scholarly journals Landscape Of M6a RNA Methylation Regulators and Tumor Microenvironment Cell-Infiltration Characterization In Gastroesophageal Adenocarcinomas

Author(s):  
Duanrui Liu ◽  
Jingyu Zhu ◽  
Zongming Wang ◽  
Yusong Fang ◽  
Mingjie Yuan ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: RNA N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification plays a nonnegligible role in shaping individual tumor microenvironment (TME) characterizations. However, the landscape and relationship of m6A modification and TME cell infiltration remain unknown in gastroesophageal adenocarcinomas (GEA). Methods: We systematically examined the TME of GEA focusing on the distinct m6A modification patterns from the public databases. Intrinsic patterns of m6A modification were evaluated for associations with clinicopathological characteristics, underlying biological pathways, tumor immune cell infiltration, oncological outcomes and treatment responses. We generated a single-cell transcriptome atlas of the GEA sample inhouse to validate the role of the m6A modification pattern on TME.Results: We identified and validated the landscape of m6A regulators and tumor-infiltrating immune cells in GEA. Then, two distinct m6A modification patterns of GEA (cluster1/2 subgroup) were defined, and we correlated two subgroups with TME cell-infiltrating characteristics. Cluster2 subgroup correlates with a poorer prognosis, down-regulated PD-1 expression, higher risk scores and distinct immune cell infiltration. Additionally, PPI and WGCNA network analysis were integrated to identify key module genes closely related to immune infiltration of GEA to find immunotherapy markers. And COL4A1 and COL5A2 in brown module were significantly correlated to the prognosis, PD-1/L1 and CTLA-4 expression of GEA patients. Interesting, low COL5A2 expression was linked to an enhanced response to anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. Finally, a prognostic risk score was constructed using three m6A regulator-associated signatures that represented an independent prognosis factor for GEA. The single-cell transcriptome atlas of GEA sample validated the role of m6A modification pattern on TME and revealed that three m6A regulators are highly expressed in CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, Tregs and Macrophages.Conclusions: Our work revealed m6A RNA methylation regulators are a type of vital participant in the malignant progression and TME diversity of GEA. m6A modification patterns of COL5A2 may be the potential biomarker contributes to predicting the response to anti-PD-1 immunotherapy.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Biao Huang ◽  
Wei Han ◽  
Zu-Feng Sheng ◽  
Guo-Liang Shen

Abstract Background Skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) is known as the most malignancy and treatment-resistant in human tumor, causing about 72% of deaths in skin carcinoma. However, the potential mechanism and new effective targets remain to be further elucidated. Available datasets such as Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) can be utilized to search for novel therapeutic targets and prognostic biomarkers. Methods Three data sets were downloaded from GEO database . The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified via Venn software. Protein‐protein interaction network of DEGs was developed and the module hub genes analysis was constructed by Cytoscape. Subsequently, multiple online tools and Kaplan-Meier survival curves were analyzed to detect underlying signaling pathways, gene expression, drug-gene interaction and prognostic value of hub genes. In addition, we explored the correlation between hub genes and immune cell infiltration. At last, the related miRNA, lncRNA networks were constructed by R software. Results A total of 308 DEGs and 12 hub genes were identified. Function and pathway enrichment results demonstrated a correlation between DEGs and the tumor microenvironment, immune response and melanoma tumorigenesis. Subsequently, we focused on assessing potential value of 12 hub genes. Seven hub genes ( CCL4, CCL5, NMU, GAL, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL13 ) were identified with significant overall survival for prognosis. What’s more, five of these seven hub genes were found to be related to clinical stages (P values<0.05). In addition, the most important pathways of hub genes include interleukin-10 signaling, peptide ligand-binding receptors, which play important roles in tumor microenvironment for immune activation or immunosuppressive by regulating the infiltration of immune cells. Our results revealed a strong positive correlation between gene expression (CCL4, CCL5, CXCL9, CXCL10 and CXCL13) and immune cell infiltration (B-cell, CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, macrophages, Neutrophils, Dendritic cells). Interestingly, 8 of 12 hub genes (CXCL10, CCL4, CCL5, IL6, CXCL2, PTGER3, GAL, NPY1R) were also found in the predicted drug-gene interaction. The related miRNA, lncRNA for diagnosis and prognosis were found in networks. Conclusion In conclusion, CCL4, CCL5, NMU, GAL, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL13 were of high prognostic value and may be potential targets for the diagnosis and therapy of patients with melanoma.


2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (24) ◽  
pp. e2103240118
Author(s):  
Yuping Zhang ◽  
Sathiya P. Narayanan ◽  
Rahul Mannan ◽  
Gregory Raskind ◽  
Xiaoming Wang ◽  
...  

Diverse subtypes of renal cell carcinomas (RCCs) display a wide spectrum of histomorphologies, proteogenomic alterations, immune cell infiltration patterns, and clinical behavior. Delineating the cells of origin for different RCC subtypes will provide mechanistic insights into their diverse pathobiology. Here, we employed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to develop benign and malignant renal cell atlases. Using a random forest model trained on this cell atlas, we predicted the putative cell of origin for more than 10 RCC subtypes. scRNA-seq also revealed several attributes of the tumor microenvironment in the most common subtype of kidney cancer, clear cell RCC (ccRCC). We elucidated an active role for tumor epithelia in promoting immune cell infiltration, potentially explaining why ccRCC responds to immune checkpoint inhibitors, despite having a low neoantigen burden. In addition, we characterized an association between high endothelial cell types and lack of response to immunotherapy in ccRCC. Taken together, these single-cell analyses of benign kidney and RCC provide insight into the putative cell of origin for RCC subtypes and highlight the important role of the tumor microenvironment in influencing ccRCC biology and response to therapy.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renpeng Ding ◽  
Shang Liu ◽  
Shanshan Wang ◽  
Huanyi Chen ◽  
Fei Wang ◽  
...  

AbstractPD-L1 expression levels in tumors do not consistently predict cancer patients’ response to PD-(L)1 inhibitors. We therefore evaluated how tumor PD-L1 levels affect the anti-PD-(L)1 efficacy and T cell function. We used MART-1-specific TCR-T cells (TCR-TMART-1) stimulated with MART-127-35 peptide-loaded MEL-526 tumor cells with different proportions of them expressing PD-L1 to perform cellular assays and high-throughput single-cell RNA sequencing. Compared to control T cells, TCR-TMART-1 were more sensitive to exhaustion and secreted lower pro-inflammatory but higher anti-inflammatory cytokines with increasing proportions of PD-L1+ tumor cells. The colocalization of T cells and tumor cells in gene clusters correlated negatively with the proportion of PD-L1+ tumor cells and positively with immune cell cytotoxicity. Moreover, elevated proportion of PD-L1+ tumor cells increased PD-L1 expression and decreased PD-1 expression on T cells and enhanced T cell death. The expression of PD-1 and PD-L1 in T cells and macrophages also correlated positively with COVID-19 severity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liting Wu ◽  
Along Gao ◽  
Lan Li ◽  
Jianlin Chen ◽  
Jun Li ◽  
...  

Teleost fish anterior kidney (AK) is an important hematopoietic organ with multifarious immune cells, which have immune functions comparable to mammalian bone marrow. Myeloid and lymphoid cells locate in the AK, but the lack of useful specific gene markers and antibody-based reagents for the cell subsets makes the identification of the different cell types difficult. Single-cell transcriptome sequencing enables single-cell capture and individual library construction, making the study on the immune cell heterogeneity of teleost fish AK possible. In this study, we examined the transcriptional patterns of 11,388 AK leukocytes using 10× Genomics single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). A total of 22 clusters corresponding to five distinct immune cell subsets were identified, which included B cells, T cells, granulocytes, macrophages, and dendritic cells (DCs). However, the subsets of myeloid cells (granulocytes, macrophages, and DCs) were not identified in more detail according to the known specific markers, even though significant differences existed among the clusters. Thereafter, we highlighted the B-cell subsets and identified them as pro/pre B cells, immature/mature B cells, activated B/plasmablasts, or plasma cells based on the different expressions of the transcription factors (TFs) and cytokines. Clustering of the differentially modulated genes by pseudo-temporal trajectory analysis of the B-cell subsets showed the distinct kinetics of the responses of TFs to cell conversion. Moreover, we classified the T cells and discovered that CD3+CD4−CD8−, CD3+CD4+CD8+, CD4+CD8−, and CD4−CD8+ T cells existed in AK, but neither CD4+CD8− nor CD4−CD8+ T cells can be further classified into subsets based on the known TFs and cytokines. Pseudotemporal analysis demonstrated that CD4+CD8− and CD4−CD8+ T cells belonged to different states with various TFs that might control their differentiation. The data obtained above provide a valuable and detailed resource for uncovering the leukocyte subsets in Nile tilapia AK, as well as more potential markers for identifying the myeloid and lymphoid cell types.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (Suppl 3) ◽  
pp. A676-A676
Author(s):  
Yoshihiro Kushihara ◽  
Yukari Kobayashi ◽  
Koji Nagaoka ◽  
Kazuhiro Kakimi

BackgroundIt has been widely accepted that O6-methyl-guanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation in glioblastoma is associated with a benefit from temozolomide (TMZ) treatment. MGMT is a DNA repair protein that removes the cytotoxic O6-methylguanine (O6MG) DNA lesions generated by TMZ; thereby, MGMT expression is mechanistically linked to TMZ resistance. However, thus far, there is no effective treatment for these patients with MGMT promoter unmethylated. Therefore, a new treatment for GBM patients with MGMT expression is urgently needed.1 2 To this end, we examined the tumor microenvironment in GBM with or without MGMT expression.MethodsBased on The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) primary GBM cohort, the tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte expression level was calculated using the CIBERSORTx algorithms and the single-sample Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (ssGSEA) method. Furthermore, the differential expression gene analysis was conducted and pathway analysis was performed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA). The results were validated using the GBM cohort from the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) database. In addition, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) were isolated from 13 surgically removed primary GBM tumors in our institution. Their responses to autologous tumors were evaluated by IFNγ ELISA.ResultsT cells CD8 score by CIBERSORTx was significantly higher in the MGMT-high tumor. Similarly, ssGSEA scores for activated CD8 T cell, Macrophage, activated B cell, and Type 1 T helper cell were significantly higher in the MGMT-high tumor. Conversely, T cells CD4 naive was significantly higher in the MGMT-low tumor. These results indicate that more immune cell infiltration is associated with MGMT-high tumors. Consistently, tumor-reactive TILs were detected in the MGMT-high tumor. Pathway analysis showed that oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) was highly enriched in the MGMT-high tumor.There were many CD8 T cells and tumor-reactive T cells in the MGMT-high tumors. However, it has been reported that anti-PD-1/PD-L1 monotherapy was not effective in glioblastoma. In this study, we demonstrated that OXPHOS was highly activated in the MGMT-high tumors. Thus, metabolic therapy can be combined with immunotherapy in these MGMT-high tumors to enhance anti-tumor immune responses.ConclusionsAlthough MGMT-high tumors are resistant to TMZ, the existence of immune cell infiltration in the tumor microenvironment of MGMT-high tumors suggest the potential of immunotherapy in these patients.ReferencesStupp R, Hegi ME, Mason WP, van den Bent MJ, Taphoorn MJB, Janzer RC, Ludwin SK, Allgeier A, Fisher B, Belanger K, Hau P, Brandes AA, Gijtenbeek J, Marosi C, Vecht CJ, Mokhtari K, Wesseling P, Villa S, Eisenhauer E, Gorlia T, Weller M, Lacombe D, Cairncross Jy, Mirimanoff R-O, European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Brain Tumour and Radiation Oncology Groups; National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group. Lancet Oncol 2009;10(5):459–66.Wick W, Weller M, van den Bent M, Sanson M, Weiler M, von Deimling A, Plass C, Hegi M, Platten M, Reifenberger G. Nat Rev Neurol 2014;;10(7):372–85.Ethics ApprovalG3545-(26)ConsentWritten informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this abstract and any accompanying images. A copy of the written consent is available for review by the Editor of this journal.


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ju Liu ◽  
Xiaoyan Yang ◽  
Jiali Pan ◽  
Zhihua Wei ◽  
Peidong Liu ◽  
...  

Relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody-associated disease (MOGAD) are inflammatory demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). Due to the shared clinical manifestations, detection of disease-specific serum antibody of the two diseases is currently considered as the gold standard for the diagnosis; however, the serum antibody levels are unpredictable during different stages of the two diseases. Herein, peripheral blood single-cell transcriptome was used to unveil distinct immune cell signatures of the two diseases, with the aim to provide predictive discrimination. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was conducted on the peripheral blood from three subjects, i.e., one patient with RRMS, one patient with MOGAD, and one patient with healthy control. The results showed that the CD19+ CXCR4+ naive B cell subsets were significantly expanded in both RRMS and MOGAD, which was verified by flow cytometry. More importantly, RRMS single-cell transcriptomic was characterized by increased naive CD8+ T cells and cytotoxic memory-like Natural Killer (NK) cells, together with decreased inflammatory monocytes, whereas MOGAD exhibited increased inflammatory monocytes and cytotoxic CD8 effector T cells, coupled with decreased plasma cells and memory B cells. Collectively, our findings indicate that the two diseases exhibit distinct immune cell signatures, which allows for highly predictive discrimination of the two diseases and paves a novel avenue for diagnosis and therapy of neuroinflammatory diseases.


Author(s):  
Lu Yuan ◽  
Xixi Wu ◽  
Longshan Zhang ◽  
Mi Yang ◽  
Xiaoqing Wang ◽  
...  

AbstractPulmonary surfactant protein A1 (SFTPA1) is a member of the C-type lectin subfamily that plays a critical role in maintaining lung tissue homeostasis and the innate immune response. SFTPA1 disruption can cause several acute or chronic lung diseases, including lung cancer. However, little research has been performed to associate SFTPA1 with immune cell infiltration and the response to immunotherapy in lung cancer. The findings of our study describe the SFTPA1 expression profile in multiple databases and was validated in BALB/c mice, human tumor tissues, and paired normal tissues using an immunohistochemistry assay. High SFTPA1 mRNA expression was associated with a favorable prognosis through a survival analysis in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) samples from TCGA. Further GeneOntology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses showed that SFTPA1 was involved in the toll-like receptor signaling pathway. An immune infiltration analysis clarified that high SFTPA1 expression was associated with an increased number of M1 macrophages, CD8+ T cells, memory activated CD4+ T cells, regulatory T cells, as well as a reduced number of M2 macrophages. Our clinical data suggest that SFTPA1 may serve as a biomarker for predicting a favorable response to immunotherapy for patients with LUAD. Collectively, our study extends the expression profile and potential regulatory pathways of SFTPA1 and may provide a potential biomarker for establishing novel preventive and therapeutic strategies for lung adenocarcinoma.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander J. Dwyer ◽  
Jacob M. Ritz ◽  
Jason S. Mitchell ◽  
Tijana Martinov ◽  
Mohannad Alkhatib ◽  
...  

AbstractThe notion that T cell insulitis increases as type 1 diabetes (T1D) develops is unsurprising, however, the quantitative analysis of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells within the islet mass is complex and limited with standard approaches. Optical microscopy is an important and widely used method to evaluate immune cell infiltration into pancreatic islets of Langerhans for the study of disease progression or therapeutic efficacy in murine T1D. However, the accuracy of this approach is often limited by subjective and potentially biased qualitative assessment of immune cell subsets. In addition, attempts at quantitative measurements require significant time for manual analysis and often involve sophisticated and expensive imaging software. In this study, we developed and illustrate here a streamlined analytical strategy for the rapid, automated and unbiased investigation of islet area and immune cell infiltration within (insulitis) and around (peri-insulitis) pancreatic islets. To this end, we demonstrate swift and accurate detection of islet borders by modeling cross-sectional islet areas with convex polygons (convex hulls) surrounding islet-associated insulin-producing β cell and glucagon-producing α cell fluorescent signals. To accomplish this, we used a macro produced with the freeware software ImageJ equipped with the Fiji Is Just ImageJ (FIJI) image processing package. Our image analysis procedure allows for direct quantification and statistical determination of islet area and infiltration in a reproducible manner, with location-specific data that more accurately reflect islet areas as insulitis proceeds throughout T1D. Using this approach, we quantified the islet area infiltrated with CD4+ and CD8+ T cells allowing statistical comparison between different age groups of non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice progressing towards T1D. We found significantly more CD4+ and CD8+ T cells infiltrating the convex hull-defined islet mass of 13-week-old non-diabetic and 17-week-old diabetic NOD mice compared to 4-week-old NOD mice. We also determined a significant and measurable loss of islet mass in mice that developed T1D. This approach will be helpful for the location-dependent quantitative calculation of islet mass and cellular infiltration during T1D pathogenesis and can be combined with other markers of inflammation or activation in future studies.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Lianxiang Luo ◽  
Yushi Zheng ◽  
Zhiping Lin ◽  
Xiaodi Li ◽  
Xiaoling Li ◽  
...  

It has attracted growing attention that the role of serine hydroxy methyl transferase 2 (SHMT2) in various types of cancers. However, the prognostic role of SHMT2 in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and its relationship with immune cell infiltration is not clear. In this study, the information of mRNA expression and clinic data in LUAD were, respectively, downloaded from the GEO and TCGA database. We conducted a biological analysis to select the signature gene SHMT2. Online databases including Oncomine, GEPIA, TISIDB, TIMER, and HPA were applied to analyze the characterization of SHMT2 expression, prognosis, and the correlation with immune infiltration in LUAD. The mRNA expression and protein expression of SHMT2 in LUAD tissues were higher than in normal tissue. A Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that patients with lower expression level of SHMT2 had a better overall survival rate. Multivariate analysis and the Cox proportional hazard regression model revealed that SHMT2 expression was an independent prognostic factor in patients with LUAD. Meanwhile, the gene SHMT2 was highly associated with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in LUAD. These results suggest that the SHMT2 gene is a promising candidate as a potential prognostic biomarker and highly associated with different types of immune cell infiltration in LUAD.


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