技术资料

Metabolic reprogramming is associated with myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) immunosuppressive function. Here,we outline the process for acquiring MDSCs from human and murine sources for subsequent analysis of fatty acid oxidation,oxidative phosphorylation,and glycolysis using the Seahorse XFe 96 Analyzer. Murine MDSCs can be isolated directly from tumor-bearing mice or derived through IL-6 and GM-CSF culture of bone marrow cells from non-tumor-bearing mice. To generate human MDSCs,peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) can be cultured with IL-6 and GM-CSF. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol,please refer to Mohammadpour et al. (2021). View Publication

Adoptive transfer of T cells expressing chimeric antigen receptors (CAR-T) effectively treats refractory hematologic malignancies in a subset of patients but can be limited by poor T-cell expansion and persistence in vivo. Less differentiated T-cell states correlate with the capacity of CAR-T to proliferate and mediate antitumor responses,and interventions that limit tumor-specific T-cell differentiation during ex vivo manufacturing enhance efficacy. NOTCH signaling is involved in fate decisions across diverse cell lineages and in memory CD8+ T cells was reported to upregulate the transcription factor FOXM1,attenuate differentiation,and enhance proliferation and antitumor efficacy in vivo. Here,we used a cell-free culture system to provide an agonistic NOTCH1 signal during na{\{i}}ve CD4+ T-cell activation and CAR-T production and studied the effects on differentiation transcription factor expression cytokine production and responses to tumor. NOTCH1 agonism efficiently induced a stem cell memory phenotype in CAR-T derived from na{\"{i}}ve but not memory CD4+ T cells and upregulated expression of AhR and c-MAF driving heightened production of interleukin-22 interleukin-10 and granzyme B. NOTCH1-agonized CD4+ CAR-T demonstrated enhanced antigen responsiveness and proliferated to strikingly higher frequencies in mice bearing human lymphoma xenografts. NOTCH1-agonized CD4+ CAR-T also provided superior help to cotransferred CD8+ CAR-T driving improved expansion and curative antitumor responses in vivo at low CAR-T doses. Our data expand the mechanisms by which NOTCH can shape CD4+ T-cell behavior and demonstrate that activating NOTCH1 signaling during genetic modification ex vivo is a potential strategy for enhancing the function of T cells engineered with tumor-targeting receptors." View Publication

Most cancer vaccines target peptide antigens,necessitating personalization owing to the vast inter-individual diversity in major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules that present peptides to T cells. Furthermore,tumours frequently escape T cell-mediated immunity through mechanisms that interfere with peptide presentation1. Here we report a cancer vaccine that induces a coordinated attack by diverse T cell and natural killer (NK) cell populations. The vaccine targets the MICA and MICB (MICA/B) stress proteins expressed by many human cancers as a result of DNA damage2. MICA/B serve as ligands for the activating NKG2D receptor on T cells and NK cells,but tumours evade immune recognition by proteolytic MICA/B cleavage3,4. Vaccine-induced antibodies increase the density of MICA/B proteins on the surface of tumour cells by inhibiting proteolytic shedding,enhance presentation of tumour antigens by dendritic cells to T cells and augment the cytotoxic function of NK cells. Notably,this vaccine maintains efficacy against MHC class I-deficient tumours resistant to cytotoxic T cells through the coordinated action of NK cells and CD4+ T cells. The vaccine is also efficacious in a clinically important setting: immunization following surgical removal of primary,highly metastatic tumours inhibits the later outgrowth of metastases. This vaccine design enables protective immunity even against tumours with common escape mutations. View Publication

Conditioning regimens used for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) can escalate the severity of acute T cell-mediated graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) by disrupting gastrointestinal integrity and initiating lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-dependent innate immune cell activation. Activation of the complement cascade has been associated with murine GVHD,and previous work has shown that alternative pathway complement activation can amplify T cell immunity. Whether and how mannan-binding lectin (MBL),a component of the complement system that binds mannose as well as oligosaccharide components of LPS and lipoteichoic acid,affects GVHD is unknown. In this study,we tested the hypothesis that MBL modulates murine GVHD and examined the mechanisms by which it does so. We adoptively transferred C3.SW bone marrow (BM) cells ± T cells into irradiated wild type (WT) or MBL-deficient C57Bl/6 (B6) recipients with or without inhibiting MBL-initiated complement activation using C1-esterase inhibitor (C1-INH). We analyzed the clinical severity of disease expression and analyzed intestinal gene and cell infiltration. In vitro studies assessed MBL expression on antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and compared LPS-induced responses of WT and MBL-deficient APCs. MBL-deficient recipients of donor BM ± T cells exhibited significantly less weight loss over the first 2 weeks post-transplantation weeks compared with B6 controls (P < .05),with similar donor engraftment in the 2 groups. In recipients of C3.SW BM + T cells,the clinical expression of GVHD was less severe (P < .05) and overall survival was better (P < .05) in MBL-deficient mice compared with WT mice. On day-7 post-transplantation,analyses showed that the MBL-deficient recipients exhibited less intestinal IL1b,IL17,and IL12 p40 gene expression (P < .05 for each) and fewer infiltrating intestinal CD11c+,CD11b+,and F4/80+ cells and TCR$\beta$+,CD4+,CD4+IL17+,and CD8+ T cells (P < .05 for each). Ovalbumin or allogeneic cell immunizations induced equivalent T cell responses in MBL-deficient and WT mice,demonstrating that MBL-deficiency does not directly impact T cell immunity in the absence of irradiation conditioning. Administration of C1-INH did not alter the clinical expression of GVHD in preconditioned WT B6 recipients,suggesting that MBL amplifies clinical expression of GVHD via a complement-independent mechanism. WT,but not MBL-deficient,APCs express MBL on their surfaces. LPS-stimulated APCs from MBL-deficient mice produced less proinflammatory cytokines (P < .05) and induced weaker alloreactive T cell responses (P < .05) compared with WT APCs. Together,our data show that MBL modulates murine GVHD,likely by amplifying complement-independent,LPS-initiated gastrointestinal inflammation. The results suggest that devising strategies to block LPS/MBL ligation on APCs has the potential to reduce the clinical expression of GVHD. View Publication

Allogeneic T cells are key immune therapeutic cells to fight cancer and other clinical indications. High T cell dose per patient and increasing patient numbers result in clinical demand for a large number of allogeneic T cells. This necessitates a manufacturing platform that can be scaled up while retaining cell quality. Here we present a closed and scalable platform for T cell manufacturing to meet clinical demand. Upstream manufacturing steps of T cell activation and expansion are done in-vessel,in a stirred-tank bioreactor. T cell selection,which is necessary for CAR-T-based therapy,is done in the bioreactor itself,thus maintaining optimal culture conditions through the selection step. Platform's attributes of automation and performing the steps of T cell activation,expansion,and selection in-vessel,greatly contribute to enhancing process control,cell quality,and to the reduction of manual labor and contamination risk. In addition,the viability of integrating a closed,automated,downstream process of cell concentration,is demonstrated. The presented T cell manufacturing platform has scale-up capabilities while preserving key factors of cell quality and process control. View Publication

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease with no cure,where clinical translation of promising therapeutics has been hampered by the reproducibility crisis. Here,short-term administration of an antagonist to the receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE) protected against murine diabetes at two independent research centers. Treatment with sRAGE increased regulatory T cells (Tregs) within the islets,pancreatic lymph nodes,and spleen,increasing islet insulin expression and function. Diabetes protection was abrogated by Treg depletion and shown to be dependent on antagonizing RAGE with use of knockout mice. Human Tregs treated with a RAGE ligand downregulated genes for suppression,migration,and Treg homeostasis (FOXP3,IL7R,TIGIT,JAK1,STAT3,STAT5b,CCR4). Loss of suppressive function was reversed by sRAGE,where Tregs increased proliferation and suppressed conventional T-cell division,confirming that sRAGE expands functional human Tregs. These results highlight sRAGE as an attractive treatment to prevent diabetes,showing efficacy and reproducibility at multiple research centers and in human T cells. View Publication

BACKGROUND The use of intralesional Mycobacterium bovis BCG (intralesional live BCG) for the treatment of metastatic melanoma resulted in regression of directly injected,and occasionally of distal lesions. However,intralesional-BCG is less effective in patients with visceral metastases and did not significantly improve overall survival. METHODS We generated a novel BCG lysate and developed it into a thermosensitive PLGA-PEG-PLGA hydrogel (BCG hydrogel),which was injected adjacent to the tumor to assess its antitumor effect in syngeneic tumor models (B16F10,MC38). The effect of BCG hydrogel treatment on contralateral tumors,lung metastases,and survival was assessed to evaluate systemic long-term efficacy. Gene expression profiles of tumor-infiltrating immune cells and of tumor-draining lymph nodes from BCG hydrogel-treated mice were analyzed by single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and CD8+ T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire diversity was assessed by TCR-sequencing. To confirm the mechanistic findings,RNA-seq data of biopsies obtained from in-transit cutaneous metastases of patients with melanoma who had received intralesional-BCG therapy were analyzed. RESULTS Here,we show that BCG lysate exhibits enhanced antitumor efficacy compared to live mycobacteria and promotes a proinflammatory tumor microenvironment and M1 macrophage (M$\Phi$) polarization in vivo. The underlying mechanisms of BCG lysate-mediated tumor immunity are dependent on M$\Phi$ and dendritic cells (DCs). BCG hydrogel treatment induced systemic immunity in melanoma-bearing mice with suppression of lung metastases and improved survival. Furthermore,BCG hydrogel promoted cathepsin S (CTSS) activity in M$\Phi$ and DCs,resulting in enhanced antigen processing and presentation of tumor-associated antigens. Finally,BCG hydrogel treatment was associated with increased frequencies of melanoma-reactive CD8+ T cells. In human patients with melanoma,intralesional-BCG treatment was associated with enhanced M1 M$\Phi$,mature DC,antigen processing and presentation,as well as with increased CTSS expression which positively correlated with patient survival. CONCLUSIONS These findings provide mechanistic insights as well as rationale for the clinical translation of BCG hydrogel as cancer immunotherapy to overcome the current limitations of immunotherapies for the treatment of patients with melanoma. View Publication

Fucoidan has sparked considerable interest in biomedical applications because of its inherent (bio)physicochemical characteristics,particularly immunomodulatory effects on macrophages,neutrophils,and natural killer cells. However,the effect of fucoidan on T cells and the following regulatory interaction on cellular function has not been reported. In this work,the effect of sterile fucoidan on the T-cell response and the subsequent modulation of osteogenesis is investigated. The physicochemical features of fucoidan treated by high-temperature autoclave sterilization are characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy,X-ray diffraction,Fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance analysis. It is demonstrated that high-temperature autoclave treatment resulted in fucoidan depolymerization,with no change in its key bioactive groups. Further,sterile fucoidan promotes T cells proliferation and the proportion of differentiated T cells decreases with increasing concentration of fucoidan. In addition,the supernatant of T cells co-cultured with fucoidan greatly suppresses the osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 by downregulating the formation of alkaline phosphatase and calcium nodule compared with fucoidan. Therefore,our work offers new insight into the fucoidan-mediated T cell and osteoblast interplay. View Publication

BACKGROUND Airway remodeling is a significant contributor to impaired lung function in chronic allergic airway disease. Currently,no therapy exists that is capable of targeting these structural changes and the consequent loss of function. In the context of chronic allergic inflammation,pericytes have been shown to uncouple from the pulmonary microvasculature,migrate to areas of inflammation,and significantly contribute to airway wall remodeling and lung dysfunction. This study aimed to elucidate the mechanism by which pulmonary pericytes accumulate in the airway wall in a model of chronic allergic airway inflammation. METHODS Mice were subjected to a protocol of chronic airway inflammation driven by the common environmental aeroallergen house dust mite. Phenotypic changes to lung pericytes were assessed by flow cytometry and immunostaining,and the functional capacity of these cells was evaluated using in vitro migration assays. The molecular mechanisms driving these processes were targeted pharmacologically in vivo and in vitro. RESULTS Pericytes demonstrated increased CXCR4 expression in response to chronic allergic inflammation and migrated more readily to its cognate chemokine,CXCL12. This increase in migratory capacity was accompanied by pericyte accumulation in the airway wall,increased smooth muscle thickness,and symptoms of respiratory distress. Pericyte uncoupling from pulmonary vessels and subsequent migration to the airway wall were abrogated following topical treatment with the CXCL12 neutraligand LIT-927. CONCLUSION These results provide new insight into the role of the CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling axis in promoting pulmonary pericyte accumulation and airway remodeling and validate a novel target to address tissue remodeling associated with chronic inflammation. View Publication

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification is involved in diverse immunoregulation,while the relationship between m6A modification and immune tolerance post kidney transplantation remains unclear. Expression of Wilms tumor 1-associating protein (WTAP),an m6A writer,was firstly detected in tolerant kidney transplant recipients (TOL). Then the role of WTAP on regulatory T (Treg) cell differentiation and function in CD4+ T cells from kidney transplant recipients with immune rejection (IR) was investigated. The potential target of WTAP and effect of WTAP on immune tolerance in vivo were subsequently verified. WTAP was upregulated in CD4+ T cells of TOL and positively correlated with Treg cell proportion. In vitro,WTAP overexpression promoted Treg cell differentiation and enhanced Treg cell-mediated suppression toward na?ve T cells. Forkhead box other 1 (Foxo1) was identified as a target of WTAP. WTAP enhanced m6A modification of Foxo1 mRNA in coding sequence (CDS) region,leading to up-regulation of Foxo1. Overexpression of m6A demethylase removed the effect of WTAP overexpression,while Foxo1 overexpression reversed these effects. WTAP overexpression alleviated allograft rejection in model mice,as evidenced by reduced inflammatory response and increased Treg population. Our study suggests that WTAP plays a positive role in induction of immune tolerance post kidney transplant by promoting Treg cell differentiation and function. leading to up-regulation of Foxo1. Overexpression of m6A demethylase removed the effect of WTAP overexpression while Foxo1 overexpression reversed these effects. WTAP overexpression alleviated allograft rejection in model mice as evidenced by reduced inflammatory response and increased Treg population. Our study suggests that WTAP plays a positive role in induction of immune tolerance post kidney transplant by promoting Treg cell differentiation and function." View Publication

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are known to promote tumor growth in part by their immunosuppressive activities and their angiogenesis support. It has been shown that Bv8 blockade inhibits the recruitment of MDSCs to tumors,thereby delaying tumor relapse associated with resistance to antiangiogenic therapy. However,the impact of Bv8 blockade on tumors resistant to the new immunotherapy drugs based on the blockade of immune checkpoints has not been investigated. Here,we demonstrate that granulocytic-MDSCs (G-MDSCs) are enriched in anti-PD1 resistant tumors. Importantly,resistance to anti-PD1 monotherapy is reversed upon switching to a combined regimen comprised of anti-Bv8 and anti-PD1 antibodies. This effect is associated with a decreased level of G-MDSCs and enrichment of active cytotoxic T cells in tumors. The blockade of anti-Bv8 has shown efficacy also in hyperprogressive phenotype of anti-PD1-treated tumors. In vitro,anti-Bv8 antibodies directly inhibit MDSC-mediated immunosuppression,as evidenced by enhanced tumor cell killing activity of cytotoxic T cells. Lastly,we show that anti-Bv8-treated MDSCs secrete proteins associated with effector immune cell function and T cell activity. Overall,we demonstrate that Bv8 blockade inhibits the immunosuppressive function of MDSCs,thereby enhancing anti-tumor activity of cytotoxic T cells and sensitizing anti-PD1 resistant tumors. Our findings suggest that combining Bv8 blockade with anti-PD1 therapy can be used as a strategy for overcoming therapy resistance. View Publication

Bone disease represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Multiple Myeloma (MM); primarily driven by osteoclasts whose differentiation is dependent on expression of RANKL by MM cells. Notably,costimulation by ITAM containing receptors (i.e.,Fc$\gamma$R) can also play a crucial role in osteoclast differentiation. Modeling the pathology of the bone marrow microenvironment with an ex vivo culture system of primary human multiple myeloma cells,we herein demonstrate that Fc$\gamma$R-mediated signaling,via staphylococcal protein A (SpA) IgG immune-complexes,can act as a critical negative regulator of MM-driven osteoclast differentiation. Interrogation of the mode-of-action revealed that Fc$\gamma$R-mediated signaling causes epigenetic modulation of chromosomal 3D architecture at the RANK promoter; with altered spatial orientation of a proximal super enhancer. Combined this leads to substantial down-regulation of RANK at a transcript,protein,and functional level. These observations shed light on a novel mechanism regulating RANK expression and provide a rationale for targeting Fc$\gamma$R-signaling for the amelioration of osteolytic bone pathology in disease. View Publication