技术资料

Drug resistance and relapse remain key challenges in pancreatic cancer. Here,we have used RNA sequencing (RNA-seq),chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP)-seq,and genome-wide CRISPR analysis to map the molecular dependencies of pancreatic cancer stem cells,highly therapy-resistant cells that preferentially drive tumorigenesis and progression. This integrated genomic approach revealed an unexpected utilization of immuno-regulatory signals by pancreatic cancer epithelial cells. In particular,the nuclear hormone receptor retinoic-acid-receptor-related orphan receptor gamma (ROR$\gamma$),known to drive inflammation and T cell differentiation,was upregulated during pancreatic cancer progression,and its genetic or pharmacologic inhibition led to a striking defect in pancreatic cancer growth and a marked improvement in survival. Further,a large-scale retrospective analysis in patients revealed that ROR$\gamma$ expression may predict pancreatic cancer aggressiveness,as it positively correlated with advanced disease and metastasis. Collectively,these data identify an orthogonal co-option of immuno-regulatory signals by pancreatic cancer stem cells,suggesting that autoimmune drugs should be evaluated as novel treatment strategies for pancreatic cancer patients. View Publication

Three-dimensional (3D) culture systems have been developed that can re-capitulate organ level responses,simulate compound diffusion through complex structures,and assess cellular heterogeneity of tissues,making them attractive models for advanced in vitro research and discovery. Organoids are a unique subtype of 3D cell culture that are grown from stem cells,are self-organizing,and closely replicate in vivo pathophysiology. Organoids have been used to understand tissue development,model diseases,test drug sensitivity and toxicity,and advance regenerative medicine. However,traditional organoid culture methods are inadequate because they are low throughput and ill-suited for single organoid imaging,phenotypic assessment,and isolation from heterogenous organoid populations. To address these bottlenecks,we have adapted our tissue culture consumable and instrumentation to enable automated imaging,identification,and isolation of individual organoids. Organoids grown on the 3D CytoSort? Array can be reliably tracked,imaged,and phenotypically analyzed using brightfield and fluorescent microscopy as they grow over time,then released and transferred fully intact for use in downstream applications. Using mouse hepatic and pancreatic organoids,we have demonstrated the use of this technology for single-organoid imaging,clonal organoid generation,parent organoid subcloning,and single-organoid RNA extraction for downstream gene expression or transcriptomic analysis. The results validate the ability of the CellRaft AIR? System to facilitate efficient,user-friendly,and automated workflows broadly applicable to organoid research by overcoming several pain points: 1) single organoid time-course imaging and phenotypic assessment,2) establishment of single cell-derived organoids,and 3) isolation and retrieval of single organoids for downstream applications. View Publication

A hallmark of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an exuberant stroma comprised of diverse cell types that enable or suppress tumor progression. Here,we explored the role of oncogenic KRAS in protumorigenic signaling interactions between cancer cells and host cells. We show that KRAS mutation (KRAS) drives cell-autonomous expression of type I cytokine receptor complexes (IL2r?–IL4r? and IL2r?–IL13r?1) in cancer cells that in turn are capable of receiving cytokine growth signals (IL4 or IL13) provided by invading Th2 cells in the microenvironment. Early neoplastic lesions show close proximity of cancer cells harboring KRAS and Th2 cells producing IL4 and IL13. Activated IL2r?–IL4r? and IL2r?–IL13r?1 receptors signal primarily via JAK1-STAT6. Integrated transcriptomic,chromatin occupancy,and metabolomic studies identified MYC as a direct target of activated STAT6 and that MYC drives glycolysis. Thus,paracrine signaling in the tumor microenvironment plays a key role in the KRAS-driven metabolic reprogramming of PDAC. SIGNIFICANCE: Type II cytokines,secreted by Th2 cells in the tumor microenvironment,can stimulate cancer cell-intrinsic MYC transcriptional upregulation to drive glycolysis. This KRAS-driven heterotypic signaling circuit in the early and advanced tumor microenvironment enables cooperative protumorigenic interactions,providing candidate therapeutic targets in the KRAS pathway for this intractable disease. View Publication