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Vahidi S, Zabeti Touchaei A, Samadani AA. IL-15 as a key regulator in NK cell-mediated immunotherapy for cancer: From bench to bedside. Int Immunopharmacol 2024; 133:112156. [PMID: 38669950 DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2024.112156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2024] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Interleukin 15 (IL-15) has emerged as a crucial factor in the relationship between natural killer (NK) cells and immunotherapy for cancer. This review article aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the role of IL-15 in NK cell-mediated immunotherapy. First, the key role of IL-15 signaling in NK cell immunity is discussed, highlighting its regulation of NK cell functions and antitumor properties. Furthermore, the use of IL-15 or its analogs in clinical trials as a therapeutic strategy for various cancers, including the genetic modification of NK cells to produce IL-15, has been explored. The potential of IL-15-based therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T and NK cell infusion along with IL-15 in combination with checkpoint inhibitors and other treatments, has been examined. This review also addresses the challenges and advantages of incorporating IL-15 in cell-based immunotherapy. Additionally, unresolved questions regarding the detection and biological significance of the soluble IL-15/IL-15Rα complex, as well as the potential role of IL-15/IL-15Rα in human cancer and the immunological consequences of prolonged exposure to soluble IL-15 for NK cells, are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sogand Vahidi
- Medical Biology Research Center, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran.
| | | | - Ali Akbar Samadani
- Guilan Road Trauma Research Center, Trauma Institute, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran.
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2
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Saeed MA, Peng B, Kim K, Rawat K, Kuehm LM, Siegel ZR, Borkowski A, Habib N, Van Tine B, Sheikh N, Tuyen V, Thorek DLJ, Fehniger TA, Pachynski RK. High-Dimensional Analyses Reveal IL15 Enhances Activation of Sipuleucel-T Lymphocyte Subsets and Reverses Immunoresistance. Cancer Immunol Res 2024; 12:559-574. [PMID: 38407894 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-23-0652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Sipuleucel-T (sip-T) is the only FDA-approved autologous cellular immunotherapy for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). To elucidate parameters of the response profile to this therapy, we report high-dimensional analyses of sip-T using cytometry by time of flight (CyTOF) and show a lymphoid predominance, with CD3+ T cells constituting the highest proportion (median ∼60%) of sip-T, followed by B cells, and natural killer (NK) and NKT cells. We hypothesized that treatment of sip-T with homeostatic cytokines known to activate/expand effector lymphocytes could augment efficacy against prostate tumors. Of the cytokines tested, IL15 was the most effective at enhancing activation and proliferation of effector lymphocytes, as well as augmenting tumor cytotoxicity in vitro. Co-culture of sip-T with IL15 and control or prostate-relevant antigens showed substantial activation and expansion of CD8+ T cells and NKT cells in an antigen-specific manner. Adoptive transfer of IL15-treated sip-T into NSG mice resulted in more potent prostate tumor growth inhibition compared with control sip-T. Evaluation of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes revealed a 2- to 14-fold higher influx of sip-T and a significant increase in IFNγ producing CD8+ T cells and NKT cells within the tumor microenvironment in the IL15 group. In conclusion, we put forward evidence that IL15 treatment can enhance the functional antitumor immunity of sip-T, providing rationale for combining IL15 or IL15 agonists with sip-T to treat patients with mCRPC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad A Saeed
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Bo Peng
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Kevin Kim
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Kavita Rawat
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Lindsey M Kuehm
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Zoe R Siegel
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Ariel Borkowski
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Nabih Habib
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Brian Van Tine
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | | | - Vu Tuyen
- Dendreon Pharmaceuticals LLC, Seattle, Washington
| | - Daniel L J Thorek
- Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Todd A Fehniger
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Bursky Center for Human Immunology and Immunotherapy, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
| | - Russell K Pachynski
- Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
- Bursky Center for Human Immunology and Immunotherapy, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri
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Shi W, Liu N, Liu Z, Yang Y, Zeng Q, Wang Y, Song L, Hu F, Fu J, Chen J, Wu M, Zhou L, Zhu F, Gong L, Zhu J, Jiang L, Lu H. Next-generation anti-PD-L1/IL-15 immunocytokine elicits superior antitumor immunity in cold tumors with minimal toxicity. Cell Rep Med 2024:101531. [PMID: 38697105 DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2024.101531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 12/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024]
Abstract
The clinical applications of immunocytokines are severely restricted by dose-limiting toxicities. To address this challenge, here we propose a next-generation immunocytokine concept involving the design of LH05, a tumor-conditional anti-PD-L1/interleukin-15 (IL-15) prodrug. LH05 innovatively masks IL-15 with steric hindrance, mitigating the "cytokine sink" effect of IL-15 and reducing systemic toxicities associated with wild-type anti-PD-L1/IL-15. Moreover, upon specific proteolytic cleavage within the tumor microenvironment, LH05 releases an active IL-15 superagonist, exerting potent antitumor effects. Mechanistically, the antitumor efficacy of LH05 depends on the increased infiltration of CD8+ T and natural killer cells by stimulating the chemokines CXCL9 and CXCL10, thereby converting cold tumors into hot tumors. Additionally, the tumor-conditional anti-PD-L1/IL-15 can synergize with an oncolytic virus or checkpoint blockade in advanced and metastatic tumor models. Our findings provide a compelling proof of concept for the development of next-generation immunocytokines, contributing significantly to current knowledge and strategies of immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenqiang Shi
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Nan Liu
- Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Zexin Liu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Yuqi Yang
- Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China; School of Pharmacy, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Qiongya Zeng
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Yang Wang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Luyao Song
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Fang Hu
- Hangzhou Converd Inc., Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311121, China
| | - Jin Fu
- Hangzhou Converd Inc., Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311121, China
| | - Junsheng Chen
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Mingyuan Wu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Lin Zhou
- Department of Urology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200023, China
| | - Fengping Zhu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200052, China
| | - Likun Gong
- Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China; School of Pharmacy, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jianwei Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Long Jiang
- Shanghai Lung Cancer Center, Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200030, China.
| | - Huili Lu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center for Drug Target Identification and Delivery, National Key Laboratory of Innovative Immunotherapy, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
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Hu S, Meng K, Wang T, Qu R, Wang B, Xi Y, Yu T, Yuan Z, Cai Z, Tian Y, Zeng C, Wang X, Zou W, Fu X, Li L. Lung cancer cell-intrinsic IL-15 promotes cell migration and sensitizes murine lung tumors to anti-PD-L1 therapy. Biomark Res 2024; 12:40. [PMID: 38637902 PMCID: PMC11027539 DOI: 10.1186/s40364-024-00586-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND IL-15 plays a vital role in enhancing NK cell- and T-cell-mediated antitumor immune responses; however, the direct effect of IL-15 on tumor cells has not been fully elucidated. Herein, we investigated the effect of IL-15 on lung adenocarcinoma cells. METHODS Silencing and overexpression techniques were used to modify endogenous IL-15 expression in tumor cells. Transwell assays were used to assess tumor cell migration and invasion; a live-cell analysis system was used to evaluate cell motility; cellular morphological changes were quantified by confocal fluorescence microscopy; the molecular mechanisms underlying the effect of IL-15 on tumor cells were analyzed by western blotting; and RhoA and Cdc42 activities were evaluated by a pulldown assay. NCG and C57BL/6 mouse models were used to evaluate the functions of IL-15 in vivo. RESULTS Cancer cell-intrinsic IL-15 promoted cell motility and migration in vitro and metastasis in vivo via activation of the AKT-mTORC1 pathway; however, exogenous IL-15 inhibited cell motility and migration via suppression of the RhoA-MLC2 axis. Mechanistic analysis revealed that both the intracellular and extracellular IL-15-mediated effects required the expression of IL-15Rα by tumor cells. Detailed analyses revealed that the IL-2/IL-15Rβ and IL-2Rγ chains were undetected in the complex formed by intracellular IL-15 and IL-15Rα. However, when exogenous IL-15 engaged tumor cells, a complex containing the IL-15Rα, IL-2/IL-15Rβ, and IL-2Rγ chains was formed, indicating that the differential actions of intracellular and extracellular IL-15 on tumor cells might be caused by their distinctive modes of IL-15 receptor engagement. Using a Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) metastasis model, we showed that although IL-15 overexpression facilitated the lung metastasis of LLC cells, IL-15-overexpressing LLC tumors were more sensitive to anti-PD-L1 therapy than were IL-15-wild-type LLC tumors via an enhanced antitumor immune response, as evidenced by their increased CD8+ T-cell infiltration compared to that of their counterparts. CONCLUSIONS Cancer cell-intrinsic IL-15 and exogenous IL-15 differentially regulate cell motility and migration. Thus, cancer cell-intrinsic IL-15 acts as a double-edged sword in tumor progression. Additionally, high levels of IL-15 expressed by tumor cells might improve the responsiveness of tumors to immunotherapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shaojie Hu
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Kelin Meng
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Tianlai Wang
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Rirong Qu
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Boyu Wang
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Yu Xi
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Taiyan Yu
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Zhiwei Yuan
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Zihao Cai
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Yitao Tian
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Chenxi Zeng
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Xue Wang
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Wenbin Zou
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Xiangning Fu
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
| | - Lequn Li
- Thoracic Surgery Laboratory, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1095 Jie Fang Avenue, 430030, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
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Rajan A, Sivapiromrat AK, McAdams MJ. Immunotherapy for Thymomas and Thymic Carcinomas: Current Status and Future Directions. Cancers (Basel) 2024; 16:1369. [PMID: 38611047 PMCID: PMC11010813 DOI: 10.3390/cancers16071369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Thymic epithelial tumors are a histologically diverse group of cancers arising from the epithelial compartment of the thymus. These tumors are characterized by a low tumor mutation burden, a lack of actionable genomic changes, and, especially with thymomas, defects in immune tolerance. Surgery is the mainstay of the management of resectable disease, whereas advanced, unresectable tumors are treated with platinum-based chemotherapy. Disease recurrence can occur months to years after frontline treatment. Although several options are available for conventional treatment of recurrent thymic tumors, response rates are generally low, and treatment-related toxicity can affect quality of life. A subset of patients benefit from biologic therapies, but there remains an unmet need for the development of new treatments. Immune checkpoint inhibitors are safe, clinically active, and have contributed to an improvement in survival for patients with a wide variety of cancers. However, the application of these revolutionary treatments for thymic cancers is limited to their use for the management of recurrent thymic carcinoma because of the risk of immune toxicity. In this paper, we review the current uses of immunotherapy for the management of thymic epithelial tumors and highlight potential strategies to improve safety and broaden the application of these treatments for patients with thymic cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arun Rajan
- Thoracic and Gastrointestinal Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
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Philippova J, Shevchenko J, Sennikov S. GD2-targeting therapy: a comparative analysis of approaches and promising directions. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1371345. [PMID: 38558810 PMCID: PMC10979305 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1371345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Disialoganglioside GD2 is a promising target for immunotherapy with expression primarily restricted to neuroectodermal and epithelial tumor cells. Although its role in the maintenance and repair of neural tissue is well-established, its functions during normal organism development remain understudied. Meanwhile, studies have shown that GD2 plays an important role in tumorigenesis. Its functions include proliferation, invasion, motility, and metastasis, and its high expression and ability to transform the tumor microenvironment may be associated with a malignant phenotype. Structurally, GD2 is a glycosphingolipid that is stably expressed on the surface of tumor cells, making it a suitable candidate for targeting by antibodies or chimeric antigen receptors. Based on mouse monoclonal antibodies, chimeric and humanized antibodies and their combinations with cytokines, toxins, drugs, radionuclides, nanoparticles as well as chimeric antigen receptor have been developed. Furthermore, vaccines and photoimmunotherapy are being used to treat GD2-positive tumors, and GD2 aptamers can be used for targeting. In the field of cell therapy, allogeneic immunocompetent cells are also being utilized to enhance GD2 therapy. Efforts are currently being made to optimize the chimeric antigen receptor by modifying its design or by transducing not only αβ T cells, but also γδ T cells, NK cells, NKT cells, and macrophages. In addition, immunotherapy can combine both diagnostic and therapeutic methods, allowing for early detection of disease and minimal residual disease. This review discusses each immunotherapy method and strategy, its advantages and disadvantages, and highlights future directions for GD2 therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sergey Sennikov
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk, Russia
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Luo M, Gong W, Zhang Y, Li H, Ma D, Wu K, Gao Q, Fang Y. New insights into the stemness of adoptively transferred T cells by γc family cytokines. Cell Commun Signal 2023; 21:347. [PMID: 38049832 PMCID: PMC10694921 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-023-01354-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
T cell-based adoptive cell therapy (ACT) has exhibited excellent antitumoral efficacy exemplified by the clinical breakthrough of chimeric antigen receptor therapy (CAR-T) in hematologic malignancies. It relies on the pool of functional T cells to retain the developmental potential to serially kill targeted cells. However, failure in the continuous supply and persistence of functional T cells has been recognized as a critical barrier to sustainable responses. Conferring stemness on infused T cells, yielding stem cell-like memory T cells (TSCM) characterized by constant self-renewal and multilineage differentiation similar to pluripotent stem cells, is indeed necessary and promising for enhancing T cell function and sustaining antitumor immunity. Therefore, it is crucial to identify TSCM cell induction regulators and acquire more TSCM cells as resource cells during production and after infusion to improve antitumoral efficacy. Recently, four common cytokine receptor γ chain (γc) family cytokines, encompassing interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-7, IL-15, and IL-21, have been widely used in the development of long-lived adoptively transferred TSCM in vitro. However, challenges, including their non-specific toxicities and off-target effects, have led to substantial efforts for the development of engineered versions to unleash their full potential in the induction and maintenance of T cell stemness in ACT. In this review, we summarize the roles of the four γc family cytokines in the orchestration of adoptively transferred T cell stemness, introduce their engineered versions that modulate TSCM cell formation and demonstrate the potential of their various combinations. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengshi Luo
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Wenjian Gong
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuewen Zhang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Huayi Li
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Ding Ma
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Kongming Wu
- Department of Oncology, Tongji Hospital of Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Qinglei Gao
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
| | - Yong Fang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
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Abstract
Cytokines are secreted or membrane-presented molecules that mediate broad cellular functions, including development, differentiation, growth and survival. Accordingly, the regulation of cytokine activity is extraordinarily important both physiologically and pathologically. Cytokine and/or cytokine receptor engineering is being widely investigated to safely and effectively modulate cytokine activity for therapeutic benefit. IL-2 in particular has been extensively engineered, to create IL-2 variants that differentially exhibit activities on regulatory T cells to potentially treat autoimmune disease versus effector T cells to augment antitumour effects. Additionally, engineering approaches are being applied to many other cytokines such as IL-10, interferons and IL-1 family cytokines, given their immunosuppressive and/or antiviral and anticancer effects. In modulating the actions of cytokines, the strategies used have been broad, including altering affinities of cytokines for their receptors, prolonging cytokine half-lives in vivo and fine-tuning cytokine actions. The field is rapidly expanding, with extensive efforts to create improved therapeutics for a range of diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Warren J Leonard
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology and the Immunology Center, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Jian-Xin Lin
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology and the Immunology Center, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
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Silvestre RN, Eitler J, de Azevedo JTC, Tirapelle MC, Fantacini DMC, de Souza LEB, Swiech K, Covas DT, Calado RT, Montero PO, Malmegrim KCR, Figueiredo ML, Tonn T, Picanço-Castro V. Engineering NK-CAR.19 cells with the IL-15/IL-15Rα complex improved proliferation and anti-tumor effect in vivo. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1226518. [PMID: 37818365 PMCID: PMC10561086 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1226518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Natural killer 92 (NK-92) cells are an attractive therapeutic approach as alternative chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) carriers, different from T cells, once they can be used in the allogeneic setting. The modest in vivo outcomes observed with NK-92 cells continue to present hurdles in successfully translating NK-92 cell therapies into clinical applications. Adoptive transfer of CAR-NK-92 cells holds out the promise of therapeutic benefit at a lower rate of adverse events due to the absence of GvHD and cytokine release syndrome. However, it has not achieved breakthrough clinical results yet, and further improvement of CAR-NK-92 cells is necessary. Methods In this study, we conducted a comparative analysis between CD19-targeted CAR (CAR.19) co-expressing IL-15 (CAR.19-IL15) with IL-15/IL-15Rα (CAR.19-IL15/IL15Rα) to promote NK cell proliferation, activation, and cytotoxic activity against B-cell leukemia. CAR constructs were cloned into lentiviral vector and transduced into NK-92 cell line. Potency of CAR-NK cells were assessed against CD19-expressing cell lines NALM-6 or Raji in vitro and in vivo in a murine model. Tumor burden was measured by bioluminescence. Results We demonstrated that a fourth- generation CD19-targeted CAR (CAR.19) co-expressing IL-15 linked to its receptor IL-15/IL-15Rα (CAR.19-IL-15/IL-15Rα) significantly enhanced NK-92 cell proliferation, proinflammatory cytokine secretion, and cytotoxic activity against B-cell cancer cell lines in vitro and in a xenograft mouse model. Conclusion Together with the results of the systematic analysis of the transcriptome of activated NK-92 CAR variants, this supports the notion that IL-15/IL-15Rα comprising fourth-generation CARs may overcome the limitations of NK-92 cell-based targeted tumor therapies in vivo by providing the necessary growth and activation signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renata Nacasaki Silvestre
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Jiri Eitler
- Experimental Transfusion Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine, German Red Cross Blood Donation Service North-East, Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Mariane Cariati Tirapelle
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Lucas Eduardo Botelho de Souza
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Kamilla Swiech
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Dimas Tadeu Covas
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo T. Calado
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Paola Ortiz Montero
- Experimental Transfusion Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine, German Red Cross Blood Donation Service North-East, Dresden, Germany
| | - Kelen Cristina Ribeiro Malmegrim
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
- Department of Clinical Analyses, Toxicology and Food Science, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Marxa L. Figueiredo
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Torsten Tonn
- Experimental Transfusion Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine, German Red Cross Blood Donation Service North-East, Dresden, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Partner Site Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Virginia Picanço-Castro
- Center for Cell-based Therapy CTC, Regional Blood Center of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
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10
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Di Matteo S, Munari E, Fiore PF, Santopolo S, Sampaoli C, Pelosi A, Chouaib S, Tumino N, Vacca P, Mariotti FR, Ebert S, Machwirth M, Haas D, Pezzullo M, Pietra G, Grottoli M, Buart S, Mortier E, Maggi E, Moretta L, Caruana I, Azzarone B. The roles of different forms of IL-15 in human melanoma progression. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1183668. [PMID: 37334356 PMCID: PMC10272795 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1183668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Melanoma is a lethal skin cancer, and the risk of developing it is increased by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The production of cytokines such as interleukin-15 (IL-15), induced by the exposure of skin cells to UV rays, could also promote melanoma development. The aim of this study is to investigate the possible role of Interleukin-15/Interleukin-15 Receptor α (IL-15/IL-15Rα) complexes in melanoma development. Methods The expression of IL-15/IL-15Rα complexes by melanoma cells was evaluated both ex vivo and in vitro by tissue microarray, PCR, and flow cytometry. The presence of the soluble complex (sIL-15/IL-15Rα) in the plasma of metastatic melanoma patients was detected using an ELISA assay. Subsequently, we investigated the impact of natural killer (NK) cell activation after rIL-2 starvation followed by exposure to the sIL-15/IL-15Rα complex. Finally, by analyzing public datasets, we studied the correlation between IL-15 and IL-15Rα expressions and melanoma stage, NK and T-cell markers, and overall survival (OS). Results Analysis of a melanoma tissue microarray shows a significant increase in the number of IL-15+ tumor cells from the benign nevi to metastatic melanoma stages. Metastatic melanoma cell lines express a phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA)-cleavable membrane-bound IL-15 (mbIL-15), whereas cultures from primary melanomas express a PMA-resistant isoform. Further analysis revealed that 26% of metastatic patients present with consistently high plasmatic levels of sIL-15/IL-15Rα. When the recombinant soluble human IL-15/IL-15Rα complex is added to briefly starved rIL-2-expanded NK cells, these cells exhibit strongly reduced proliferation and levels of cytotoxic activity against K-562 and NALM-18 target cells. The analysis of public gene expression datasets revealed that high IL-15 and IL-15Rα intra-tumoral production correlates with the high levels of expression of CD5+ and NKp46+ (T and NK markers) and significantly correlates with a better OS in stages II and III, but not in stage IV. Conclusions Membrane-bound and secreted IL-15/IL-15Rα complexes are continuously present during progression in melanoma. It is notable that, although IL-15/IL-15Rα initially promoted the production of cytotoxic T and NK cells, at stage IV promotion of the development of anergic and dysfunctional cytotoxic NK cells was observed. In a subgroup of melanoma metastatic patients, the continuous secretion of high amounts of the soluble complex could represent a novel NK cell immune escape mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabina Di Matteo
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Enrico Munari
- Pathology Unit, Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Piera Filomena Fiore
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Silvia Santopolo
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Camilla Sampaoli
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Pelosi
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Salem Chouaib
- Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale Unitè Mixte Rechercce (INSERM UMR) 1186, Integrative Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy, Gustave Roussy, École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Faculty De Médecine Univ. Paris-Sud, University Paris-Saclay, Villejuif, France
- Thumbay Research Institute for Precision Medicine, Gulf Medical University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates
| | - Nicola Tumino
- Immunology Research Area, Innate Lymphoid Cells Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Vacca
- Immunology Research Area, Innate Lymphoid Cells Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesca Romana Mariotti
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Stefan Ebert
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Markus Machwirth
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Dorothee Haas
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Marco Pezzullo
- Core Facility, IRCCS Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Rome, Italy
| | - Gabriella Pietra
- Department of Experimental Medicine (DiMES), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
- Immunology Unit, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - Melania Grottoli
- Immunology Unit, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - Stephanie Buart
- Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale Unitè Mixte Rechercce (INSERM UMR) 1186, Integrative Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy, Gustave Roussy, École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Faculty De Médecine Univ. Paris-Sud, University Paris-Saclay, Villejuif, France
| | - Erwan Mortier
- Nantes Université, Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), Inserm, CRCI2NA, Nantes, France
- LabEx IGO, Immunotherapy, Graft, Oncology, Nantes, France
| | - Enrico Maggi
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Moretta
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
| | - Ignazio Caruana
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Bruno Azzarone
- Tumor Immunology Unit, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Istituto di Ricerca e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Rome, Italy
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11
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Deol S, Donahue PS, Mitrut RE, Hammitt-Kess IJ, Ahn J, Zhang B, Leonard JN. Comparative Evaluation of Synthetic Cytokines for Enhancing Production and Performance of NK92 Cell-Based Therapies. GEN Biotechnol 2023; 2:228-246. [PMID: 37363412 PMCID: PMC10286265 DOI: 10.1089/genbio.2023.0024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Off-the shelf immune cell therapies are potentially curative and may offer cost and manufacturing advantages over autologous products, but further development is needed. The NK92 cell line has a natural killer-like phenotype, has efficacy in cancer clinical trials, and is safe after irradiation. However, NK92 cells lose activity post-injection, limiting efficacy. This may be addressed by engineering NK92 cells to express stimulatory factors, and comparative analysis is needed. Thus, we systematically explored the expression of synthetic cytokines for enhancing NK92 cell production and performance. All synthetic cytokines evaluated (membrane-bound IL2 and IL15, and engineered versions of Neoleukin-2/15, IL15, IL12, and decoy resistant IL18) enhanced NK92 cell cytotoxicity. Engineered cells were preferentially expanded by expressing membrane-bound but not soluble synthetic cytokines, without compromising the radiosensitivity required for safety. Some membrane-bound cytokines conferred cell-contact independent paracrine activity, partly attributable to extracellular vesicles. Finally, we characterized interactions within consortia of differently engineered NK92 cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simrita Deol
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Patrick S. Donahue
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Roxana E. Mitrut
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Iva J. Hammitt-Kess
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Jihae Ahn
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Bin Zhang
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Joshua N. Leonard
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
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12
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Cai M, Huang X, Huang X, Ju D, Zhu YZ, Ye L. Research progress of interleukin-15 in cancer immunotherapy. Front Pharmacol 2023; 14:1184703. [PMID: 37251333 PMCID: PMC10213988 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1184703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is a cytokine that belongs to the interleukin-2 (IL-2) family and is essential for the development, proliferation, and activation of immune cells, including natural killer (NK) cells, T cells and B cells. Recent studies have revealed that interleukin-15 also plays a critical role in cancer immunotherapy. Interleukin-15 agonist molecules have shown that interleukin-15 agonists are effective in inhibiting tumor growth and preventing metastasis, and some are undergoing clinical trials. In this review, we will summarize the recent progress in interleukin-15 research over the past 5 years, highlighting its potential applications in cancer immunotherapy and the progress of interleukin-15 agonist development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Menghan Cai
- School of Pharmacy and State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, Macau SAR, China
| | - Xuan Huang
- Minhang Hospital and Department of Biological Medicines at School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiting Huang
- Minhang Hospital and Department of Biological Medicines at School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Dianwen Ju
- Minhang Hospital and Department of Biological Medicines at School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi Zhun Zhu
- School of Pharmacy and State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, Macau SAR, China
| | - Li Ye
- School of Pharmacy and State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, Macau SAR, China
- Minhang Hospital and Department of Biological Medicines at School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Immunotherapeutics, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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13
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Battistoni A, Lantier L, di Tommaso A, Ducournau C, Lajoie L, Samimi M, Coënon L, Rivière C, Epardaud M, Hertereau L, Poupée-Beaugé A, Rieu J, Mévélec MN, Lee GS, Moiré N, Germon S, Dimier-Poisson I. Nasal administration of recombinant Neospora caninum secreting IL-15/IL-15Rα inhibits metastatic melanoma development in lung. J Immunother Cancer 2023; 11:jitc-2023-006683. [PMID: 37192784 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2023-006683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/23/2023] [Indexed: 05/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Metastases are the leading cause of mortality in many cancer types and lungs are one of the most common sites of metastasis alongside the liver, brain, and bones. In melanoma, 85% of late-stage patients harbor lung metastases. A local administration could enhance the targeting of metastases while limiting the systemic cytotoxicity. Therefore, intranasal administration of immunotherapeutic agents seems to be a promising approach to preferentially target lung metastases and decrease their burden on cancer mortality. From observations that certain microorganisms induce an acute infection of the tumor microenvironment leading to a local reactivating immune response, microbial-mediated immunotherapy is a next-generation field of investigation in which immunotherapies are engineered to overcome immune surveillance and escape from microenvironmental cancer defenses. METHODS The goal of our study is to evaluate the potential of the intranasal administration of Neospora caninum in a syngeneic C57BL6 mouse model of B16F10 melanoma lung metastases. It also compares the antitumoral properties of a wild-type N. caninum versus N. caninum secreting human interleukin (IL)-15 fused to the sushi domain of the IL-15 receptor α chain, a potent activator of cellular immune responses. RESULTS The treatment of murine lung metastases by intranasal administration of an N. caninum engineered to secrete human IL-15 impairs lung metastases from further progression with only 0,08% of lung surface harboring metastases versus 4,4% in wild-type N. caninum treated mice and 36% in untreated mice. The control of tumor development is associated with a strong increase in numbers, within the lung, of natural killer cells, CD8+ T cells and macrophages, up to twofold, fivefold and sixfold, respectively. Analysis of expression levels of CD86 and CD206 on macrophages surface revealed a polarization of these macrophages towards an antitumoral M1 phenotype. CONCLUSION Administration of IL-15/IL-15Rα-secreting N. caninum through intranasal administration, a non-invasive route, lend further support to N. caninum-demonstrated clear potential as an effective and safe immunotherapeutic approach for the treatment of metastatic solid cancers, whose existing therapeutic options are scarce. Combination of this armed protozoa with an intranasal route could reinforce the existing therapeutic arsenal against cancer and narrow the spectrum of incurable cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arthur Battistoni
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | - Louis Lantier
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
- Kymeris Santé SA, Tours, France
| | - Anne di Tommaso
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | - Céline Ducournau
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | - Laurie Lajoie
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | - Mahtab Samimi
- Department de Dermatologie, CHRU de Tours, Tours, France
| | - Loïs Coënon
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | - Clément Rivière
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | | | - Leslie Hertereau
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | | | - Juliette Rieu
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
| | | | | | - Nathalie Moiré
- INRAE, Université de Tours, ISP, F-37380, Nouzilly, France
| | - Stephanie Germon
- Université de Tours, INRAE, ISP, F-37000, Faculté de pharmacie, Tours, France
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14
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Shi W, Lv L, Liu N, Wang H, Wang Y, Zhu W, Liu Z, Zhu J, Lu H. A novel anti-PD-L1/IL-15 immunocytokine overcomes resistance to PD-L1 blockade and elicits potent antitumor immunity. Mol Ther 2023; 31:66-77. [PMID: 36045584 PMCID: PMC9840182 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.08.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Revised: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite the demonstrated immense potential of immune checkpoint inhibitors in various types of cancers, only a minority of patients respond to these therapies. Immunocytokines designed to deliver an immune-activating cytokine directly to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) and block the immune checkpoint simultaneously may provide a strategic advantage over the combination of two single agents. To increase the response rate to checkpoint blockade, in this study, we developed a novel immunocytokine (LH01) composed of the antibody against programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) fused to interleukin (IL)-15 receptor alpha-sushi domain/IL-15 complex. We demonstrate that LH01 efficiently binds mouse or human PD-L1 and maintains IL-15 stimulatory activity. In syngeneic mouse models, LH01 showed improved antitumor efficacy and safety versus anti-PD-L1 plus LH02 (Fc-sushi-IL15) combination and overcame resistance to anti-PD-L1 treatment. Mechanistically, the dual anti-immunosuppressive function of LH01 activated both the innate and adaptive immune responses and induced a favorable and immunostimulatory TME. Furthermore, combination therapy with LH01 and bevacizumab exerts synergistic antitumor effects in an HT29 colorectal xenograft model. Collectively, our results provide supporting evidence that fusion of anti-PD-L1 and IL-15 might be a potent strategy to treat patients with cold tumors or resistance to checkpoint blockade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenqiang Shi
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Liangyin Lv
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Nan Liu
- Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 555 Zuchongzhi Road, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Hui Wang
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Yang Wang
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Wen Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Zexin Liu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Jianwei Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Huili Lu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China.
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15
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Sindaco P, Pandey H, Isabelle C, Chakravarti N, Brammer JE, Porcu P, Mishra A. The role of interleukin-15 in the development and treatment of hematological malignancies. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1141208. [PMID: 37153603 PMCID: PMC10157481 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1141208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Cytokines are a vital component of the immune system that controls the activation and growth of blood cells. However, chronic overexpression of cytokines can trigger cellular events leading to malignant transformation. The cytokine interleukin-15 (IL-15) is of particular interest, which has been shown to contribute to the development and progression of various hematological malignancies. This review will provide an overview of the impact of the immunopathogenic function of IL-15 by studying its role in cell survival, proliferation, inflammation, and treatment resistance. We will also review therapeutic approaches for inhibiting IL-15 in blood cancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Sindaco
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Hritisha Pandey
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Colleen Isabelle
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Nitin Chakravarti
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | | | - Pierluigi Porcu
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Anjali Mishra
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Cancer Biology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
- *Correspondence: Anjali Mishra,
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16
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Mortier E, Maillasson M, Quéméner A. Counteracting Interleukin-15 to Elucidate Its Modes of Action in Physiology and Pathology. J Interferon Cytokine Res 2023; 43:2-22. [PMID: 36651845 DOI: 10.1089/jir.2022.0198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Interleukin (IL)-15 belongs to the common gamma-dependent cytokine family, along with IL-2, IL-4, IL-7, IL-9, and IL-21. IL-15 is crucial for the homeostasis of Natural Killer (NK) and memory CD8 T cells, and to fight against cancer progression. However, dysregulations of IL-15 expression could occur and participate in the emergence of autoimmune inflammatory diseases as well as hematological malignancies. It is therefore important to understand the different modes of action of IL-15 to decrease its harmful action in pathology without affecting its beneficial effects in the immune system. In this review, we present the different approaches used by researchers to inhibit the action of IL-15, from most broad to the most selective. Indeed, it appears that it is important to selectively target the mode of action of the cytokine rather than the cytokine itself as they are involved in numerous biological processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erwan Mortier
- Nantes Université, CNRS, Inserm, CRCI2NA, Nantes, France.,LabEX IGO, Immuno-Onco-Greffe, Nantes, France
| | - Mike Maillasson
- Nantes Université, CNRS, Inserm, CRCI2NA, Nantes, France.,LabEX IGO, Immuno-Onco-Greffe, Nantes, France
| | - Agnès Quéméner
- Nantes Université, CNRS, Inserm, CRCI2NA, Nantes, France.,LabEX IGO, Immuno-Onco-Greffe, Nantes, France
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17
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Zhou Y, Quan G, Liu Y, Shi N, Wu Y, Zhang R, Gao X, Luo L. The application of Interleukin-2 family cytokines in tumor immunotherapy research. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1090311. [PMID: 36936961 PMCID: PMC10018032 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1090311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The Interleukin-2 Family contains six kinds of cytokines, namely IL-2, IL-15, IL-4, IL-7, IL-9, and IL-21, all of which share a common γ chain. Many cytokines of the IL-2 family have been reported to be a driving force in immune cells activation. Therefore, researchers have tried various methods to study the anti-tumor effect of cytokines for a long time. However, due to the short half-life, poor stability, easy to lead to inflammatory storms and narrow safety treatment window of cytokines, this field has been tepid. In recent years, with the rapid development of protein engineering technology, some engineered cytokines have a significant effect in tumor immunotherapy, showing an irresistible trend of development. In this review, we will discuss the current researches of the IL-2 family and mainly focus on the application and achievements of engineered cytokines in tumor immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yangyihua Zhou
- Department of Medical Laboratory, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
| | - Guiqi Quan
- Department of Medical Laboratory, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
| | - Yujun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
| | - Ning Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
- Cancer Research Institute, Department of Neurosurgery, School of Basic Medical Science, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Yahui Wu
- Department of Medical Laboratory, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
| | - Ran Zhang
- Department of Medical Laboratory, School of Medicine, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China
- *Correspondence: Ran Zhang, ; Xiang Gao, ; Longlong Luo,
| | - Xiang Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Ran Zhang, ; Xiang Gao, ; Longlong Luo,
| | - Longlong Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Ran Zhang, ; Xiang Gao, ; Longlong Luo,
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18
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Antosova Z, Podzimkova N, Tomala J, Augustynkova K, Sajnerova K, Nedvedova E, Sirova M, de Martynoff G, Bechard D, Moebius U, Kovar M, Spisek R, Adkins I. SOT101 induces NK cell cytotoxicity and potentiates antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity and anti-tumor activity. Front Immunol 2022; 13:989895. [PMID: 36300122 PMCID: PMC9590108 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.989895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
SOT101 is a superagonist fusion protein of interleukin (IL)-15 and the IL-15 receptor α (IL-15Rα) sushi+ domain, representing a promising clinical candidate for the treatment of cancer. SOT101 among other immune cells specifically stimulates natural killer (NK) cells and memory CD8+ T cells with no significant expansion or activation of the regulatory T cell compartment. In this study, we showed that SOT101 induced expression of cytotoxic receptors NKp30, DNAM-1 and NKG2D on human NK cells. SOT101 stimulated dose-dependent proliferation and the relative expansion of both major subsets of human NK cells, CD56brightCD16- and CD56dimCD16+, and these displayed an enhanced cytotoxicity in vitro. Using human PBMCs and isolated NK cells, we showed that SOT101 added concomitantly or used for immune cell pre-stimulation potentiated clinically approved monoclonal antibodies Cetuximab, Daratumumab and Obinutuzumab in killing of tumor cells in vitro. The anti-tumor efficacy of SOT101 in combination with Daratumumab was assessed in a solid multiple myeloma xenograft in CB17 SCID mouse model testing several combination schedules of administration in the early and late therapeutic setting of established tumors in vivo. SOT101 and Daratumumab monotherapies decreased with various efficacy tumor growth in vivo in dependence on the advancement of the tumor development. The combination of both drugs showed the strongest anti-tumor efficacy. Specifically, the sequencing of both drugs did not matter in the early therapeutic setting where a complete tumor regression was observed in all animals. In the late therapeutic treatment of established tumors Daratumumab followed by SOT101 administration or a concomitant administration of both drugs showed a significant anti-tumor efficacy over the respective monotherapies. These results suggest that SOT101 might significantly augment the anti-tumor activity of therapeutic antibodies by increasing NK cell-mediated activity in patients. These results support the evaluation of SOT101 in combination with Daratumumab in clinical studies and present a rationale for an optimal clinical dosing schedule selection.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nada Podzimkova
- Preclinical Department, SOTIO Biotech a.s, Prague, Czechia
- Department of Immunology, 2nd Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Motol, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Jakub Tomala
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology, Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | | | | | - Eva Nedvedova
- Preclinical Department, SOTIO Biotech a.s, Prague, Czechia
| | - Milada Sirova
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology, Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | | | | | - Ulrich Moebius
- Preclinical Department, SOTIO Biotech a.s, Prague, Czechia
| | - Marek Kovar
- Laboratory of Tumor Immunology, Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Radek Spisek
- Preclinical Department, SOTIO Biotech a.s, Prague, Czechia
- Department of Immunology, 2nd Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Motol, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
| | - Irena Adkins
- Preclinical Department, SOTIO Biotech a.s, Prague, Czechia
- Department of Immunology, 2nd Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Motol, Charles University, Prague, Czechia
- *Correspondence: Irena Adkins,
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19
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Ma S, Caligiuri MA, Yu J. Harnessing IL-15 signaling to potentiate NK cell-mediated cancer immunotherapy. Trends Immunol 2022; 43:833-847. [PMID: 36058806 PMCID: PMC9612852 DOI: 10.1016/j.it.2022.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells, a crucial component of the innate immune system, have long been of clinical interest for their antitumor properties. Almost every aspect of NK cell immunity is regulated by interleukin-15 (IL-15), a cytokine in the common γ-chain family. Several current clinical trials are using IL-15 or its analogs to treat various cancers. Moreover, NK cells are being genetically modified to produce membrane-bound or secretory IL-15. Here, we discuss the key role of IL-15 signaling in NK cell immunity and provide an up-to-date overview of IL-15 in NK cell therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shoubao Ma
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA
| | - Michael A Caligiuri
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Comprehensive Cancer Center, City of Hope, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA.
| | - Jianhua Yu
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Comprehensive Cancer Center, City of Hope, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA; Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope, Los Angeles, CA 91010, USA.
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20
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Sanjurjo L, Broekhuizen EC, Koenen RR, Thijssen VLJL. Galectokines: The Promiscuous Relationship between Galectins and Cytokines. Biomolecules 2022; 12:1286. [PMID: 36139125 PMCID: PMC9496209 DOI: 10.3390/biom12091286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Galectins, a family of glycan-binding proteins, are well-known for their role in shaping the immune microenvironment. They can directly affect the activity and survival of different immune cell subtypes. Recent evidence suggests that galectins also indirectly affect the immune response by binding to members of another immunoregulatory protein family, i.e., cytokines. Such galectin-cytokine heterodimers, here referred to as galectokines, add a new layer of complexity to the regulation of immune homeostasis. Here, we summarize the current knowledge with regard to galectokine formation and function. We describe the known and potential mechanisms by which galectokines can help to shape the immune microenvironment. Finally, the outstanding questions and challenges for future research regarding the role of galectokines in immunomodulation are discussed.
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21
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Zhou Y, Husman T, Cen X, Tsao T, Brown J, Bajpai A, Li M, Zhou K, Yang L. Interleukin 15 in Cell-Based Cancer Immunotherapy. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:7311. [PMID: 35806311 PMCID: PMC9266896 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23137311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2022] [Revised: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 06/25/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Cell-based cancer immunotherapy, such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered T and natural killer (NK) cell therapies, has become a revolutionary new pillar in cancer treatment. Interleukin 15 (IL-15), a potent immunostimulatory cytokine that potentiates T and NK cell immune responses, has demonstrated the reliability and potency to potentially improve the therapeutic efficacy of current cell therapy. Structurally similar to interleukin 2 (IL-2), IL-15 supports the persistence of CD8+ memory T cells while inhibiting IL-2-induced T cell death that better maintains long-term anti-tumor immunity. In this review, we describe the biology of IL-15, studies on administrating IL-15 and/or its derivatives as immunotherapeutic agents, and IL-15-armored immune cells in adoptive cell therapy. We also discuss the advantages and challenges of incorporating IL-15 in cell-based immunotherapy and provide directions for future investigation.
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22
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Abstract
Antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) is a potent cytotoxic mechanism that is mainly mediated in humans by natural killer (NK) cells. ADCC mediates the clinical benefit of several widely used cytolytic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), and increasing its efficacy would improve cancer immunotherapy. CD16a is a receptor for the Fc portion of IgGs and is responsible to trigger NK cell-mediated ADCC. The knowledge of the mechanism of action of CD16a gave rise to several strategies to improve ADCC, by working on either the mAbs or the NK cell. In this review, we give an overview of CD16a biology and describe the latest strategies employed to improve antibody-dependent NK cell cytotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loïs Coënon
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Biotherapy (IRMB), Univ Montpellier, Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale (INSERM), Montpellier, France
- Institut du Cancer Avignon-Provence Sainte Catherine, Avignon, France
- *Correspondence: Loïs Coënon,
| | - Martin Villalba
- Institut du Cancer Avignon-Provence Sainte Catherine, Avignon, France
- Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Biotherapy, Univ Montpellier, Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale (INSERM), Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), Centre hospitalier universitaire (CHU) Montpellier, Montpellier, France
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23
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Di Trani CA, Cirella A, Arrizabalaga L, Fernandez-Sendin M, Bella A, Aranda F, Melero I, Berraondo P. Overcoming the limitations of cytokines to improve cancer therapy. Int Rev Cell Mol Biol 2022; 369:107-141. [PMID: 35777862 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ircmb.2022.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Cytokines are pleiotropic soluble proteins used by immune cells to orchestrate a coordinated response against pathogens and malignancies. In cancer immunotherapy, cytokine-based drugs can be developed potentiating pro-inflammatory cytokines or blocking immunosuppressive cytokines. However, the complexity of the mechanisms of action of cytokines requires the use of biotechnological strategies to minimize systemic toxicity, while potentiating the antitumor response. Sequence mutagenesis, fusion proteins and gene therapy strategies are employed to enhance the half-life in circulation, target the desired bioactivity to the tumor microenvironment, and to optimize the therapeutic window of cytokines. In this review, we provide an overview of the different strategies currently being pursued in pre-clinical and clinical studies to make the most of cytokines for cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Augusta Di Trani
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Assunta Cirella
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Leire Arrizabalaga
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Myriam Fernandez-Sendin
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Angela Bella
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Fernando Aranda
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Ignacio Melero
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain; Department of Oncology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Pedro Berraondo
- Program of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Cima Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IDISNA), Pamplona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain.
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24
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Peng Y, Fu S, Zhao Q. 2022 update on the scientific premise and clinical trials for IL-15 agonists as cancer immunotherapy. J Leukoc Biol 2022; 112:823-834. [PMID: 35616357 DOI: 10.1002/jlb.5mr0422-506r] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Diverse cytokines and their receptors on immune cells constitute a highly complex network in the immune system. Some therapeutic cytokines and their derivatives have been approved for cancer treatment. IL-15 is an immune-regulating cytokine with multiple functions, among which the function of activating the immunity of cancer patients has great potential in cancer immunotherapy. In this review, we introduce the functions of IL-15 and discuss its role in regulating the immune system in different immune cells. Meanwhile, we will address the applications of IL-15 agonists in cancer immunotherapy and provide prospects for the next generation of therapeutic designs. Although many challenges remain, IL-15 agonists offer a new therapeutic option in the future direction of cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yingjun Peng
- Cancer Centre, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau, China
| | - Shengyu Fu
- Cancer Centre, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau, China
| | - Qi Zhao
- Cancer Centre, Institute of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau, China.,MoE Frontiers Science Center for Precision Oncology, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau SAR, China
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Dunai C, Ames E, Ochoa MC, Fernandez-Sendin M, Melero I, Simonetta F, Baker J, Alvarez M. Killers on the loose: Immunotherapeutic strategies to improve NK cell-based therapy for cancer treatment. Int Rev Cell Mol Biol 2022; 370:65-122. [PMID: 35798507 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ircmb.2022.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are innate lymphocytes that control tumor progression by not only directly killing cancer cells, but also by regulating other immune cells, helping to orchestrate a coordinated anti-tumor response. However, despite the tremendous potential that this cell type has, the clinical results obtained from diverse NK cell-based immunotherapeutic strategies have been, until recent years, rather modest. The intrinsic regulatory mechanisms that are involved in the control of their activation as well as the multiple mechanisms that tumor cells have developed to escape NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity likely account for the unsatisfactory clinical outcomes. The current approaches to improve long-term NK cell function are centered on modulating different molecules involved in both the activation and inhibition of NK cells, and the latest data seems to advocate for combining strategies that target multiple aspects of NK cell regulation. In this review, we summarize the different strategies (such as engineered NK cells, CAR-NK, NK cell immune engagers) that are currently being used to take advantage of this potent and complex immune cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cordelia Dunai
- Department of Clinical Infection, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Erik Ames
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Maria C Ochoa
- Program for Immunology and Immunotherapy, CIMA, Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Myriam Fernandez-Sendin
- Program for Immunology and Immunotherapy, CIMA, Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Ignacio Melero
- Program for Immunology and Immunotherapy, CIMA, Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain; Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Federico Simonetta
- Division of Hematology, Department of Oncology, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland; Translational Research Centre in Onco-Haematology, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pathology and Immunology, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Jeanette Baker
- Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Maite Alvarez
- Program for Immunology and Immunotherapy, CIMA, Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; Navarra Institute for Health Research (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain.
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26
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Chen W, Bamford RN, Edmondson EF, Waldmann TA. IL15 and Anti-PD-1 Augment the Efficacy of Agonistic Intratumoral Anti-CD40 in a Mouse Model with Multiple TRAMP-C2 Tumors. Clin Cancer Res 2022; 28:2082-2093. [PMID: 35262675 PMCID: PMC10569074 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-21-0496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE IL15 promotes activation and maintenance of natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T effector memory cells making it a potential immunotherapeutic agent for the treatment of cancer. However, monotherapy with IL15 was ineffective in patients with cancer, indicating that it would have to be used in combination with other anticancer agents. The administration of high doses of common gamma chain cytokines, such as IL15, is associated with the generation of "helpless" antigen-nonspecific CD8 T cells. The generation of the tumor-specific cytotoxic T cells can be mediated by CD40 signaling via agonistic anti-CD40 antibodies. Nevertheless, parenteral administration of anti-CD40 antibodies is associated with unacceptable side effects, such as thrombocytopenia and hepatic toxicity, which can be avoided by intratumoral administration. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN We investigated the combination of IL15 with an intratumoral anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody (mAb) in a dual tumor TRAMP-C2 murine prostate cancer model and expanded the regimen to include an anti-PD-1 mAb. RESULTS Here we demonstrated that anti-CD40 given intratumorally not only showed significant antitumor activity in treated tumors, but also noninjected contralateral tumors, indicative of abscopal efficacy. The combination of IL15 with intratumoral anti-CD40 showed an additive immune response with an increase in the number of tumor-specific tetramer-positive CD8 T cells. Furthermore, the addition of anti-PD-1 further improved efficacy mediated by the anti-CD40/IL15 combination. CONCLUSIONS These studies support the initiation of a clinical trial in patients with cancer using IL15 in association with the checkpoint inhibitor, anti-PD-1, and intratumoral optimized anti-CD40.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Chen
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | | | - Elijah F. Edmondson
- Molecular Histopathology Laboratory, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland
| | - Thomas A. Waldmann
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
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27
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Maddineni S, Silberstein JL, Sunwoo JB. Emerging NK cell therapies for cancer and the promise of next generation engineering of iPSC-derived NK cells. J Immunother Cancer 2022; 10:jitc-2022-004693. [PMID: 35580928 PMCID: PMC9115029 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2022-004693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy is a rapidly advancing approach to cancer immunotherapy that seeks to facilitate antitumor responses by introducing potent effector cells into the tumor microenvironment. Expanded autologous T cells, particularly T cells with engineered T cell receptors (TCR) and chimeric antigen receptor-T cells have had success in various hematologic malignancies but have faced challenges when applied to solid tumors. As a result, other immune subpopulations may provide valuable and orthogonal options for treatment. Natural killer (NK) cells offer the possibility of significant tumor clearance and recruitment of additional immune subpopulations without the need for prior antigen presentation like in T or B cells that could require removal of endogenous antigen specificity mediated via the T cell receptor (TCR and/or the B ecll receptor (BCR). In recent years, NK cells have been demonstrated to be increasingly important players in the immune response against cancer. Here, we review multiple avenues for allogeneic NK cell therapy, including derivation of NK cells from peripheral blood or umbilical cord blood, the NK-92 immortalized cell line, and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). We also describe the potential of engineering iPSC-derived NK cells and the utility of this platform. Finally, we consider the benefits and drawbacks of each approach and discuss recent developments in the manufacturing and genetic or metabolic engineering of NK cells to have robust and prolonged antitumor responses in preclinical and clinical settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sainiteesh Maddineni
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, USA
| | - John L Silberstein
- Program in Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, USA.,Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA
| | - John B Sunwoo
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, USA
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28
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Jones DS, Nardozzi JD, Sackton KL, Ahmad G, Christensen E, Ringgaard L, Chang DK, Jaehger DE, Konakondla JV, Wiinberg M, Stokes KL, Pratama A, Sauer K, Andresen TL. Cell surface-tethered IL-12 repolarizes the tumor immune microenvironment to enhance the efficacy of adoptive T cell therapy. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabi8075. [PMID: 35476449 PMCID: PMC9045725 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abi8075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Immune-activating cytokines such as interleukin-12 (IL-12) hold strong potential for cancer immunotherapy but have been limited by high systemic toxicities. We describe here an approach to safely harness cytokine biology for adoptive cell therapy through uniform and dose-controlled tethering onto the surface of the adoptively transferred cells. Tumor-specific T cells tethered with IL-12 showed superior antitumor efficacy across multiple cell therapy models compared to conventional systemic IL-12 coadministration. Mechanistically, the IL-12-tethered T cells supported a strong safety profile by driving interferon-γ production and adoptively transferred T cell activity preferentially in the tumor. Immune profiling revealed that the tethered IL-12 reshaped the suppressive tumor immune microenvironment, including triggering a pronounced repolarization of monocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells into activated, inflammatory effector cells that further supported antitumor activity. This tethering approach thus holds strong promise for harnessing and directing potent immunomodulatory cytokines for cell therapies while limiting systemic toxicities.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Thomas L. Andresen
- Repertoire Immune Medicines, Cambridge MA, USA
- Technical University of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark
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Li Y, Wu L, Liu Y, Ma S, Huang B, Feng X, Wang H. A novel multifunctional anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 induces potent cancer cell killing in PD-L1-positive tumour cells. Transl Oncol 2022; 21:101424. [PMID: 35477065 PMCID: PMC9136603 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2022.101424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2022] [Revised: 04/03/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Anti-PD-L1 single-domain antibodies were identified from hPD-L1-immunized camels. Three novel multifunctional antibodies, anti-PD-L1-CD16a, anti-PD-L1-IL15, and anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15, target PD-L1-positive cancer cells. Anti-PD-L1-IL15 and anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15, but not anti-PD-L1-CD16a, stimulate immune cell proliferation in vitro. The anti-PD-L1 antibodies can bind PD-L1-positive cells. Anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 has the strongest antitumour activity, both in vitro and in vivo.
Cancer is the most acute disease and the leading cause of patient death worldwide. Both chemotherapy and molecular-based therapies play an important role in curing cancer. However, the median and overall survival of patients is poor. To date, immune therapies have changed the treatment methods for cancer patients. Programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1, also known as B-H1, CD274) is a well-studied tumor antigen. PD-L1 is overexpressed in colon cancer, lung cancer, and so on and plays a vital role in cancer development. In this study, anti-PD-L1 single-domain antibodies were identified from recombinant human PD-L1 (rhPD-L1)-immunized llamas. Then, we generated a novel multifunctional anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 antibody targeting PD-L1-positive tumor cells. Anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 was constructed by linking the Interleukin-2 (IL-2) signal peptide, anti-PD-L1 single domain antibody (anti-PD-L1-VHH) and anti-cluster of differentiation 16a single domain antibody (anti-CD16a-VHH), and Interleukin-15/Interleukin-15 receptor alpha (IL15/IL-15Rα). This anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 fusion protein can be expressed and purified from HEK-293F cells. In vitro, our data showed that the anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 fusion protein can recruit T cells and drive natural killer cells (NK) with specific killing of PD-L1-overexpressing tumor cells. Furthermore, in the xenograft model, the anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 fusion protein inhibited tumor growth with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). These data suggested that the anti-PD-L1-CD16a-IL15 fusion protein has a latent function in antitumour activity, with better guidance for future cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumei Li
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China
| | - Lingjun Wu
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China
| | - Yueying Liu
- Department of Hypertension, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China
| | - Siwen Ma
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China
| | - Biyi Huang
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China
| | - Xianjing Feng
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China.
| | - Hui Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China.
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30
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Xu DL, He YQ, Xiao B, Si Y, Shi J, Liu XA, Tian L, Ren Q, Wu YS, Zhu Y. A Novel Sushi-IL15-PD1 CAR-NK92 Cell Line With Enhanced and PD-L1 Targeted Cytotoxicity Against Pancreatic Cancer Cells. Front Oncol 2022; 12:726985. [PMID: 35392221 PMCID: PMC8980464 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.726985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly aggressive and lethal malignancy with a limited response to current therapies. Novel and effective treatment is urgently needed. Herein, a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-NK92 cell line, with an interleukin (IL)-15Rα-sushi/IL-15 complex and a Programmed cell death-1(PD1) signal inverter was constructed and named SP (Sushi-IL15-PD1). We showed that CAR expression enabled SP cells to proliferate independently of IL-2 and became more resistant to nutrition starvation-induced apoptosis. Meanwhile, SP cells were more effective than NK92 in PDAC cell killing assays in vitro and in vivo, and there was a positive correlation between the killing capability of SP cells and PD-L1 expression in pancreatic cancer cells. Based on the synergistic and comprehensive effects of the special CAR structure, the adhesion, responsiveness, degranulation efficiency, targeted delivery of cytotoxic granule content, and cytotoxicity of SP cells were significantly stronger than those of NK92. In conclusion, the SP cell line is a promising adoptive immunotherapy cell line and has potential value as an adjuvant treatment for pancreatic cancer, especially in patients with high PD-L1 expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Da-Lai Xu
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yuan-Qing He
- Laboratory Animal Research Center, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, China
| | - Bin Xiao
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yuan Si
- Research & Development Department, Timmune Biotech Inc., Tianjin, China
| | - Jian Shi
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xue-Ang Liu
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Lei Tian
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Qian Ren
- Laboratory Animal Research Center, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, China
| | - Ya-Song Wu
- Research & Development Department, Timmune Biotech Inc., Tianjin, China
| | - Yi Zhu
- Pancreas Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Pancreas Institute of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
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Cubitt CC, McClain E, Becker-Hapak M, Foltz JA, Wong P, Wagner JA, Neal CC, Marin ND, Marsala L, Foster M, Schappe T, Soon-Shiong P, Lee J, Berrien-Elliott MM, Fehniger TA. A novel fusion protein scaffold 18/12/TxM activates the IL-12, IL-15, and IL-18 receptors to induce human memory-like natural killer cells. Mol Ther Oncolytics 2022; 24:585-596. [PMID: 35284622 PMCID: PMC8889352 DOI: 10.1016/j.omto.2022.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are cytotoxic innate lymphoid cells that are emerging as a cellular immunotherapy for various malignancies. NK cells are particularly dependent on interleukin (IL)-15 for their survival, proliferation, and cytotoxic function. NK cells differentiate into memory-like cells with enhanced effector function after a brief activation with IL-12, IL-15, and IL-18. N-803 is an IL-15 superagonist composed of an IL-15 mutant (IL-15N72D) bound to the sushi domain of IL-15Rα fused to the Fc region of IgG1, which results in physiological trans-presentation of IL-15. Here, we describe the creation of a novel triple-cytokine fusion molecule, 18/12/TxM, using the N-803 scaffold fused to IL-18 via the IL-15N72D domain and linked to a heteromeric single-chain IL-12 p70 by the sushi domain of the IL-15Rα. This molecule displays trispecific cytokine activity through its binding and signaling through the individual cytokine receptors. Compared with activation with the individual cytokines, 18/12/TxM induces similar short-term activation and memory-like differentiation of NK cells on both the transcriptional and protein level and identical in vitro and in vivo anti-tumor activity. Thus, N-803 can be modified as a functional scaffold for the creation of cytokine immunotherapies with multiple receptor specificities to activate NK cells for adoptive cellular therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Celia C Cubitt
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Ethan McClain
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Michelle Becker-Hapak
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Jennifer A Foltz
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Pamela Wong
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Julia A Wagner
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Carly C Neal
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Nancy D Marin
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Lynne Marsala
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Mark Foster
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Timothy Schappe
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | | | - John Lee
- ImmunityBio, Culver City, CA 90232, USA
| | - Melissa M Berrien-Elliott
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Todd A Fehniger
- Washington University School of Medicine, 425 South Euclid Avenue, Campus Box 8007, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
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32
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Holder PG, Lim SA, Huang CS, Sharma P, Dagdas YS, Bulutoglu B, Sockolosky JT. Engineering interferons and interleukins for cancer immunotherapy. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2022; 182:114112. [PMID: 35085624 DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2022.114112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Revised: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Cytokines are a class of potent immunoregulatory proteins that are secreted in response to various stimuli and act locally to regulate many aspects of human physiology and disease. Cytokines play important roles in cancer initiation, progression, and elimination, and thus, there is a long clinical history associated with the use of recombinant cytokines to treat cancer. However, the use of cytokines as therapeutics has been limited by cytokine pleiotropy, complex biology, poor drug-like properties, and severe dose-limiting toxicities. Nevertheless, cytokines are crucial mediators of innate and adaptive antitumor immunity and have the potential to enhance immunotherapeutic approaches to treat cancer. Development of immune checkpoint inhibitors and combination immunotherapies has reinvigorated interest in cytokines as therapeutics, and a variety of engineering approaches are emerging to improve the safety and effectiveness of cytokine immunotherapy. In this review we highlight recent advances in cytokine biology and engineering for cancer immunotherapy.
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Kefaloyianni E. Soluble forms of cytokine and growth factor receptors: Mechanisms of generation and modes of action in the regulation of local and systemic inflammation. FEBS Lett 2022; 596:589-606. [PMID: 35113454 DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.14305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Revised: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Cytokine and growth factor receptors are usually transmembrane proteins but they can also exist in soluble forms, either through cleavage and release of their ligand-binding extracellular domain, or through secretion of a soluble isoform. As an extension of this concept, transmembrane receptors on exosomes released into the circulation may act similarly to circulating soluble receptors. These soluble receptors add to the complexity of cytokine and growth factor signalling: they can function as decoy receptor that compete for ligand binding with their respective membrane-bound forms thereby attenuating signalling, or stabilize their ligands, or activate additional signalling events through interactions with other cell-surface proteins. Their soluble nature allows for a functional role away from the production sites, in remote cell types and organs. Accumulating evidence demonstrates that soluble receptors participate in the regulation and orchestration of various key cellular processes, particularly inflammatory responses. In this review, we will discuss release mechanisms of soluble cytokine and growth factor receptors, their mechanisms of action, as well as strategies for targeting their pathways in disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eirini Kefaloyianni
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
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34
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Zheng X, Wu Y, Bi J, Huang Y, Cheng Y, Li Y, Wu Y, Cao G, Tian Z. The use of supercytokines, immunocytokines, engager cytokines, and other synthetic cytokines in immunotherapy. Cell Mol Immunol 2022; 19:192-209. [PMID: 35043005 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-021-00786-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Cytokines exert powerful immunomodulatory effects that are critical to physiology and pathology in humans. The application of natural cytokines in clinical studies has not been clearly established, and there are often problems associated with toxicity or lack of efficacy. The key reasons can be attributed to the pleiotropy of cytokine receptors and undesired activation of off-target cells. With a deeper understanding of the structural principles and functional signals of cytokine-receptor interactions, artificial modification of cytokine signaling through protein engineering and synthetic immunology has become an increasingly feasible and powerful approach. Engineered cytokines are designed to selectively target cells. Herein, the theoretical and experimental evidence of cytokine engineering is reviewed, and the "supercytokines" resulting from structural enhancement and the "immunocytokines" generated by antibody fusion are described. Finally, the "engager cytokines" formed by the crosslinking of cytokines and bispecific immune engagers and other synthetic cytokines formed by nonnatural analogs are also discussed.
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35
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Hangasky JA, Chen W, Dubois SP, Daenthanasanmak A, Müller JR, Reid R, Waldmann TA, Santi DV. A very long-acting IL-15: implications for the immunotherapy of cancer. J Immunother Cancer 2022; 10:e004104. [PMID: 35101947 PMCID: PMC8804710 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2021-004104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is an important cytokine necessary for proliferation and maintenance of natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T cells, and with great promise as an immuno-oncology therapeutic. However, IL-15 has a very short half-life and a single administration does not provide the sustained exposure required for optimal stimulation of target immune cells. The purpose of this work was to develop a very long-acting prodrug that would maintain IL-15 within a narrow therapeutic window for long periods-similar to a continuous infusion. METHODS We prepared and characterized hydrogel microspheres (MS) covalently attached to IL-15 (MS~IL-15) by a releasable linker. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of MS~IL-15 were determined in C57BL/6J mice. The antitumor activity of MS~IL-15 as a single agent, and in combination with a suitable therapeutic antibody, was tested in a CD8+ T cell-driven bilateral transgenic adenocarcinoma mouse prostate (TRAMP)-C2 model of prostatic cancer and a NK cell-driven mouse xenograft model of human ATL (MET-1) murine model of adult T-cell leukemia. RESULTS On subcutaneous administration to mice, the cytokine released from the depot maintained a long half-life of about 168 hours over the first 5 days, followed by an abrupt decrease to about ~30 hours in accordance with the development of a cytokine sink. A single injection of MS~IL-15 caused remarkably prolonged expansions of NK and ɣδ T cells for 2 weeks, and CD44hiCD8+ T cells for 4 weeks. In the NK cell-driven MET-1 murine model of adult T-cell leukemia, single-agent MS~IL-1550 μg or anti-CCR4 provided modest increases in survival, but a combination-through antibody-depedent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC)-significantly extended survival. In a CD8+ T cell-driven bilateral TRAMP-C2 model of prostatic cancer, single agent subcutaneous MS~IL-15 or unilateral intratumoral agonistic anti-CD40 showed modest growth inhibition, but the combination exhibited potent, prolonged bilateral antitumor activity. CONCLUSIONS Our results show MS~IL-15 provides a very long-acting IL-15 with low Cmax that elicits prolonged expansion of target immune cells and high anticancer activity, especially when administered in combination with a suitable immuno-oncology agent.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Wei Chen
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Sigrid P Dubois
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Anusara Daenthanasanmak
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Jürgen R Müller
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Ralph Reid
- ProLynx Inc, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Thomas A Waldmann
- Lymphoid Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
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Silver AB, Leonard EK, Gould JR, Spangler JB. Engineered antibody fusion proteins for targeted disease therapy. Trends Pharmacol Sci 2021; 42:1064-81. [PMID: 34706833 DOI: 10.1016/j.tips.2021.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Since the FDA approval of the first therapeutic antibody 35 years ago, antibody-based products have gained prominence in the pharmaceutical market. Building on the early successes of monoclonal antibodies, more recent efforts have capitalized on the exquisite specificity and/or favorable pharmacokinetic properties of antibodies by developing fusion proteins that enable targeted delivery of therapeutic payloads which are otherwise ineffective when administered systemically. This review focuses on recent engineering and translational advances for therapeutics that genetically fuse antibodies to disease-relevant payloads, including cytokines, toxins, enzymes, neuroprotective agents, and soluble factor traps. With numerous antibody fusion proteins in the clinic and other innovative molecules poised to follow suit, these potent, multifunctional drug candidates promise to be a major player in the therapeutic development landscape for years to come.
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Abstract
Innovative approaches in the field of cytokine engineering are revolutionizing the cancer therapeutic landscape. The IL-15 cytokine is particularly enticing as a cancer immunotherapy due to its natural propensity for stimulating the proliferation and activation of NK and CD8+ T cells. In a recent IL-15 engineering approach, the cytokine was conjugated to polyethylene glycol, and the resulting molecule (NKTR-255) exhibited potent antitumor activities. In this issue of the JCI, Robinson et al. mechanistically explored NKTR-255 and compared its immune profile to that of the unconjugated IL-15 cytokine. The authors found that NKTR-255 employs distinct activities on NK compared with CD8+ T cells. NKTR-255 signaling also showed less dependence on the expression of the IL-15 receptor-α (IL-15Rα) chain compared with unconjugated IL-15. Collectively, these findings will advance IL-15-based clinical therapies and, more generally, benefit the field of cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jamie B Spangler
- Department of Biomedical Engineering.,Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering.,Translational Tissue Engineering Center.,Department of Oncology.,Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.,Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, and.,Department of Ophthalmology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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38
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Fiore PF, Di Matteo S, Tumino N, Mariotti FR, Pietra G, Ottonello S, Negrini S, Bottazzi B, Moretta L, Mortier E, Azzarone B. Interleukin-15 and cancer: some solved and many unsolved questions. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 8:jitc-2020-001428. [PMID: 33203664 PMCID: PMC7674108 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-001428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Soluble interleukin (IL)-15 exists under two forms: as monomer (sIL-15) or as heterodimeric complex in association with sIL-15Rα (sIL-15/IL-15Rα). Both forms have been successfully tested in experimental tumor murine models and are currently undergoing investigation in phase I/II clinical trials. Despite more than 20 years research on IL-15, some controversial issues remain to be addressed. A first point concerns the detection of the sIL-15/IL-15Rα in plasma of healthy donors or patients with cancer and its biological significance. The second and third unsolved question regards the protumorigenic role of the IL-15/IL-15Rα complex in human cancer and the detrimental immunological consequences associated to prolonged exposure of natural killer (NK) cells to both forms of soluble IL-15, respectively. Data suggest that in vivo prolonged or repeated exposure to monomeric sIL-15 or the soluble complex may lead to NK hypo-responsiveness through the expansion of the CD8+/CD44+ T cell subset that would suppress NK cell functions. In vitro experiments indicate that soluble complex and monomeric IL-15 may cause NK hyporesponsiveness through a direct effect caused by their prolonged stimulation, suggesting that this mechanism could also be effective in vivo. Therefore, a better knowledge of IL-15 and a more appropriate use of both its soluble forms, in terms of concentrations and time of exposure, are essential in order to improve their therapeutic use. In cancer, the overproduction of sIL-15/IL-15Rα could represent a novel mechanism of immune escape. The soluble complex may act as a decoy cytokine unable to efficiently foster NK cells, or could induce NK hyporesponsiveness through an excessive and prolonged stimulation depending on the type of IL-15Rα isoforms associated. All these unsolved questions are not merely limited to the knowledge of IL-15 pathophysiology, but are crucial also for the therapeutic use of this cytokine. Therefore, in this review, we will discuss key unanswered issues on the heterogeneity and biological significance of IL-15 isoforms, analyzing both their cancer-related biological functions and their therapeutic implications.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sabina Di Matteo
- Immunology Area, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Nicola Tumino
- Immunology Area, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Gabriella Pietra
- Immuology Unit, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine (DiMES), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Selene Ottonello
- Department of Experimental Medicine (DiMES), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy.,Center of Excellence for Biomedical Research (CEBR), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Simone Negrini
- Clinical Immunology Unit, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa and Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genova, Italy
| | - Barbara Bottazzi
- Department of Immunology and Inflammation, Humanitas Clinical and Research Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Moretta
- Immunology Area, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Erwan Mortier
- University of Nantes, CNRS, Inserm, CRCINA, University of Nantes, Nantes, France .,Immunotherapy, Graft, Oncology, LabEx IGO, Nantes, France
| | - Bruno Azzarone
- Immunology Area, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
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Hotz C, Wagenaar TR, Gieseke F, Bangari DS, Callahan M, Cao H, Diekmann J, Diken M, Grunwitz C, Hebert A, Hsu K, Bernardo M, Karikó K, Kreiter S, Kuhn AN, Levit M, Malkova N, Masciari S, Pollard J, Qu H, Ryan S, Selmi A, Schlereth J, Singh K, Sun F, Tillmann B, Tolstykh T, Weber W, Wicke L, Witzel S, Yu Q, Zhang YA, Zheng G, Lager J, Nabel GJ, Sahin U, Wiederschain D. Local delivery of mRNA-encoded cytokines promotes antitumor immunity and tumor eradication across multiple preclinical tumor models. Sci Transl Med 2021; 13:eabc7804. [PMID: 34516826 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abc7804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
[Figure: see text].
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Hui Cao
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | - Mustafa Diken
- BioNTech, 55131 Mainz, Germany.,Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Andy Hebert
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Karl Hsu
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Marie Bernardo
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | - Sebastian Kreiter
- BioNTech, 55131 Mainz, Germany.,Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Mikhail Levit
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | | | - Jack Pollard
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Hui Qu
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Sue Ryan
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Abderaouf Selmi
- Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Kuldeep Singh
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Fangxian Sun
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Bodo Tillmann
- Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - William Weber
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | - Sonja Witzel
- Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | - Qunyan Yu
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Yu-An Zhang
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Gang Zheng
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Joanne Lager
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Gary J Nabel
- Research and Development, Sanofi, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Ugur Sahin
- BioNTech, 55131 Mainz, Germany.,Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University GmbH (TRON), 55131 Mainz, Germany
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40
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Phung SK, Miller JS, Felices M. Bi-specific and Tri-specific NK Cell Engagers: The New Avenue of Targeted NK Cell Immunotherapy. Mol Diagn Ther 2021; 25:577-92. [PMID: 34327614 DOI: 10.1007/s40291-021-00550-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/18/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cell-mediated cancer immunotherapy has grown significantly over the past two decades. More recently, multi-specific engagers have been developed as cancer therapeutics to effectively arm endogenous NK cells to more potently induce specific cytolytic responses against tumor targets. This review explores the bi- and tri-specific NK/tumor engagers that are emerging as a new generation of immunotherapeutics. These molecules vary in configuration, but they typically have small molecular weights and domains that engage specific tumor antigens and NK cell-activating receptors such as CD16, NKp30, NKp46, and NKG2D. They have demonstrated compelling potential in boosting NK cell cytotoxicity against specific tumor targets. This highly adaptable off-the-shelf platform, which in some formats also integrates cytokines, is poised to revolutionize targeted NK cell immunotherapy, either as a monotherapy or in combination with other effective anti-cancer therapies.
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41
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Miller IC, Zamat A, Sun LK, Phuengkham H, Harris AM, Gamboa L, Yang J, Murad JP, Priceman SJ, Kwong GA. Enhanced intratumoural activity of CAR T cells engineered to produce immunomodulators under photothermal control. Nat Biomed Eng 2021; 5:1348-1359. [PMID: 34385695 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-021-00781-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 07/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Treating solid malignancies with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells typically results in poor responses. Immunomodulatory biologics delivered systemically can augment the cells' activity, but off-target toxicity narrows the therapeutic window. Here we show that the activity of intratumoural CAR T cells can be controlled photothermally via synthetic gene switches that trigger the expression of transgenes in response to mild temperature elevations (to 40-42 °C). In vitro, heating engineered primary human T cells for 15-30 min led to over 60-fold-higher expression of a reporter transgene without affecting the cells' proliferation, migration and cytotoxicity. In mice, CAR T cells photothermally heated via gold nanorods produced a transgene only within the tumours. In mouse models of adoptive transfer, the systemic delivery of CAR T cells followed by intratumoural production, under photothermal control, of an interleukin-15 superagonist or a bispecific T cell engager bearing an NKG2D receptor redirecting T cells against NKG2D ligands enhanced antitumour activity and mitigated antigen escape. Localized photothermal control of the activity of engineered T cells may enhance their safety and efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian C Miller
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Ali Zamat
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lee-Kai Sun
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Hathaichanok Phuengkham
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Adrian M Harris
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lena Gamboa
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jason Yang
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, USA
| | - John P Murad
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, USA
| | - Saul J Priceman
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope, Duarte, CA, USA.,Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, CA, USA
| | - Gabriel A Kwong
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Parker H. Petit Institute of Bioengineering and Bioscience, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Integrated Cancer Research Center, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Georgia Immunoengineering Consortium, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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42
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Guo J, Liang Y, Xue D, Shen J, Cai Y, Zhu J, Fu YX, Peng H. Tumor-conditional IL-15 pro-cytokine reactivates anti-tumor immunity with limited toxicity. Cell Res 2021; 31:1190-1198. [PMID: 34376814 DOI: 10.1038/s41422-021-00543-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 07/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
IL-15 is a promising cytokine to expand NK and CD8+ T cells for cancer immunotherapy, but its application is limited by dose-limiting, on-target off-tumor toxicity. Here, we have developed a next-generation IL-15 that is activated inside the tumor microenvironment (TME). This pro-IL-15 has the extracellular domain of IL-15Rβ fused to the N-terminus of sIL-15-Fc through a tumor-enriched Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMP) cleavable peptide linker to block its activity. Unlike sIL-15-Fc, pro-IL-15 does not activate the peripheral expansion of NK cells and T cells, thus reducing systemic toxicity, but it still preserves efficient anti-tumor abilities. In various mouse tumors, the anti-tumor effect of pro-IL-15 depends on intratumoral CD8+ T cells and IFN-γ. Pro-IL-15 increases the stem-like TCF1+Tim-3-CD8+ T cells within tumor tissue and helps overcome immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) resistance. Moreover, pro-IL-15 synergizes with current tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) targeted-therapy in a poorly inflamed TUBO tumor model, suggesting that pro-IL-15 helps overcome targeted-therapy resistance. Our results demonstrate a next-generation IL-15 cytokine that can stimulate potent anti-tumor activity without severe toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingya Guo
- Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yong Liang
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Diyuan Xue
- Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jiao Shen
- Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yueqi Cai
- Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jiankun Zhu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Yang-Xin Fu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Hua Peng
- Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
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43
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Murakami J, Wu L, Kohno M, Chan ML, Zhao Y, Yun Z, Cho BCJ, de Perrot M. Triple-modality therapy maximizes antitumor immune responses in a mouse model of mesothelioma. Sci Transl Med 2021; 13:13/589/eabd9882. [PMID: 33853932 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abd9882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an intractable disease with an extremely poor prognosis. Our clinical protocol for MPM of subablative radiotherapy (RT) followed by radical surgery achieved better survival compared to other multimodal treatments, but local relapse and metastasis remain a problem. This subablative RT elicits an antitumoral immune response that is limited by the immunosuppressive microenvironment generated by regulatory T (Treg) cells. The antitumor effect of immunotherapy to simultaneously modulate the immune activation and the immune suppression after subablative RT has not been investigated in MPM. Herein, we demonstrated a rationale to combine interleukin-15 (IL-15) superagonist (IL-15SA) and glucocorticoid-induced tumor necrosis factor receptor-related protein (GITR) agonist (DTA-1) with subablative RT in mesothelioma. IL-15SA boosted the systemic expansion of specific antitumoral memory CD8+ T cells that were induced by RT in mice. Their effect, however, was limited by the up-regulation and activation of Treg cells in the radiated tumor microenvironment. Hence, selective depletion of intratumoral Treg cells through DTA-1 enhanced the benefit of subablative RT in combination with IL-15SA. The addition of surgical resection of the radiated tumor in combination with IL-15SA and DTA-1 maximized the benefit of RT and was accompanied by a reproducible abscopal response in a concomitant tumor model. These data support the development of clinical trials in MPM to test such treatment options for patients with locally advanced or metastatic tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junichi Murakami
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada.,Department of Surgery and Clinical Science, Division of Chest Surgery, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, Ube, Yamaguchi 755-8505, Japan
| | - Licun Wu
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada
| | - Mikihiro Kohno
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada.,Division of Thoracic Surgery, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C4, Canada
| | - Mei-Lin Chan
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada
| | - Yidan Zhao
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada
| | - Zhihong Yun
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada
| | - B C John Cho
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C1, Canada
| | - Marc de Perrot
- Latner Thoracic Surgery Research Laboratories, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada. .,Division of Thoracic Surgery, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C4, Canada.,Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8, Canada
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44
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Hoteit M, Oneissi Z, Reda R, Wakim F, Zaidan A, Farran M, Abi-Khalil E, El-Sibai M. Cancer immunotherapy: A comprehensive appraisal of its modes of application. Oncol Lett 2021; 22:655. [PMID: 34386077 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2021.12916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Conventional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy have reached their therapeutic potential, leaving a gap for developing more effective cancer therapeutics. Cancer cells evade the immune system using various mechanisms of immune tolerance, underlying the potential impact of immunotherapy in the treatment of cancer. Immunotherapy includes several approaches such as activating the immune system in a cytokine-dependent manner, manipulating the feedback mechanisms involved in the immune response, enhancing the immune response via lymphocyte expansion and using cancer vaccines to elicit long-lasting, robust responses. These techniques can be used as monotherapies or combination therapies. The present review describes the immune-based mechanisms involved in tumor cell proliferation and maintenance and the rationale underlying various treatment methods. In addition, the present review provides insight into the potential of immunotherapy used alone or in combination with various types of therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mira Hoteit
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Zeina Oneissi
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Ranim Reda
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Fadi Wakim
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Amar Zaidan
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Mohammad Farran
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Elie Abi-Khalil
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
| | - Mirvat El-Sibai
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon
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45
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Abstract
Since the discovery of cytokines, much effort has been put forth to achieve therapeutic translation for treatment of various diseases, including cancer and autoimmune diseases. Despite these efforts, very few cytokines have cleared regulatory approval, and those that were approved are not commonly used due to their challenging toxicity profile and/or limited therapeutic efficacy. The main limitation in translation has been that wild-type cytokines have unfavorable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles, either eliciting unwanted systemic side effects or insufficient residence in secondary lymphoid organs. In this review, we address protein-engineering approaches that have been applied to both proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines to enhance their therapeutic indices, and we highlight diseases in which administration of engineered cytokines is especially relevant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aslan Mansurov
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Abigail Lauterbach
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Erica Budina
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Aaron T Alpar
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Jeffrey A Hubbell
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Jun Ishihara
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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46
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Ma R, Lu T, Li Z, Teng KY, Mansour AG, Yu M, Tian L, Xu B, Ma S, Zhang J, Barr T, Peng Y, Caligiuri MA, Yu J. An Oncolytic Virus Expressing IL15/IL15Rα Combined with Off-the-Shelf EGFR-CAR NK Cells Targets Glioblastoma. Cancer Res 2021; 81:3635-3648. [PMID: 34006525 PMCID: PMC8562586 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-21-0035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Revised: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
IL15 is a pleiotropic cytokine with multiple roles that improve immune responses to tumor cells. Oncolytic viruses (OV) specifically lyse tumors and activate immune responses. Systemic administration of IL15 or its complex with the IL15Rα and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) natural killer (NK) cells are currently being tested in the clinic. Here, we generated a herpes simplex 1-based OV-expressing human IL15/IL15Rα sushi domain fusion protein (named OV-IL15C), as well as off-the-shelf EGFR-CAR NK cells, and studied their monotherapy and combination efficacy in vitro and in multiple glioblastoma (GBM) mouse models. In vitro, soluble IL15/IL15Rα complex was secreted from OV-IL15C-infected GBM cells, which promoted GBM cytotoxicity and improved survival of NK and CD8+ T cells. Frozen, readily available off-the-shelf EGFR-CAR NK cells showed enhanced killing of tumor cells compared with empty vector-transduced NK cells. In vivo, OV-IL15C significantly inhibited tumor growth and prolonged survival of GBM-bearing mice in the presence of CD8+ T cells compared with parental OV. OV-IL15C plus EGFR-CAR NK cells synergistically suppressed tumor growth and significantly improved survival compared with either monotherapy, correlating with increased intracranial infiltration and activation of NK and CD8+ T cells and elevated persistence of CAR NK cells in an immunocompetent model. Collectively, OV-IL15C and off-the-shelf EGFR-CAR NK cells represent promising therapeutic strategies for GBM treatment to improve the clinical management of this devastating disease. SIGNIFICANCE: The combination of an oncolytic virus expressing the IL15/IL15Rα complex and frozen, ready-to-use EGFR-CAR NK cells elicits strong antitumor responses in glioblastoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Ma
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Chengdu, P.R. China
| | - Ting Lu
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Zhenlong Li
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Kun-Yu Teng
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Anthony G Mansour
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Melissa Yu
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Lei Tian
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Bo Xu
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Shoubao Ma
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Jianying Zhang
- Department of Computational and Quantitative Medicine, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Tasha Barr
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Yong Peng
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Chengdu, P.R. China.
| | - Michael A Caligiuri
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California.
- Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Los Angeles, California
- Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
| | - Jianhua Yu
- Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California.
- Department of Immuno-Oncology, Beckman Research Institute, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Los Angeles, California
- Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles, California
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47
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Xue D, Hsu E, Fu YX, Peng H. Next-generation cytokines for cancer immunotherapy. Antib Ther 2021; 4:123-133. [PMID: 34263141 PMCID: PMC8271143 DOI: 10.1093/abt/tbab014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Revised: 06/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Most studies focus on the first and second signals of T cell activation. However, the roles of cytokines in immunotherapy are not fully understood, and cytokines have not been widely used in patient care. Clinical application of cytokines is limited due to their short half-life in vivo, severe toxicity at therapeutic doses, and overall lack of efficacy. Several modifications have been engineered to extend their half-life and increase tumor targeting, including polyethylene glycol conjugation, fusion to tumor-targeting antibodies, and alteration of cytokine/cell receptor-binding affinity. These modifications demonstrate an improvement in either increased antitumor efficacy or reduced toxicity. However, these cytokine engineering strategies may still be improved further, as each strategy poses advantages and disadvantages in the delicate balance of targeting tumor cells, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, and peripheral immune cells. This review focuses on selected cytokines, including interferon-α, interleukin (IL)-2, IL-15, IL-21, and IL-12, in both preclinical studies and clinical applications. We review next-generation designs of these cytokines that improve half-life, tumor targeting, and antitumor efficacy. We also present our perspectives on the development of new strategies to potentiate cytokine-based immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diyuan Xue
- Key laboratory of Infection and Immunity Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Da Tun Rd, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Eric Hsu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75235, USA
| | - Yang-Xin Fu
- Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75235, USA
| | - Hua Peng
- Key laboratory of Infection and Immunity Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Da Tun Rd, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China
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48
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Xu H, Shi M, Shao C, Li H, Wu J, Yu Y, Fang F, Guo Y, Xiao W. Development of IL-15/IL-15Rα sushi domain-IgG4 Fc complexes in Pichia pastoris with potent activities and prolonged half-lives. Microb Cell Fact 2021; 20:115. [PMID: 34107983 PMCID: PMC8190845 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-021-01605-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is a critical cytokine for the development, proliferation, and function of natural killer (NK) cells, NKT cells, and CD8+ memory T cells and has become one of the most promising protein molecules for the treatment of cancer and viral diseases. However, there are several limitations in applying IL-15 in therapy, such as its low yield in vitro, limited potency, and short half-life in vivo. To date, there are several recombinant IL-15 agonists based on configurational modifications that are being pursued in the treatment of cancer, such as ALT-803, which are mainly produced from mammalian cells. RESULTS In this study, we designed two different forms of the IL-15 complex, which were formed by the noncovalent assembly of IL-15 with dimeric or monomeric sushi domain of IL-15 receptor α (SuIL-15Rα)-IgG4 Fc fusion protein and designated IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-dFc and IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-mFc, respectively. The two IL-15 complexes were expressed in Pichia pastoris (P. pastoris), and their activities and half-lives were evaluated and compared. Pharmacokinetic analysis showed that IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-dFc had a half-life of 14.26 h while IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-mFc had a half-life of 9.16 h in mice, which were much longer than the 0.7-h half-life of commercial recombinant human IL-15 (rhIL-15). Treatment of mice with intravenous injection of the two IL-15 complexes resulted in significant increases in NK cells, NKT cells, and memory CD8+ T cells, which were not observed after rhIL-15 treatment. Treatment of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors with the two IL-15 complexes yielded enhanced NK and CD8+ T cell activation and proliferation, which was comparable to the effect of rhIL-15. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that the IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-dFc and IL-15/SuIL-15Rα-mFc produced in P. pastoris exhibit potent activities and prolonged half-lives and may serve as superagonists for immunotherapy in further research and applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Xu
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Mingyang Shi
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Changsheng Shao
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Hao Li
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Jing Wu
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Yin Yu
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Fang Fang
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China
| | - Yugang Guo
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.
| | - Weihua Xiao
- Department of Oncology of the First Affiliated Hospital, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Institute of Immunology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China. .,Engineering Technology Research Center of Biotechnology Drugs Anhui, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, China.
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Desbois M, Béal C, Charrier M, Besse B, Meurice G, Cagnard N, Jacques Y, Béchard D, Cassard L, Chaput N. IL-15 superagonist RLI has potent immunostimulatory properties on NK cells: implications for antimetastatic treatment. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 8:jitc-2020-000632. [PMID: 32532840 PMCID: PMC7295443 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-000632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Background As the immune system is compromised in patients with cancer, therapeutic strategies to stimulate immunity appear promising, to avoid relapse and increase long-term overall survival. Interleukin-15 (IL-15) has similar properties to IL-2, but does not cause activation-induced cell death nor activation and proliferation of regulatory T cells (Treg), which makes it a serious candidate for anticancer immunotherapy. However, IL-15 has a short half-life and high doses are needed to achieve responses. Designed to enhance its activity, receptor-linker-IL-15 (RLI) (SO-C101) is a fusion molecule of human IL-15 covalently linked to the human IL-15Rα sushi+ domain currently assessed in a phase I/Ib clinical trial on patients with advanced/metastatic solid cancer. Methods We investigated the antimetastatic activity of RLI in a 4T1 mouse mammary carcinoma that spontaneously metastasizes and evaluated its immunomodulatory role in the metastatic lung microenvironment. We further characterized the proliferation, maturation and cytotoxic functions of natural killer (NK) cells in tumor-free mice treated with RLI. Finally, we explored the effect of RLI on human NK cells from healthy donors and patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Results RLI treatment displayed antimetastatic properties in the 4T1 mouse model. By characterizing the lung microenvironment, we observed that RLI restored the balance between NK cells and neutrophils (CD11b+ Ly6Ghigh Ly6Clow) that massively infiltrate lungs of 4T1-tumor bearing mice. In addition, the ratio between NK cells and Treg was strongly increased by RLI treatment. Further pharmacodynamic studies in tumor-free mice revealed superior proliferative and cytotoxic functions on NK cells after RLI treatment compared with IL-15 alone. Characterization of the maturation stage of NK cells demonstrated that RLI favored accumulation of CD11b+ CD27high KLRG1+ mature NK cells. Finally, RLI demonstrated potent immunostimulatory properties on human NK cells by inducing proliferation and activation of NK cells from healthy donors and enhancing cytotoxic responses to NKp30 crosslinking in NK cells from patients with NSCLC. Conclusions Collectively, our work demonstrates superior activity of RLI compared with rhIL-15 in modulating and activating NK cells and provides additional evidences for a therapeutic strategy using RLI as antimetastatic molecule.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mélanie Desbois
- Analyse Moléculaire, Modélisation et Imagerie de la Maladie Cancéreuse, Laboratoire d'Immunomonitoring en Oncologie, Gustave Roussy Institute, INSERM, CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France.,Cytune Pharma, Nantes, France.,Faculté de Médecine, Paris-Saclay University, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, Île-de-France, France
| | - Coralie Béal
- Centre d'investigation Clinique Biothérapie 1428, Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France
| | - Mélinda Charrier
- Analyse Moléculaire, Modélisation et Imagerie de la Maladie Cancéreuse, Laboratoire d'Immunomonitoring en Oncologie, Gustave Roussy Institute, INSERM, CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France.,Faculté de Médecine, Paris-Saclay University, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, Île-de-France, France.,Centre d'investigation Clinique Biothérapie 1428, Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France
| | - Benjamin Besse
- Faculté de Médecine, Paris-Saclay University, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, Île-de-France, France.,Comité de Pathologie Thoracique, Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France
| | - Guillaume Meurice
- Plateforme de Bioinformatique, Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France
| | - Nicolas Cagnard
- Plateforme de Bioinformatique, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, Île-de-France, France
| | | | | | - Lydie Cassard
- Analyse Moléculaire, Modélisation et Imagerie de la Maladie Cancéreuse, Laboratoire d'Immunomonitoring en Oncologie, Gustave Roussy Institute, INSERM, CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France
| | - Nathalie Chaput
- Analyse Moléculaire, Modélisation et Imagerie de la Maladie Cancéreuse, Laboratoire d'Immunomonitoring en Oncologie, Gustave Roussy Institute, INSERM, CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, Villejuif, Île-de-France, France .,Faculty of Pharmacy, University Paris-Saclay, Chatenay-Malabry, France
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50
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Rosser CJ, Tikhonenkov S, Nix JW, Chan OTM, Ianculescu I, Reddy S, Soon-Shiong P. Safety, Tolerability, and Long-Term Clinical Outcomes of an IL-15 analogue (N-803) Admixed with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) for the Treatment of Bladder Cancer. Oncoimmunology 2021; 10:1912885. [PMID: 33996264 PMCID: PMC8096327 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2021.1912885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Intravesical BCG is active against non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), but bladder cancer will recur and even progress in a significant number of patients. To improve the response rate, N-803, an IL-15 superagonist was administered in combination with BCG. To evaluate the safety and efficacy associated with the use of intravesical N-803 and BCG in patients with BCG-naïve NMIBC. This phase 1b clinical trial used a 3 + 3 dose-escalation design. Participants were enrolled from July 2014 and July 2015, with follow-up and analyses through January 15, 2021. Eligibility criteria included histologically confirmed non-muscle invasive urothelial carcinoma of intermediate or high risk who had not received prior treatment with intravesical BCG (ie, BCG-naïve). All 9 participants met the eligibility criteria, received treatment according to the protocol, and were included in all analyses. Treatment was done once weekly for 6 consecutive weeks with bladder infusion of the standard dose of BCG, 50 mg/instillation, in combination with increasing doses of N-803 (100, 200, or 400 µg N-803 per instillation). No DLTs were noted in any of the dose cohorts. All adverse events (AEs) were manageable and less than grade 3. During the 2-year follow-up, all 9 participants were disease free. Furthermore, 6 y after treatment, all 9 participants (100%) were disease free with no evidence of disease progression and an intact bladder. This phase 1b trial found the combination of intravesical N-803 and BCG to be associated with modest toxic effects, low immunogenicity, and substantial prolonged antitumoral activity; phase 2 trials are in progress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles J Rosser
- Clinical & Translational Research Program, University of Hawaii Cancer Center,Honolulu, Hawaii
| | - Sergei Tikhonenkov
- Clinical & Translational Research Program, University of Hawaii Cancer Center,Honolulu, Hawaii
| | - Jeffrey W Nix
- Department of Urology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama
| | - Owen T M Chan
- Clinical & Translational Research Program, University of Hawaii Cancer Center,Honolulu, Hawaii
| | | | - Sandeep Reddy
- NantHealth Inc, Culver City, California.,ImmunityBio, Inc., Culver City, California
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