Enhancing the treatment effect on melanoma by heat shock protein 70-peptide complexes purified from human melanoma cell lines

Prognostic and immune-related value of complement C1Q (C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC) in skin cutaneous melanoma

Background: Skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) is a common malignancy that is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Complement C1Q is composed of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC and is involved in the occurrence and development of many malignant tumours. However, the effect of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC expression on tumour immunity and prognosis of cutaneous melanoma remains unclear.

Methods: First, we analysed C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC expression levels and prognostic values using Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) and Tumour Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER) analysis, and further validation was performed using RT-qPCR, The Human Protein Atlas, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset, and Gene Expression Omnibus dataset. We then performed univariate/multivariate Cox proportional hazard model, clinicopathological correlation, and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis using TCGA dataset and established a nomogram model. Differentially expressed genes associated with C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC in SKCM were identified and analysed using LinkedOmics, TIMER, the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes database, and Metascape and Cytoscape software platforms. We used TIMER, GEPIA, and single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) to analyse the relationship between the three genes and the level of immune cell infiltration, biomarkers, and checkpoint expression in SKCM. Finally, GSEA was utilized to study the functional pathways of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC enrichment in SKCM.

Results: The overexpression of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC provided significant value in the diagnosis of SKCM and has been associated with better overall survival (OS). Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC are independent prognostic biomarkers for patients with SKCM. Immune cell infiltration, biomarkers, and checkpoints were positively correlated with the expression of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC. Furthermore, the results of functional and pathway enrichment analysis showed that immune-related and apoptotic pathways were significantly enriched in the high-expression group of C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC.

Conclusion: We found that C1QA, C1QB, and C1QC can be used as biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of SKCM patients. The upregulated expression levels of these three complement components benefit patients from OS and may increase the effect of immunotherapy. This result may be due to the dual effects of anti-tumour immunity and apoptosis.

Effect of BCG HSP70 Gene Transfection on Dendritic Cells Derived From Bone Marrow in Children With Acute Leukemia

OBJECTIVES

In this study, immature dendritic cells (imDCs) were transfected with the Bacillé Calmette-Guérin (BCG) heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) gene to investigate the impact on the maturity and function of imDCs from the bone marrow of pediatric patients with acute leukemia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Bone marrow mononuclear cells were isolated from pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia who had achieved complete remission at least 6 months prior. The recombinant vector pDisplay-HSP70 was transfected into imDCs. The test groups included 5 subgroups: imDCs (imDCs without special processing), imDC-neos (imDCs transfected with the pDisplay vector), HSP70 (imDCs transfected with the pDisplay-HSP70 vector), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) (imDCs induced with rhTNF-α), and HSP70+TNF-α. Mature dendritic cells (mDCs) from different groups (HSP70, TNF-α, and HSP70+TNF-α) and T cells were cultured. An equal number of lymphocytes and mDCs were used as controls. The proliferation indices of T cells and the cytokine contents (interleukin-12 and interferon-γ) were determined.

RESULTS

The HSP70 group and the TNF-α group expressed higher levels of HLA-DR, CD80, and CD86 but lower levels than the HSP70+TNF-α group; there was no significant difference between the HSP70 group and the TNF-α group. The combination of HSP70 and TNF-α induced the highest levels of interleukin-12 and interferon-γ.

CONCLUSIONS

The outcomes of this study indicated that gene transfection with BCG HSP70 evidently promoted imDC maturity and the antitumor effects of mDC-mediated T cells. It could serve as a candidate gene-modified cell vaccine for tumor immunotherapy.

Extracellular vesicles in immunomodulation and tumor progression

Extracellular vesicles have emerged as prominent regulators of the immune response during tumor progression. EVs contain a diverse repertoire of molecular cargo that plays a critical role in immunomodulation. Here, we identify the role of EVs as mediators of communication between cancer and immune cells. This expanded role of EVs may shed light on the mechanisms behind tumor progression and provide translational diagnostic and prognostic tools for immunologists.

Heat-shock proteins in diagnosis and treatment: an overview of different biochemical and immunological functions

Heat-shock proteins (HSPs) have been involved in different functions including chaperone activity, protein folding, apoptosis, autophagy and immunity. The HSP families have powerful effects on the stimulation of innate immune responses through Toll-like receptors and scavenger receptors. Moreover, HSP-mediated phagocytosis directly enhances the processing and presentation of internalized antigens via the endocytic pathway in adaptive immune system. These properties of HSPs have been used for development of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines against infectious and noninfectious diseases. Several studies also demonstrated the relationship between HSPs and drug resistance as well as their use as a novel biomarker for detecting tumors in patients. The present review describes different roles of HSPs in biology and medicine especially biochemical and immunological aspects.

Screening and antitumor effect of an anti‑CTLA‑4 nanobody

Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) is a critical negative regulator of immune responses. CTLA-4 is rapidly upregulated following T-cell activation, and then binds to B7 molecules with a higher affinity than CD28. CTLA-4 may abolish the initiation of the responses of T cells by raising the threshold of signals required for full activation of T cells, and it also may terminate ongoing T-cell responses. This regulatory role has led to the development of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) designed to block CTLA-4 activity for enhancing immune responses against cancer. mAbs have several disadvantages including high production cost and unstable behavior. Nanobodies (Nbs) are single-domain antigen-binding fragments derived from the camelid heavy-chain antibodies, which are highly attractive in cancer immunotherapy due to their small size, high specificity, and stability. We selected CTLA-4-specific Nbs from a high quality dromedary camel immune library by phage display technology. Four positive colonies were sequenced and classified based on the amino acids sequences in the CDR3 region. These Nbs recognized unique epitopes on CTLA-4 and displayed high binding rates when used on PHA-stimulated human T cells. Treatment of B16 melanoma-bearing C57BL/6 mice with anti-CTLA-4 nanobody 16 (Nb16) delayed melanoma growth and prolonged the survival time of mice. These data indicate that anti-CTLA-4 Nbs selected from a high quality phage display library may be effective for the treatment of patients with tumors.

Dynamics of Heat Shock Protein 70 Serum Levels As a Predictor of Clinical Response in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer and Correlation with the Hypoxia-Related Marker Osteopontin

Hypoxia mediates resistance to radio(chemo)therapy (RT) by stimulating the synthesis of hypoxia-related genes, such as osteopontin (OPN) and stress proteins, including the major stress-inducible heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70). Apart from its intracellular localization, Hsp70 is also present on the plasma membrane of viable tumor cells that actively release it in lipid vesicles with biophysical characteristics of exosomes. Exosomal Hsp70 contributes to radioresistance while Hsp70 derived from dying tumor cells can serve as a stimulator of immune cells. Given these opposing traits of extracellular Hsp70 and the unsatisfactory outcome of locally advanced lung tumors, we investigated the role of Hsp70 in the plasma of patients with advanced, non-metastasized non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) before (T1) and 4–6 weeks after RT (T2) in relation to OPN as potential biomarkers for clinical response. Plasma levels of Hsp70 correlate with those of OPN at T1, and high OPN levels are significantly associated with a decreased overall survival (OS). Due to a therapy-induced reduction in viable tumor mass after RT Hsp70 plasma levels dropped significantly at T2 (p = 0.016). However, with respect to the immunostimulatory capacity of Hsp70 derived from dying tumor cells, patients with higher post-therapeutic Hsp70 levels showed a significantly better response to RT (p = 0.034) than those with lower levels at T2. In summary, high OPN plasma levels at T1 are indicative for poor OS, whereas elevated post-therapeutic Hsp70 plasma levels together with a drop of Hsp70 between T1 and T2, successfully predict favorable responses to RT. Monitoring the dynamics of Hsp70 in NSCLC patients before and after RT can provide additional predictive information for clinical outcome and therefore might allow a more rapid therapy adaptation.