.
| | - Runzhi Huang
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China; Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200092, China; Department of Burn Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.
| | - Zongqiang Huang
- Department of Orthopedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450052, China.
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Ford BR, Vignali PDA, Rittenhouse NL, Scharping NE, Peralta R, Lontos K, Frisch AT, Delgoffe GM, Poholek AC. Tumor microenvironmental signals reshape chromatin landscapes to limit the functional potential of exhausted T cells. Sci Immunol 2022; 7:eabj9123. [PMID: 35930654 PMCID: PMC9851604 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.abj9123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Response rates to immunotherapy in solid tumors remain low due in part to the elevated prevalence of terminally exhausted T cells, a hypofunctional differentiation state induced through persistent antigen and stress signaling. However, the mechanisms promoting progression to terminal exhaustion in the tumor remain undefined. Using the low-input chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing method CUT&RUN, we profiled the histone modification landscape of tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells throughout differentiation. We found that terminally exhausted T cells had unexpected chromatin features that limit their transcriptional potential. Terminally exhausted T cells had a substantial fraction of active chromatin, including active enhancers enriched for bZIP/AP-1 transcription factor motifs that lacked correlated gene expression, which was restored by immunotherapeutic costimulatory signaling. Reduced transcriptional potential was also driven by an increase in histone bivalency, which we linked directly to hypoxia exposure. Enforced expression of the hypoxia-insensitive histone demethylase Kdm6b was sufficient to overcome hypoxia, increase function, and promote antitumor immunity. Our study reveals the specific epigenetic changes mediated by histone modifications during T cell differentiation that support exhaustion in cancer, highlighting that their altered function is driven by improper costimulatory signals and environmental factors. These data suggest that even terminally exhausted T cells may remain competent for transcription in settings of increased costimulatory signaling and reduced hypoxia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- B. Rhodes Ford
- Division of Pediatric Rheumatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Paolo D. A. Vignali
- Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Natalie L. Rittenhouse
- Division of Pediatric Rheumatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Nicole E. Scharping
- Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Ronal Peralta
- Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Konstantinos Lontos
- Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Department of Oncology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Andrew T. Frisch
- Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Greg M. Delgoffe
- Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment Center, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Corresponding author. (G.M.D.); (A.C.P.)
| | - Amanda C. Poholek
- Division of Pediatric Rheumatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Department of Immunology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.,Corresponding author. (G.M.D.); (A.C.P.)
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Smith R, Wafa EI, Geary SM, Ebeid K, Alhaj-Suliman SO, Salem AK. Cationic nanoparticles enhance T cell tumor infiltration and antitumor immune responses to a melanoma vaccine. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabk3150. [PMID: 35857851 PMCID: PMC9299550 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abk3150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
In clinical settings, cancer vaccines as monotherapies have displayed limited success compared to other cancer immunotherapeutic treatments. Nanoscale formulations have the ability to increase the efficacy of cancer vaccines by combatting the immunosuppressive nature of the tumor microenvironment. Here, we have synthesized a previously unexplored cationic polymeric nanoparticle formulation using polyamidoamine dendrimers and poly(d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid) that demonstrate adjuvant properties in vivo. Tumor-challenged mice vaccinated with an adenovirus-based cancer vaccine [encoding tumor-associated antigen (TAA)] and subsequently treated with this nanoparticulate formulation showed significant increases in TAA-specific T cells in the peripheral blood, reduced tumor burden, protection against tumor rechallenge, and a significant increase in median survival. An investigation into cell-based pathways suggests that administration of the nanoformulation at the site of the developing tumor may have created an inflammatory environment that attracted activated TAA-specific CD8+ T cells to the vicinity of the tumor, thus enhancing the efficacy of the vaccine.
Collapse
|
40
|
Warmuth S, Gunde T, Snell D, Brock M, Weinert C, Simonin A, Hess C, Tietz J, Johansson M, Spiga FM, Heiz R, Flückiger N, Wagen S, Zeberer J, Diem D, Mahler D, Wickihalder B, Muntwiler S, Chatterjee B, Küttner B, Bommer B, Yaman Y, Lichtlen P, Urech D. Engineering of a trispecific tumor-targeted immunotherapy incorporating 4-1BB co-stimulation and PD-L1 blockade. Oncoimmunology 2022; 10:2004661. [PMID: 35844969 PMCID: PMC9278964 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2021.2004661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Co-stimulatory 4-1BB receptors on tumor-infiltrating T cells are a compelling target for overcoming resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors, but initial clinical studies of 4-1BB agonist mAbs were accompanied by liver toxicity. We sought to engineer a tri-specific antibody-based molecule that stimulates intratumoral 4-1BB and blocks PD-L1/PD-1 signaling without systemic toxicity and with clinically favorable pharmacokinetics. Recombinant fusion proteins were constructed using scMATCH3 technology and humanized antibody single-chain variable fragments against PD-L1, 4-1BB, and human serum albumin. Paratope affinities were optimized using single amino acid substitutions, leading to design of the drug candidate NM21-1480. Multiple in vitro experiments evaluated pharmacodynamic properties of NM21-1480, and syngeneic mouse tumor models assessed antitumor efficacy and safety of murine analogues. A GLP multiple-dose toxicology study evaluated its safety in non-human primates. NM21-1480 inhibited PD-L1/PD-1 signaling with a potency similar to avelumab, and it potently stimulated 4-1BB signaling only in the presence of PD-L1, while exhibiting an EC50 that was largely independent of PD-L1 density. NM21-1480 exhibited high efficacy for co-activation of pre-stimulated T cells and dendritic cells. In xenograft models in syngeneic mice, NM21-1480 induced tumor regression and tumor infiltration of T cells without causing systemic T-cell activation. A GLP toxicology study revealed no evidence of liver toxicity at doses up to 140 mg/kg, and pharmacokinetic studies in non-human primates suggested a plasma half-life in humans of up to 2 weeks. NM21-1480 has the potential to overcome checkpoint resistance by co-activating tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes without liver toxicity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Tea Gunde
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Julia Tietz
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Robin Heiz
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | - Dania Diem
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| | - Dana Mahler
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - David Urech
- Numab Therapeutics AG, Waedenswil, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Zhang Z, Bu L, Luo J, Guo J. Targeting protein kinases benefits cancer immunotherapy. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2022; 1877:188738. [PMID: 35660645 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2022.188738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/28/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Small-molecule kinase inhibitors have been well established and successfully developed in the last decades for cancer target therapies. However, intrinsic or acquired drug resistance is becoming the major barrier for their clinical application. With the development of immunotherapies, in particular the discovery of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the combination of ICIs with other therapies have recently been extensively explored, among which combination of ICIs with kinase inhibitors achieves promising clinical outcome in a plethora of cancer types. Here we comprehensively summarize the potent roles of protein kinases in modulating immune checkpoints both in tumor and immune cells, and reshaping tumor immune microenvironments by evoking innate immune response and neoantigen generation or presentation. Moreover, the clinical trial and approval of combined administration of kinase inhibitors with ICIs are collected, highlighting the precise strategies to benefit cancer immune therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhengkun Zhang
- Department of Urology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, China; Institute of Precision Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, China
| | - Lang Bu
- Institute of Precision Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, China
| | - Junhang Luo
- Department of Urology, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, China.
| | - Jianping Guo
- Institute of Precision Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, China.
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Zhao L, Guo H, Chen X, Zhang W, He Q, Ding L, Yang B. Tackling drug resistance in ovarian cancer with epigenetic targeted drugs. Eur J Pharmacol 2022; 927:175071. [PMID: 35636522 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2022.175071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Epigenetic dysregulation plays a crucial role in the development and progression of ovarian cancer. Since the first experiment conducted on resistant ovarian cancer cells using demethylating drugs, multiple clinical trials have revealed that epigenetic targeted drugs combined with chemotherapy, molecular-targeted drugs, or even immunotherapy could enhance tumor sensitivity and reverse acquired resistances. Here, we summarized the combination strategies of epigenetic targeted drugs with other treatment strategies of ovarian cancer and discussed the principles of combination therapy. Finally, we enumerated several reasonable clinical trial designs as well as future drug development strategies, which may provide promising ideas for the application of epigenetic drugs to ovarian cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Zhao
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Hongjie Guo
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Xi Chen
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Wenxin Zhang
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Qiaojun He
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China; The Innovation Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ling Ding
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
| | - Bo Yang
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Anti-Cancer Drug Research, Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China; The Innovation Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Immunosuppressive cells in cancer: mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets. J Hematol Oncol 2022; 15:61. [PMID: 35585567 PMCID: PMC9118588 DOI: 10.1186/s13045-022-01282-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 52.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapies like the adoptive transfer of gene-engineered T cells and immune checkpoint inhibitors are novel therapeutic modalities for advanced cancers. However, some patients are refractory or resistant to these therapies, and the mechanisms underlying tumor immune resistance have not been fully elucidated. Immunosuppressive cells such as myeloid-derived suppressive cells, tumor-associated macrophages, tumor-associated neutrophils, regulatory T cells (Tregs), and tumor-associated dendritic cells are critical factors correlated with immune resistance. In addition, cytokines and factors secreted by tumor cells or these immunosuppressive cells also mediate the tumor progression and immune escape of cancers. Thus, targeting these immunosuppressive cells and the related signals is the promising therapy to improve the efficacy of immunotherapies and reverse the immune resistance. However, even with certain success in preclinical studies or in some specific types of cancer, large perspectives are unknown for these immunosuppressive cells, and the related therapies have undesirable outcomes for clinical patients. In this review, we comprehensively summarized the phenotype, function, and potential therapeutic targets of these immunosuppressive cells in the tumor microenvironment.
Collapse
|
44
|
Liu H, Liu Y, Zhao Z, Li Y, Mustafa B, Chen Z, Barve A, Jain A, Yao X, Li G, Cheng K. Discovery of Anti-PD-L1 Human Domain Antibodies for Cancer Immunotherapy. Front Immunol 2022; 13:838966. [PMID: 35444660 PMCID: PMC9013927 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.838966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunotherapy using monoclonal antibodies targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction has shown enormous success for various cancers. Despite their encouraging results in clinics, antibody-based checkpoint inhibitors have several limitations, such as poor tumor penetration. To address these limitations of monoclonal antibodies, there is a growing interest in developing low-molecular-weight checkpoint inhibitors, such as antibody fragments. Several antibody fragments targeting PD-1/PD-L1 were recently discovered using phage libraries from camel or alpaca. However, animal-derived antibody fragments may elicit unwanted immune responses, which limit their therapeutic applications. For the first time, we used a human domain antibody phage library and discovered anti-human PD-L1 human single-domain antibodies (dAbs) that block the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction. Among them, the CLV3 dAb shows the highest affinity to PD-L1. The CLV3 dAb also exhibits the highest blocking efficacy of the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction. Moreover, the CLV3 dAb significantly inhibits tumor growth in mice implanted with CT26 colon carcinoma cells. These results suggest that CLV3 dAb can be potentially used as an anti-PD-L1 inhibitor for cancer immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hao Liu
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Yanli Liu
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Zhen Zhao
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Yuanke Li
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Bahaa Mustafa
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Zhijin Chen
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Ashutosh Barve
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Akshay Jain
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Xiaolan Yao
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| | - Guangfu Li
- Department of Surgery, and Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, United States
| | - Kun Cheng
- Division of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, United States
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Enhanced T-Cell Priming and Improved Anti-Tumor Immunity through Lymphatic Delivery of Checkpoint Blockade Immunotherapy. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14071823. [PMID: 35406595 PMCID: PMC8997812 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14071823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Revised: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
An infusion of checkpoint blockade immunotherapy (CBI) has revolutionized cancer treatments for some patients, but the majority of patients experience disappointing responses. Because adaptive immune responses are mounted by the concentrated assembly of antigens, immune cells, and mediators in the secluded and protective environment of draining lymph nodes (dLNs), we hypothesize that lymphatic delivery of CBI (αCTLA-4 and αPD-1) to tumor dLNs (tdLNs) improves anti-tumor responses over intravenous (i.v.) administration, and that vaccination against tumor associated antigen (TAA) further enhances these responses. Mono- and combination CBI were administered i.v. or through image-guided intradermal (i.d.) injection to reach tdLNs in vaccinated and unvaccinated animals bearing either primary or orthotopically metastasizing B16F10 melanoma. Vaccination and boost against TAA, Melan-A, was accomplished with virus-like particles (VLP) directed to tdLNs followed by VLP boost after CBI administration. Lymphatic delivery of CBIs reduced primary tumor size and metastatic tumor burden, alleviated the pro-tumorigenic immune environment, and improved survival over systemic administration of CBIs. Animals receiving CBIs lymphatically exhibited significantly enhanced survival over those receiving therapies administered partially or completely through systemic routes. By combining vaccination and CBI for effective T-cell priming in the protected environment of dLNs, anti-tumor responses may be improved.
Collapse
|
46
|
Jiang A, Qin Y, Springer TA. Loss of LRRC33-Dependent TGFβ1 Activation Enhances Antitumor Immunity and Checkpoint Blockade Therapy. Cancer Immunol Res 2022; 10:453-467. [PMID: 35181792 PMCID: PMC9052945 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-21-0593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Revised: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
TGFβ has multiple roles and gene products (TGFβ1, -β2, and -β3), which make global targeting of TGFβ undesirable. Expression of TGFβ requires association with milieu molecules, which localize TGFβ to the surface of specific cells or extracellular matrices. Here, we found that LRRC33 was specifically associated with TGFβ1, not TGFβ2 and TGFβ3, and was required for surface display and activation of TGFβ1 on tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells. Loss of LRRC33-dependent TGFβ1 activation slowed tumor growth and metastasis by enhancing innate and adaptive antitumor immunity in multiple mouse syngeneic tumor models. LRRC33 loss resulted in a more immunogenic microenvironment, with decreased myeloid-derived suppressor cells, more active CD8+ T and NK cells, and more skewing toward tumor-suppressive M1 macrophages. LRRC33 loss and PD-1 blockade synergized in controlling B16.F10 tumor growth. Our results demonstrate the importance of LRRC33 in tumor biology and highlight the therapeutic potential of dual blockade of the LRRC33/TGFβ1 axis and PD-1/PD-L1 in cancer immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aiping Jiang
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston
Children’s Hospital; Boston, MA 02115, USA.,Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular
Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Yan Qin
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston
Children’s Hospital; Boston, MA 02115, USA.,Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular
Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02115, USA.,Current Address: Fuhong Therapeutics, 99 Hayden Ave d100,
Lexington MA 02421
| | - Timothy A. Springer
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston
Children’s Hospital; Boston, MA 02115, USA.,Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular
Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02115, USA.,Corresponding Author: Timothy A.
Springer, 3 Blackfan Circle, Center for Life Sciences 03-103, Boston MA 02115,
617-713-8200,
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
Understanding of Immune Escape Mechanisms and Advances in Cancer Immunotherapy. JOURNAL OF ONCOLOGY 2022; 2022:8901326. [PMID: 35401745 PMCID: PMC8989557 DOI: 10.1155/2022/8901326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Tumor immune escape has emerged as the most significant barrier to cancer therapy. A thorough understanding of tumor immune escape therapy mechanisms is critical for further improving clinical treatment strategies. Currently, research indicates that combining several immunotherapies can boost antitumor efficacy and encourage T cells to play a more active part in the immune assault. To generate a more substantial therapeutic impact, it can establish an ideal tumor microenvironment (TME), encourage T cells to play a role, prevent T cell immune function reversal, and minimize tumor immune tolerance. In this review, we will examine the mechanisms of tumor immune escape and the limits of tumor immune escape therapy, focusing on the current development of immunotherapy based on tumor immune escape mechanisms. Individualized tumor treatment is becoming increasingly apparent as future treatment strategies. In addition, we forecast the future research direction of cancer and the clinical approach for cancer immunotherapy. It will serve as a better reference for researchers working in cancer therapy research.
Collapse
|
48
|
Baglini E, Salerno S, Barresi E, Marzo T, Settimo FD, Taliani S. Cancer Immunotherapy: An Overview on Small Molecules as Inhibitors of the Immune Checkpoint PD-1/PD-L1 (2015-2021). Mini Rev Med Chem 2022; 22:1816-1827. [PMID: 35176979 DOI: 10.2174/1389557522666220217110925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Revised: 11/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
In 2018, James Allison and Tasuku Honjo received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of tumor therapy inhibition of negative immune regulation. Immunotherapy stimulates T-cells to fight cancer cells by blocking different immune checkpoint pathways. The interaction between programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and its ligand PD-L1 (Programmed cell death ligand 1), is one of the main immune checkpoints. Of note, interfering with this pathway is already exploited in clinical cancer therapy, demonstrating that it is one of the key factors involved in cancer immune escape. The development of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that possess the ability to inhibit the interactions between PD-1/PD-L1 has radically made the difference in cancer immunotherapy. Yet, because of the many drawbacks that this therapy possesses, the research moved its efforts towards the development of novel small molecules. This may constitute a hope, but also an arduous challenge in fighting cancer. This paper reviews the recent primary literature concerning the development of novel small molecules able to blockade the interaction between PD-1 and its ligand PD-L1.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Baglini
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Via Bonanno 6, 56126 Pisa
| | - Silvia Salerno
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Via Bonanno 6, 56126 Pisa
| | | | - Tiziano Marzo
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Via Bonanno 6, 56126 Pisa
| | | | - Sabrina Taliani
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Via Bonanno 6, 56126 Pisa
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Muik A, Altintas I, Gieseke F, Schoedel KB, Burm SM, Toker A, Salcedo TW, Verzijl D, Eisel D, Grunwitz C, Kranz LM, Vormehr M, Satijn DP, Diken M, Kreiter S, Sasser K, Ahmadi T, Türeci Ö, Breij EC, Jure-Kunkel M, Sahin U. An Fc-inert PD-L1×4-1BB bispecific antibody mediates potent anti-tumor immunity in mice by combining checkpoint inhibition and conditional 4-1BB co-stimulation. Oncoimmunology 2022; 11:2030135. [PMID: 35186440 PMCID: PMC8855865 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2022.2030135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis have changed the treatment paradigm for advanced solid tumors; however, many patients experience treatment resistance. In preclinical models 4-1BB co-stimulation synergizes with ICI by activating cytotoxic T- and NK-cell-mediated anti-tumor immunity. Here we characterize the mechanism of action of a mouse-reactive Fc-inert PD-L1×4-1BB bispecific antibody (mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB) and provide proof-of-concept for enhanced anti-tumor activity. In reporter assays mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB exhibited conditional 4-1BB agonist activity that was dependent on simultaneous binding to PD-L1. mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB further blocked the PD-L1/PD-1 interaction independently of 4-1BB binding. By combining both mechanisms, mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB strongly enhanced T-cell proliferation, cytokine production and antigen-specific cytotoxicity using primary mouse cells in vitro. Furthermore, mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB exhibited potent anti-tumor activity in the CT26 and MC38 models in vivo, leading to the rejection of CT26 tumors that were unresponsive to PD-L1 blockade alone. Anti-tumor activity was associated with increased tumor-specific CD8+ T cells and reduced regulatory T cells within the tumor microenvironment and tumor-draining lymph nodes. In immunocompetent tumor-free mice, mbsAb-PD-L1×4-1BB treatment neither induced T-cell infiltration into the liver nor elevated liver enzymes in the blood. Dual targeting of PD-L1 and 4-1BB with a bispecific antibody may therefore address key limitations of first generation 4-1BB-agonistic antibodies, and may provide a novel approach to improve PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint blockade.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Ugur Sahin
- BioNTech SE, Mainz, Germany
- TRON – Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University gGmbH, Mainz, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
50
|
The Implementation of TNFRSF Co-Stimulatory Domains in CAR-T Cells for Optimal Functional Activity. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14020299. [PMID: 35053463 PMCID: PMC8773791 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14020299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Revised: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor Superfamily (TNFRSF) is a large and important immunoregulatory family that provides crucial co-stimulatory signals to many if not all immune effector cells. Each co-stimulatory TNFRSF member has a distinct expression profile and a unique functional impact on various types of cells and at different stages of the immune response. Correspondingly, exploiting TNFRSF-mediated signaling for cancer immunotherapy has been a major field of interest, with various therapeutic TNFRSF-exploiting anti-cancer approaches such as 4-1BB and CD27 agonistic antibodies being evaluated (pre)clinically. A further application of TNFRSF signaling is the incorporation of the intracellular co-stimulatory domain of a TNFRSF into so-called Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) constructs for CAR-T cell therapy, the most prominent example of which is the 4-1BB co-stimulatory domain included in the clinically approved product Kymriah. In fact, CAR-T cell function can be clearly influenced by the unique co-stimulatory features of members of the TNFRSF. Here, we review a select group of TNFRSF members (4-1BB, OX40, CD27, CD40, HVEM, and GITR) that have gained prominence as co-stimulatory domains in CAR-T cell therapy and illustrate the unique features that each confers to CAR-T cells.
Collapse
|