The IMiDs® Immunomodulatory Drugs Revlimid® (Lenalidomide) and CC-4047 Induce Growth Arrest and Apoptosis in NHL Tumor Cells In Vitro.

Blood ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (11) ◽  
pp. 2388-2388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura G. Corral ◽  
Dan Zhu ◽  
Yuedi Wang ◽  
Bernd Stein

Abstract IMiDs® immunomodulatory drugs are thalidomide analogues that have been developed for improved anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties and decreased side effects. Many IMiDs® immunomodulatory drugs have been shown to have activities in hematologic cancers and solid malignancies, as well as having profound effects on the bone marrow microenvironment. Specifically in NHL, it was shown that addition of Revlimid® or CC-4047 to Rituxan enhances anti-tumor activity in a SCID mouse lymphoma model. Here we tested the direct effects of Revlimid® and CC-4047 on NHL tumor cells by treating Raji cells with each drug alone or with each drug in combination with anti-CD20 antibodies B1 and Rituxan. CC-4047 alone caused up to 40% inhibition of proliferation at 10 μM in Raji cells, which corresponded to G1 arrest. In combination with B1, CC-4047 showed a small additive effect at 10 μM while Revlimid® effects were minimal up to 10 μM. In combination with Rituxan, CC-4047 showed a slight additive effect at 10 μM and Revlimid® at 50 μM. We have also developed a co-culture assay of PBMC and NHL tumor cells as an in vitro model of tumor-host immune system interaction, to further explore the anti-tumor potential of the drugs in NHL. This assay is non-radioactive and flow cytometry based. In this co-culture system using Raji and PBMC, we have shown that pre-treatment of PBMC with Revlimid® or CC-4047 can enhance the PBMC activity in inducing Raji cell apoptosis in a dose dependent manner. In addition, our data indicate that pre-treatment of Raji cells with Rituxan can further enhance the apoptosis induced by PBMC pre-treated with Revlimid® or CC-4047. Since minimal additive effect between each drug and Rituxan was observed in the Raji single tumor cell model, these studies suggest that the co-culture system is a more appropriate cellular model to assess the anti-tumor activities of certain IMiDs® immunomodulatory drugs. This system can reveal the effects of certain IMiD® immunomodulatory drugs not observable with single tumor cell proliferation models. In summary, our data clearly demonstrate that Revlimid® and CC-4047 directly induce NHL tumor cell growth arrest and effectively enhance tumor cell apoptosis induced by PBMC. These results support clinical evaluation of Revlimid® and certain IMiDs® immunomodulatory drugs in relapsed B-cell NHL in combination with Rituxan.

Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (21) ◽  
pp. 5113-5113
Author(s):  
Valentina Rapozzi ◽  
Sara Huerta-Yepez ◽  
Abhijeet Joshi ◽  
Mario I. Vega ◽  
Stavroula Baritaki ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 5113 Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a cancer therapeutic treatment that uses a compound called the “photosensitizer” and a particular type of visible light. When photosensitizers are exposed to a specific wavelength of light (600-800 nm), cytotoxic oxygen species are generated that kill cells (Dougherty, TJ et al., JNCI 90:889, 1998). Several clinical trials are currently underway to evaluate the use of PDT for a variety of cancers. A phase II study has been completed with photodynamic therapy in the treatment of patients with lymphoma or chronic lymphocytic leukemia. (NCT00054171). Recently, we have focused our attention about the properties of the photosensitizer Pheophorbide a (Pba), a chlorine, and its effects on different types of solid tumor cells (Rapozzi, V et al., Cancer Biol Ther 14:1318, 2009). The objective of the present study is to investigate the biochemical and molecular mechanisms by which PDT signals the B-NHL Raji lymphoma cell line (as model) and rendering the cells susceptible to both the cytotoxic mechanism of the tumor microenvironment in vivo or to the response to cytotoxic agents in vitro. We hypothesized that treatment of Raji cells with Pba/PDT in our in vitro system may result in the inhibition of resistance factors that regulate tumor cell responses to both chemotherapeutic and immunotherapeutic drugs. Our recent findings demonstrated that the constitutively overexpressed transcription factor Yin Yang 1 (YY1) regulates, in part, tumor cell resistance in lymphoma (Vega, MI et al., J Immun 175:2174, 2005). Accordingly, we examined whether treatment of Raji lymphoma cells with Pba/PDT will also result in the downregulation of YY1 expression and reverse resistance. The Raji cells were seeded at a cell density of 2×105/ml in Petri dishes. When the cells reached a 70% confluency, they were treated with different concentration (80-160-240 nM) of Pba for three hours in the dark and were then irradiated by an LED light source (640 nm at 12,7 mW for 9 min; 6.7 J/cm2). Following the light treatment, the cells were harvested at different times of incubation (18-36h) to assess apoptosis by the activation of caspase 3 using flow cytometry. In addition, different aliquots of cells were used to prepare slides for immunohistochemistry analyses. The results demonstrate that, indeed, treatment with Pba/PDT resulted in the inhibition of YY1 protein expression in Raji cells. By immunohistochemistry, PDT inhibited the basal nuclear and cytoplasmic expression of YY1 and resulted in weak cytoplasmic YY1 expression. The mechanism of YY1 inhibition might have been the result of PDT-mediated inhibition of NF-κB activity (Karmakar, S. et al., Neurosci lett 415: 242, 2007) since YY1 is transcriptionally regulated by NF-κB (Wang, H et al., Mol Cell Biol 67:4374, 2007). In addition, our preliminary findings demonstrate that treatment of drug-resistant tumor cells with PDT sensitizes the cells to drug-induced apoptosis. Overall, the data suggest that YY1 may be considered as a novel therapeutic target in PDT. Based on the findings here, we are currently examining the role of PDT in the dysregulation of the NF-κB/YY1/Snail/RKIP loop (Wu, K and Bonavida, B. Crit Rev Immun 29:241, 2009) that regulates cell survival and proliferation and resistance in lymphoma. (We acknowledge Doctors Oscar Stafsudd and Romaine Saxton for their assistance.) Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


2011 ◽  
Vol 131 (2) ◽  
pp. 645-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johanna H. Vestjens ◽  
Maaike de Boer ◽  
Paul J. van Diest ◽  
Carolien H. van Deurzen ◽  
Jos A. van Dijck ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. iii278-iii278
Author(s):  
Viktoria Melcher ◽  
Monika Graf ◽  
Marta Interlandi ◽  
Natalia Moreno ◽  
Flavia W de Faria ◽  
...  

Abstract Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors (ATRT) are pediatric brain neoplasms that are known for their heterogeneity concerning pathophysiology and outcome. The three genetically rather uniform but epigenetically distinct molecular subgroups of ATRT alone do not sufficiently explain the clinical heterogeneity. Therefore, we examined the tumor microenvironment (TME) in the context of tumor diversity. By using multiplex-immunofluorescent staining and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) we unveiled the pan-macrophage marker CD68 as a subgroup-independent negative prognostic marker for survival of ATRT patients. ScRNA-seq analysis of murine ATRT-SHH, ATRT-MYC and extracranial RT (eRT) provide a delineation of the TME, which is predominantly infiltrated by myeloid cells: more specifically a microglia-enriched niche in ATRT-SHH and a bone marrow-derived macrophage infiltration in ATRT-MYC and eRT. Exploring the cell-cell communication of tumor cells with tumor-associated immune cells, we found that Cd68+ tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are central to intercellular communication with tumor cells. Moreover, we uncovered distinct tumor phenotypes in murine ATRT-MYC that share genetic traits with TAMs. These intermediary cells considerably increase the intratumoral heterogeneity of ATRT-MYC tumors. In vitro co-culture experiments recapitulated the capability of ATRT-MYC cells to interchange cell material with macrophages extensively, in contrast to ATRT-SHH cells. We found that microglia are less involved in the exchange of information with ATRT cells and that direct contact is a prerequisite for incorporation. A relapse xenograft model implied that intermediary cells are involved in the acquisition of chemotherapy resistance. We show evidence that TAM-tumor cell interaction is one mechanism of chemotherapy resistance and relapse in ATRT.


1976 ◽  
Vol 143 (3) ◽  
pp. 601-614 ◽  
Author(s):  
J W Schrader ◽  
G M Edelman

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes were generated in vitro against H-2 compatible or syngeneic tumor cells. In vitro cytotoxic activity was inhibited by specific anti-H2 sera, suggesting that H-2 antigens are involved in cell lysis. Two observations directly demonstrated the participation of the H-2 antigens on the tumor cells in their lysis by H-2-compatible T cells. First, coating of the H-2 antigens on the target tumor cell reduced the number of cells lysed on subsequent exposure to cytotoxic T cells. Second, when cytotoxic T cells were activated against an H-2 compatible tumor and assayed against an H-2-incompatible tumor, anti-H-2 serum that could bind to the target cell, but not to the cytotoxic lymphocyte, inhibited lysis. H-2 antigens were also shown to be present on the cytotoxic lymphocytes. Specific antisera reacting with these H-2 antigens, but not those of the target cell, failed to inhibit lysis when small numbers of effector cells were assayed against H-2-incompatible target cells or when effector cells of F1-hybrid origin and bearing two H-2 haplotypes were assayed against a tumor cell of one of the parental strains. These findings suggest that it is the H-2 antigens on the tumor cell and not those on the cytotoxic lymphocytes that are important in cell-mediated lysis of H-2-compatible tumor cells.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (Suppl 3) ◽  
pp. A122-A122
Author(s):  
Seth Eisenberg ◽  
Amy Powers ◽  
Jason Lohmueller ◽  
James Luketich ◽  
Rajeev Dhupar ◽  
...  

BackgroundChimeric antigen receptors (CAR) have demonstrated remarkable efficacy in licensing T cells for antitumor responses against hematopoietic malignancies but have had limited success against solid tumors. Macrophages, both archetypic phagocytes and professional antigen presenting cells, may exert profound effector functions which complement adaptive cellular immunity.1 Recently, it was shown that human macrophages engineered to express CARs (CAR-Ms) demonstrated antigen-specific phagocytosis, inhibited solid xenograph tumors, and induced an inflammatory tumor microenvironment boosting antitumor T cell responses.2 Kimura et al. previously completed the first prophylactic cancer vaccine trial based on a non-viral antigen, tumor-associated hypoglycosylated Mucin 1 (MUC1).3 A panel of fully-human affinity-matured MUC1-specific antibodies raised in healthy subjects following immunization was identified from these patients.4 Using these MUC1-specific scFv domains for CAR generation, we have now engineered MUC1-targeting CAR-Ms that may potentially possess reduced off-target specificities.MethodsLentiviral CAR expression vectors containing the scFv domains of three unique hypoglycosylated MUC1-specific antibodies or a CD20-specific antibody, the CD3zeta signaling domain, and CD28 and OX40 co-stimulatory domains were constructed. The human monocyte/macrophage U937, SC, and THP-1 lines were stably transduced and flow-sort purified to generate MUC1- or CD20-specific CAR-Ms. CAR-Ms were differentiated into macrophages via 48 hour PMA treatment, and subsequently evaluated for antigen-specific function against MUC1- and/or CD20-expressing K562, ZR-75-1, and Raji cells or cancer cells isolated from solid lung tumors or malignant pleural effusions. CAR-M phenotype was evaluated by flow cytometry following in vitro differentiation and polarization with conventional ‘M1’ and ‘M2’ stimuli. Phagocytosis and lysosomal processing of phagocytosed cargo were evaluated by fluorescence microscopy of GFP/CellTrace labeled targets or detection of pH-sensitive pHrodo expression following CAR-M and tumor cell co-culture, respectively. Antigen-specific cytokine production was determined via cytometric bead array following co-culture of CAR-Ms with MUC1- or CD20-expressing tumor cells or 100mer MUC1 peptide.ResultsDifferentiated CAR-Ms possessed an inflammatory phenotype expressing IL-8 and CD86 which was further enhanced by IFNgamma or LPS treatment and was resistant to ‘M2’ polarization with conventional stimuli. CAR-Ms exhibited phagocytosis and subsequent lysosomal processing in an antigen-specific manner, with minimal reactivity against tumor cell targets in the absence of the corresponding MUC1 or CD20 antigen. MUC1-specific CAR-Ms stimulated with MUC1 peptide or MUC1+ tumor cells secreted robust levels of pro-inflammatory IL-8, TNFa, and IL-1beta, but not immunosuppressive IL-10.ConclusionsMUC1-targeting CAR-Ms exert potent tumor-restricted effector function in vitro and may provide a novel treatment strategy either alone or in potential synergistic combination with T cell-mediated immunotherapies.AcknowledgementsThe authors would like to thank Dr. Olivera J. Finn for generously providing reagents and guidance and Dr. Michael T. Lotze for his mentorship. This study was supported by funding from the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery to ACS and RD.ReferencesWilliams CB, Yeh ES, Soloff AC. Tumor-associated macrophages: unwitting accomplices in breast cancer malignancy. Npj Breast Cancer [Internet]. Breast Cancer Research Foundation/Macmillan Publishers Limited; 2016;2:15025. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/npjbcancer.2015.25Klichinsky M, Ruella M, Shestova O, Lu XM, Best A, Zeeman M, et al. Human chimeric antigen receptor macrophages for cancer immunotherapy. Nat Biotechnol 2020;38:947–53.Kimura T, McKolanis JR, Dzubinski LA, Islam K, Potter DM, Salazar AM, et al. MUC1 Vaccine for Individuals with Advanced Adenoma of the Colon: A Cancer Immunoprevention Feasibility Study. Cancer Prev Res [Internet] 2013;6:18–26. Available from: http://cancerpreventionresearch.aacrjournals.org/content/6/1/18.abstractLohmueller JJ, Sato S, Popova L, Chu IM, Tucker MA, Barberena R, et al. Antibodies elicited by the first non-viral prophylactic cancer vaccine show tumor-specificity and immunotherapeutic potential. Sci Rep 2016;6:31740.Ethics ApprovalThe study was approved by the University of Pittsburgh’s Institutional Review Board approval number CR19120172-005.


1997 ◽  
Vol 186 (12) ◽  
pp. 1985-1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qin Yu ◽  
Bryan P. Toole ◽  
Ivan Stamenkovic

To understand how the hyaluronan receptor CD44 regulates tumor metastasis, the murine mammary carcinoma TA3/St, which constitutively expresses cell surface CD44, was transfected with cDNAs encoding soluble isoforms of CD44 and the transfectants (TA3sCD44) were compared with parental cells (transfected with expression vector only) for growth in vivo and in vitro. Local release of soluble CD44 by the transfectants inhibited the ability of endogenous cell surface CD44 to bind and internalize hyaluronan and to mediate TA3 cell invasion of hyaluronan-producing cell monolayers. Mice intravenously injected with parental TA3/St cells developed massive pulmonary metastases within 21–28 d, whereas animals injected with TA3sCD44 cells developed few or no tumors. Tracing of labeled parental and transfectant tumor cells revealed that both cell types initially adhered to pulmonary endothelium and penetrated the interstitial stroma. However, although parental cells were dividing and forming clusters within lung tissue 48 h following injection, >80% of TA3sCD44 cells underwent apoptosis. Although sCD44 transfectants displayed a marked reduction in their ability to internalize and degrade hyaluronan, they elicited abundant local hyaluronan production within invaded lung tissue, comparable to that induced by parental cells. These observations provide direct evidence that cell surface CD44 function promotes tumor cell survival in invaded tissue and that its suppression can induce apoptosis of the invading tumor cells, possibly as a result of impairing their ability to penetrate the host tissue hyaluronan barrier.


1974 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 661-674 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Cailleau ◽  
R. Young ◽  
M. Olivé ◽  
W. J. Reeves

Summary During 1973, 4 new epithelial tumor cell lines were isolated from pleural effusions from breast cancer patients. We describe 3 of these lines: MDA-MB-134, with a mean chromosome number of 43; MDA-MB-175, with a mean chromosome number of 49; and MDA-MB-231, with a mean chromosome number between 65 and 69. We isolated the same cell type from 4 of 10 effusions from MDA-MB-134 and from 6 of 8 effusions from MDA-MB-175. We found that pleural effusions as a source of breast tumor cells to be cultured and studied in vitro have the following advantages: 1) large amounts of material and the possibility of obtaining sequential samples from the same patient; 2) high viability of tumor cells; 3) scarcity or absence of fibroblasts; and 4) the possibility of separating the tumor cells from other “contaminating” cell types by differences in their speed or degree of attachment to the flask. All lines from different patients differed, as seen grossly and microscopically. All lines from sequential pleural effusions from the same patient were apparently alike. No viruses or mycoplasmas were detected in any line.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huazhen Xu ◽  
Tongfei Li ◽  
Chao Wang ◽  
Yan Ma ◽  
Yan Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) are the most abundant stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment. Turning the TAM against their host tumor cells is an intriguing therapeutic strategy particularly attractive for patients with immunologically “cold” tumors. This concept was mechanistically demonstrated on in vitro human and murine lung cancer cells and their corresponding TAM models through combinatorial use of nanodiamond-doxorubicin conjugates (Nano-DOX) and a PD-L1 blocking agent BMS-1. Nano-DOX are an agent previously proved to be able to stimulate tumor cells’ immunogenicity and thereby reactivate the TAM into the anti-tumor M1 phenotype. Results: Nano-DOX were first shown to stimulate the tumor cells and the TAM to release the cytokine HMGB1 which, regardless of its source, acted through the RAGE/NF-κB pathway to induce PD-L1 in the tumor cells and PD-L1/PD-1 in the TAM. Interestingly, Nano-DOX also induced NF-κB-dependent RAGE expression in the tumor cells and thus reinforced HMGB1’s action thereon. Then, BMS-1 was shown to enhance Nano-DOX-stimulated M1-type activation of TAM both by blocking Nano-DOX-induced PD-L1 in the TAM and by blocking tumor cell PD-L1 ligation with TAM PD-1. The TAM with enhanced M1-type repolarization both killed the tumor cells and suppressed their growth. BMS-1 could also potentiate Nano-DOX’s action to suppress tumor cell growth via blocking of Nano-DOX-induced PD-L1 therein. Finally, Nano-DOX and BMS-1 achieved synergistic therapeutic efficacy against in vivo tumor grafts in a TAM-dependent manner. Conclusions: PD-L1/PD-1 upregulation mediated by autocrine and paracrine activation of the HMGB1/RAGE/NF-κB signaling is a key response of lung cancer cells and their TAM to stress, which can be induced by Nano-DOX. Blockade of Nano-DOX-induced PD-L1, both in the cancer cells and the TAM, achieves enhanced activation of TAM-mediated anti-tumor response.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mustafa Magan ◽  
Emilia Wiechec ◽  
Karin Roberg

Abstract Background Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a heterogeneous group of tumors for which the overall survival rate worldwide is around 60%. The tumor microenvironment, including cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), is believed to affect the treatment response and migration of HNSCC. The aim of this study was to create a biologically relevant HNSCC in vitro model consisting of both tumor cells and CAFs cultured in 3D to establish predictive biomarkers for treatment response, as well as to investigate the impact of CAFs on phenotype, proliferation and treatment response in HNSCC cells. Methods Three different HNSCC patient-derived tumor cell lines were cultured with and without CAFs in a 3D model. Immunohistochemistry of the proliferation marker Ki67, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and fibronectin and a TUNEL-assay were performed to analyze the effect of CAFs on both tumor cell proliferation and response to cisplatin and cetuximab treatment in tumor spheroids (3D). mRNA expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cancer stem cells markers were analyzed using qRT-PCR. Results The results demonstrated increased cell proliferation within the tumor spheroids in the presence of CAFs, correlating with increased expression of EGFR. In spheroids with increased expression of EGFR, a potentiated response to cetuximab treatment was observed. Surprisingly, an increase in Ki67 expressing tumor cells were observed in spheroids treated with cisplatin for 3 days, correlating with increased expression of EGFR. Furthermore, tumor cells co-cultured with CAFs presented an increased EMT phenotype compared to tumor cells cultured alone in 3D. Conclusion Taken together, our results reveal increased cell proliferation and elevated expression of EGFR in HNSCC tumor spheroids in the presence of CAFs. These results, together with the altered EMT phenotype, may influence the response to cetuximab or cisplatin treatment.


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