scholarly journals Heterocellular OSM-OSMR signalling reprograms fibroblasts to promote pancreatic cancer growth and metastasis

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Y. Lee ◽  
Elizabeth K. J. Hogg ◽  
Christopher R. Below ◽  
Alexander Kononov ◽  
Adrian Blanco-Gomez ◽  
...  

AbstractPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is a lethal malignancy with a complex microenvironment. Dichotomous tumour-promoting and -restrictive roles have been ascribed to the tumour microenvironment, however the effects of individual stromal subsets remain incompletely characterised. Here, we describe how heterocellular Oncostatin M (OSM) - Oncostatin M Receptor (OSMR) signalling reprograms fibroblasts, regulates tumour growth and metastasis. Macrophage-secreted OSM stimulates inflammatory gene expression in cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which in turn induce a pro-tumourigenic environment and engage tumour cell survival and migratory signalling pathways. Tumour cells implanted in Osm-deficient (Osm−/−) mice display an epithelial-dominated morphology, reduced tumour growth and do not metastasise. Moreover, the tumour microenvironment of Osm−/− animals exhibit increased abundance of α smooth muscle actin positive myofibroblasts and a shift in myeloid and T cell phenotypes, consistent with a more immunogenic environment. Taken together, these data demonstrate how OSM-OSMR signalling coordinates heterocellular interactions to drive a pro-tumourigenic environment in PDA.

Gut ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 693-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Delphine Goehrig ◽  
Jérémy Nigri ◽  
Rémi Samain ◽  
Zhichong Wu ◽  
Paola Cappello ◽  
...  

ObjectivePancreatic cancer is associated with an abundant stromal reaction leading to immune escape and tumour growth. This massive stroma drives the immune escape in the tumour. We aimed to study the impact of βig-h3 stromal protein in the modulation of the antitumoural immune response in pancreatic cancer.DesignWe performed studies with p48-Cre;KrasG12D, pdx1-Cre;KrasG12D;Ink4a/Arffl/fl, pdx1-Cre;KrasG12D; p53R172H mice and tumour tissues from patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA). Some transgenic mice were given injections of anti-βig-h3, anti-CD8, anti-PD1 depleting antibodies. Tumour growth as well as modifications in the activation of local immune cells were analysed by flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence. Tissue stiffness was measured by atomic force microscopy.ResultsWe identified βig-h3 stromal-derived protein as a key actor of the immune paracrine interaction mechanism that drives pancreatic cancer. We found that βig-h3 is highly produced by cancer-associated fibroblasts in the stroma of human and mouse. This protein acts directly on tumour-specific CD8+ T cells and F4/80 macrophages. Depleting βig-h3 in vivo reduced tumour growth by enhancing the number of activated CD8+ T cell within the tumour and subsequent apoptotic tumour cells. Furthermore, we found that targeting βig-h3 in established lesions released the tissue tension and functionally reprogrammed F4/80 macrophages in the tumour microenvironment.ConclusionsOur data indicate that targeting stromal extracellular matrix protein βig-h3 improves the antitumoural response and consequently reduces tumour weight. Our findings present βig-h3 as a novel immunological target in pancreatic cancer.


2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 955-966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhenjia Yu ◽  
Zhen Li ◽  
Chenchen Wang ◽  
Tao Pan ◽  
Xinyu Chang ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. canres.0483.2021
Author(s):  
Anjali Geethadevi ◽  
Ajay Nair ◽  
Deepak Parashar ◽  
Zhiqiang Ku ◽  
Wei Xiong ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Wai Ki Wong ◽  
Bohan Yin ◽  
Ching Ying Katherine Lam ◽  
Yingying Huang ◽  
Jiaxiang Yan ◽  
...  

Effective immunotherapy treats cancers by eradicating tumourigenic cells by activated tumour antigen-specific and bystander CD8+ T-cells. However, T-cells can gradually lose cytotoxicity in the tumour microenvironment, known as exhaustion. Recently, DNA methylation, histone modification, and chromatin architecture have provided novel insights into epigenetic regulations of T-cell differentiation/exhaustion, thereby controlling the translational potential of the T-cells. Thus, developing strategies to govern epigenetic switches of T-cells dynamically is critical to maintaining the effector function of antigen-specific T-cells. In this mini-review, we 1) describe the correlation between epigenetic states and T cell phenotypes; 2) discuss the enzymatic factors and intracellular/extracellular microRNA imprinting T-cell epigenomes that drive T-cell exhaustion; 3) highlight recent advances in epigenetic interventions to rescue CD8+ T-cell functions from exhaustion. Finally, we express our perspective that regulating the interplay between epigenetic changes and transcriptional programs provides translational implications of current immunotherapy for cancer treatments.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 175883591881628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Young ◽  
Daniel J. Hughes ◽  
David Cunningham ◽  
Naureen Starling

Despite decades of research, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) continues to have the worst 5-year survival of any malignancy. With 338,000 new cases diagnosed and over 300,000 deaths per year globally there is an urgent unmet need to improve the therapeutic options available. Novel immunotherapies have shown promising results across multiple solid tumours, in a number of cases surpassing chemotherapy as a first-line therapeutic option. However, to date, trials of single-agent immunotherapies in PDAC have been disappointing and PDAC has been labelled as a nonimmunogenic cancer. This lack of response may in part be attributed to PDAC’s unique tumour microenvironment (TME), consisting of a dense fibrotic stroma and a scarcity of tumour infiltrating lymphocytes. However, as our understanding of the PDAC TME evolves, it is becoming apparent that the problem is not simply the immune system failing to recognize the cancer. There is a highly complex interplay between stromal signals, the immune system and tumour cells, at times possibly restraining tumour growth and at others supporting growth and metastasis. Understanding this complexity will enable the development of rational combinations with immunotherapy, priming the TME to offer immunotherapy the best chance of success. This review seeks to describe the unique challenges of the PDAC TME, the potential opportunities it may afford and the trials in progress capitalizing on recent insights in this area.


Gut ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. gutjnl-2020-323363
Author(s):  
Ester Pagano ◽  
Joshua E Elias ◽  
Georg Schneditz ◽  
Svetlana Saveljeva ◽  
Lorraine M Holland ◽  
...  

ObjectivePrimary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is in 70% of cases associated with inflammatory bowel disease. The hypermorphic T108M variant of the orphan G protein-coupled receptor GPR35 increases risk for PSC and ulcerative colitis (UC), conditions strongly predisposing for inflammation-associated liver and colon cancer. Lack of GPR35 reduces tumour numbers in mouse models of spontaneous and colitis associated cancer. The tumour microenvironment substantially determines tumour growth, and tumour-associated macrophages are crucial for neovascularisation. We aim to understand the role of the GPR35 pathway in the tumour microenvironment of spontaneous and colitis-associated colon cancers.DesignMice lacking GPR35 on their macrophages underwent models of spontaneous colon cancer or colitis-associated cancer. The role of tumour-associated macrophages was then assessed in biochemical and functional assays.ResultsHere, we show that GPR35 on macrophages is a potent amplifier of tumour growth by stimulating neoangiogenesis and tumour tissue remodelling. Deletion of Gpr35 in macrophages profoundly reduces tumour growth in inflammation-associated and spontaneous tumour models caused by mutant tumour suppressor adenomatous polyposis coli. Neoangiogenesis and matrix metalloproteinase activity is promoted by GPR35 via Na/K-ATPase-dependent ion pumping and Src activation, and is selectively inhibited by a GPR35-specific pepducin. Supernatants from human inducible-pluripotent-stem-cell derived macrophages carrying the UC and PSC risk variant stimulate tube formation by enhancing the release of angiogenic factors.ConclusionsActivation of the GPR35 pathway promotes tumour growth via two separate routes, by directly augmenting proliferation in epithelial cells that express the receptor, and by coordinating macrophages’ ability to create a tumour-permissive environment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 3831
Author(s):  
Tiziana Bachetti ◽  
Francesca Rosamilia ◽  
Martina Bartolucci ◽  
Giuseppe Santamaria ◽  
Manuela Mosconi ◽  
...  

Hirschsprung (HSCR) Associated Enterocolitis (HAEC) is a common life-threatening complication in HSCR. HAEC is suggested to be due to a loss of gut homeostasis caused by impairment of immune system, barrier defense, and microbiome, likely related to genetic causes. No gene has been claimed to contribute to HAEC occurrence, yet. Genetic investigation of HAEC by Whole-Exome Sequencing (WES) on 24 HSCR patients affected (HAEC) or not affected (HSCR-only) by enterocolitis and replication of results on a larger panel of patients allowed the identification of the HAEC susceptibility variant p.H187Q in the Oncostatin-M receptor (OSMR) gene (14.6% in HAEC and 5.1% in HSCR-only, p = 0.0024). Proteomic analysis on the lymphoblastoid cell lines from one HAEC patient homozygote for this variant and one HAEC patient not carrying the variant revealed two well distinct clusters of proteins significantly up or downregulated upon OSM stimulation. A marked enrichment in immune response pathways (q < 0.0001) was shown in the HAEC H187 cell line, while proteins upregulated in the HAEC Q187 lymphoblasts sustained pathways likely involved in pathogen infection and inflammation. In conclusion, OSMR p.H187Q is an HAEC susceptibility variant and perturbates the downstream signaling cascade necessary for the gut immune response and homeostasis maintenance.


Gut ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. gutjnl-2020-321112
Author(s):  
Dror Kolodkin-Gal ◽  
Lior Roitman ◽  
Yossi Ovadya ◽  
Narmen Azazmeh ◽  
Benjamin Assouline ◽  
...  

ObjectiveCellular senescence limits tumourigenesis by blocking the proliferation of premalignant cells. Additionally, however, senescent cells can exert paracrine effects influencing tumour growth. Senescent cells are present in premalignant pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PanIN) lesions, yet their effects on the disease are poorly characterised. It is currently unknown whether senolytic drugs, aimed at eliminating senescent cells from lesions, could be beneficial in blocking tumour development.DesignTo uncover the functions of senescent cells and their potential contribution to early pancreatic tumourigenesis, we isolated and characterised senescent cells from PanINs formed in a Kras-driven mouse model, and tested the consequences of their targeted elimination through senolytic treatment.ResultsWe found that senescent PanIN cells exert a tumour-promoting effect through expression of a proinflammatory signature that includes high Cox2 levels. Senolytic treatment with the Bcl2-family inhibitor ABT-737 eliminated Cox2-expressing senescent cells, and an intermittent short-duration treatment course dramatically reduced PanIN development and progression to pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.ConclusionsThese findings reveal that senescent PanIN cells support tumour growth and progression, and provide a first indication that elimination of senescent cells may be effective as preventive therapy for the progression of precancerous lesions.


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