技术资料

Gene enhancers often form long-range contacts with promoters,but it remains unclear if the activity of enhancers and their chromosomal contacts are mediated by the same DNA sequences and recruited factors. Here,we study the effects of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) on enhancer activity and promoter contacts in primary monocytes isolated from 34 male individuals. Using eQTL-Capture Hi-C and a Bayesian approach considering both intra- and inter-individual variation,we initially detect 19 eQTLs associated with enhancer-eGene promoter contacts,most of which also associate with enhancer accessibility and activity. Capitalising on these shared effects,we devise a multi-modality Bayesian strategy,identifying 629 “trimodal QTLs” jointly associated with enhancer accessibility,eGene promoter contact,and gene expression. Causal mediation analysis and CRISPR interference reveal causal relationships between these three modalities. Many detected QTLs overlap disease susceptibility loci and influence the predicted binding of myeloid transcription factors,including SPI1,GABPB and STAT3. Additionally,a variant associated with PCK2 promoter contact directly disrupts a CTCF binding motif and impacts promoter insulation from downstream enhancers. Jointly,our findings suggest an inherent genetic coupling of enhancer activity and connectivity in gene expression control relevant to human disease and highlight the regulatory role of genetically determined chromatin boundaries. Here,the authors study the effects of expression quantitative trait loci on enhancer activity and promoter contacts in primary monocytes isolated from male individuals,suggesting an inherent genetic link between the activity of enhancers,their contacts to target gene promoters and gene expression. View Publication

AbstractBackgroundChimeric antigen receptor (CAR) therapies have demonstrated potent efficacy in treating B-cell malignancies,but have yet to meaningfully translate to solid tumors. Nonetheless,they are of particular interest for the treatment of glioblastoma,which is an aggressive form of brain cancer with few effective therapeutic options,due to their ability to cross the highly selective blood-brain barrier.MethodsHere,we use our pooled screening platform,CARPOOL,to expedite the discovery of CARs with antitumor functions necessary for solid tumor efficacy. We performed selections in primary human T cells expressing a library of 1.3×106 third generation CARs targeting IL-13Rα2,a cancer testis antigen commonly expressed in glioblastoma. Selections were performed for cytotoxicity,proliferation,memory formation,and persistence on repeated antigen challenge.ResultsEach enriched CAR robustly produced the phenotype for which it was selected,and one enriched CAR triggered potent cytotoxicity and long-term proliferation on in vitro tumor rechallenge. It also showed significantly improved persistence and comparable tumor control in a microphysiological human in vitro model and a xenograft model of human glioblastoma,but also demonstrated increased off-target recognition of IL-13Rα1.ConclusionTaken together,this work demonstrates the utility of extending CARPOOL to diseases beyond hematological malignancies and represents the largest exploration of signaling combinations in human primary cells to date. View Publication

HIV infection remains incurable as the virus persists within a latent reservoir of CD4+T cells. Novel approaches to enhance immune responses against HIV are essential for effective control and potential cure of the infection. In this study,we designed a novel tetravalent bispecific antibody (Bi-Ab32/16) to simultaneously target the gp120 viral protein on infected cells,and the CD16a receptor on NK cells. In vitro,Bi-Ab32/16 triggered a potent,specific,and polyfunctional NK-dependent response against HIV-infected cells. Moreover,addition of the Bi-Ab32/16 significantly reduced the latent HIV reservoir after viral reactivation and mediated the clearance of cells harboring intact proviruses in samples from people with HIV (PWH). However,the in vivo preclinical evaluation of Bi-Ab32/16 in humanized mice expressing IL-15 (NSG-Hu-IL-15) revealed a significant decline of NK cells associated with poor virological control after ART interruption. Our study underscores the need to carefully evaluating strategies for sustained NK cell stimulation during ART withdrawal. Bispecific antibody targeting NK cells facilitates clearance of HIV-infected cells in vitro but poses challenges in sustaining NK cell function during ART withdrawal in preclinical models. View Publication

AbstractIn this work,we have generated bispecific interleukin (IL)‐12 surrogate agonists based on camelid‐derived single‐domain antibodies (sdAbs) targeting the IL‐12 receptor (IL‐12R) subunits IL‐12Rβ1 and IL‐12Rβ2. Following immunization and antibody display‐based paratope isolation,respective sdAbs were combinatorially reformatted into a monovalent bispecific architecture by grafting resulting paratopes onto the hinge region of a heterodimeric Fc region. Functional characterization using NK‐92 cells enabled the identification of multiple different sdAb‐based bispecifics displaying divergent IL‐12R agonism capacities as analyzed by STAT4 phosphorylation. Further investigations by harnessing peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors revealed attenuated pSTAT4 activation compared to recombinant human (rh) wild‐type IL‐12 regarding both natural killer (NK)‐cell and T‐cell activation but robust IL‐12R agonism on stimulated T cells. While several sdAb‐based IL‐12 mimetics were nearly inactive on NK cells as well as T cells obtained from PBMCs,they elicited significant STAT4 phosphorylation and interferon (IFN)‐γ release on stimulated T cells as well as an IL‐12‐like transcriptional signature. Furthermore,we demonstrate that the activity of receptor agonism of generated bispecific IL‐12 mimetics can also be biased towards stimulated T cells by changing the spatial orientation of the individual sdAbs within the molecular design architecture. Taken together,we present an alternative strategy to generate IL‐12‐like biologics with tailor‐made characteristics. View Publication

Current clinical strategies for the delivery of pulmonary therapeutics to the lung are primarily targeted to the upper portions of the airways,such as treatment with nebulized instillation and inhalation. However,targeted delivery to the lower regions of the lung is necessary for the treatment of parenchymal lung injury and disease. Here,we show the development of an mRNA therapeutic for the lower lung in mice using one-component Ionizable Amphiphilic Janus Dendrimers as a delivery vehicle. We deliver an anti-inflammatory cytokine mRNA,transforming growth factor-beta,to produce transient protein expression in the lower regions of the lung. This study highlights a method for precise,effective,and safe delivery of TGF-β mRNA to the lung in mice. This delivery system offers a promising approach for targeting therapeutics to the specific tissues,a strategy necessary to fill the current clinical gap in treating parenchymal lung injury and disease. Targeted delivery to the lower regions of the lung is necessary for the treatment of parenchymal lung injury and disease but is challenging. Here,the authors develop an mRNA delivery platform to treat acute lung injury in mice and demonstrate that it can reach the lower regions of the lung. View Publication

Disease progression and drug resistance in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) depend on signals from the tumour microenvironment in lymphoid sites. GRK2 inhibits the egress of normal B cells from lymphoid tissues by inducing the downregulation of the S1P-receptor 1 (S1PR1). In this study we investigated the role of GRK2 in the context of CLL using in vitro and in vivo murine models,and also primary samples from CLL patients. We found that pharmacological inhibition of GRK2 enhanced the migration of leukemic cells from CLL patients towards S1P and impaired the S1P-induced downregulation of S1PR1. Likewise,CRISPR/Cas9-mediated GRK2 deletion in a murine leukemic cell line derived from the Eµ-TCL1 mouse model of CLL also increased migratory capacity toward S1P in vitro. Furthermore,when injected into mice,GRK2-deficient murine leukemic cells exhibited an altered in vivo localization,with a higher presence in the blood and spleen compared to the bone marrow. Within the spleen,these cells displayed reduced localization to the follicles compared to control murine leukemic cells. Deletion of GRK2 on murine leukemic cells did not affect their in vitro proliferation,but notably,conferred a growth disadvantage in vivo. These findings underscore GRK2 as a critical regulator of the localization of CLL cells in vivo and suggest its potential as a therapeutic target to disrupt survival niches in CLL.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1038/s41598-025-91536-5. View Publication

ABSTRACTCell therapy based on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells has represented a revolutionary new approach for treating tumors,especially hematological diseases. Complete remission rates (CRR) > 80%–97% and 50%–90% overall response rates (ORR) have been achieved with a treatment based on CAR‐T cells in patients with malignant B‐cell tumors that have relapsed or are refractory to previous treatments. Toxicity remains the major problem. Most patients treated with CAR‐T cells develop high‐grade cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell‐associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS). However,the unprecedentedly high CRR and ORR have led to the approval of six CAR‐T cell therapeutics by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA),prompting researchers to improve existing products and develop new ones. By now,around 1000 clinical trials based on CAR‐T cells are registered at ClinicalTrials.gov: 82% are for hematological diseases,while the remaining 16% are for solid tumors. As a result of this increased research,an enormous amount of conflicting information has been accumulated in the literature,and each group follows its manufacturing protocols and performs specific in vitro testing. This review aimed to combine and compare clinical and preclinical information,highlighting the most used protocols to provide a comprehensive overview of the in vitro world of CAR‐T cells,from manufacturing to their characterization. The focus is on all steps of the CAR‐T cell manufacturing process,from the collection of patient or donor blood to the enrichment of T cells,their activation with anti‐CD3/CD28 beads,interleukin‐2 (IL‐2) or IL‐7 and IL‐15 (induction of a more functional memory phenotype),and their transfection (viral or non‐viral methods). Automation is crucial for ensuring a standardized final product. View Publication

Uveal melanoma (UM) is the most common intraocular cancer in adults,with metastatic disease (mUM) occurring in approximately half of the patients. Tebentafusp,an immune-mobilizing monoclonal T cell receptor against cancer (ImmTAC),is a therapeutic shown to improve overall survival (OS) in HLA-A*02:01+ adult patients with mUM. Here we investigate the impact of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) on ImmTAC activity. In vitro,M2 macrophages inhibit ImmTAC-mediated tumor-killing in a dose-dependent and contact-dependent manner. Accordingly,high baseline intratumoral TAM-to-T cell ratios correlate with shorter OS (HR = 2.09,95% CI,1.31–3.33,p = 0.002) in tebentafusp-treated mUM patients from a phase 2 trial. By contrast,IL-2 conditioning of T cells overcomes M2 macrophage-mediated suppression in vitro,while ImmTAC treatment leads to M2-to-M1 macrophage reprogramming both in vitro and in tebentafusp-treated mUM patients. Overall,we show that tebentafusp reshapes the tumor microenvironment to enhance anti-tumor T cell activity,whilst combining tebentafusp with IL-2 may enhance benefit in patients with high levels of TAM. ‘T cell engagers promote antitumor immunity,but how macrophage modulates this activity in tumor is still unclear. Here the authors show,using biopsies from patients with uveal melanoma and single cell analyses,that a T cell engager,tebentafusp,reprograms tumor-associated macrophages and ameliorates,in synergy with IL-2,immunosuppression to cancer. View Publication

AbstractThere is currently a lack of tools capable of perturbing genes in both a precise and a spatiotemporal fashion. The flexibility of CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats),coupled with light’s unparalleled spatiotemporal resolution deliverable from a controllable source,makes optogenetic CRISPR a well-suited solution for precise spatiotemporal gene perturbations. Here,we present a new optogenetic CRISPR tool (Blue Light-inducible Universal VPR-Improved Production of RGRs,BLU-VIPR) that diverges from prevailing split-Cas design strategies and instead focuses on optogenetic regulation of guide RNA (gRNA) production. We engineered BLU-VIPR around a new potent blue-light activated transcription factor (VPR-EL222) and ribozyme-flanked gRNA. The BLU-VIPR design is genetically encoded and ensures precise excision of multiple gRNAs from a single messenger RNA transcript. This simplified spatiotemporal gene perturbation and allowed for several types of optogenetic CRISPR,including indels,CRISPRa,and base editing. BLU-VIPR also worked in vivo with cells previously intractable to optogenetic gene editing,achieving optogenetic gene editing in T lymphocytes in vivo. View Publication

Tetracyclines are essential bacterial protein synthesis inhibitors under continual development to combat antibiotic resistance yet suffer from unwanted side effects. Mitoribosomes - responsible for generating oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) subunits - share structural similarities with bacterial machinery and may suffer from cross-reactivity. Since lymphocytes rely upon OXPHOS upregulation to establish immunity,we set out to assess the impact of ribosome-targeting antibiotics on human T cells. We find tigecycline,a third-generation tetracycline,to be the most cytotoxic compound tested. In vitro,5–10 μM tigecycline inhibits mitochondrial but not cytosolic translation,mitochondrial complex I,III and IV expression,and curtails the activation and expansion of unique T cell subsets. By cryo-EM,we find tigecycline to occupy three sites on T cell mitoribosomes. In addition to the conserved A-site found in bacteria,tigecycline also attaches to the peptidyl transferase center of the large subunit. Furthermore,a third,distinct binding site on the large subunit,aligns with helices analogous to those in bacteria,albeit lacking methylation in humans. The data provide a mechanism to explain part of the anti-inflammatory effects of these drugs and inform antibiotic design. Tetracyclines impair cellular function by targeting ribosomes. Here,the authors demonstrate that tigecycline impairs T cell function by selectively inhibiting mitochondrial protein synthesis and uncover the structural basis for mitoribosome inhibition and its role in immunosuppression. View Publication

Non-viral DNA donor templates are commonly used for targeted genomic integration via homologous recombination (HR),with efficiency improved by CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Circular single-stranded DNA (cssDNA) has been used as a genome engineering catalyst (GATALYST) for efficient and safe gene knock-in. Here,we introduce enGager,an enhanced GATALYST associated genome editor system that increases transgene integration efficiency by tethering cssDNA donors to nuclear-localized Cas9 fused with single-stranded DNA binding peptide motifs. This approach further improves targeted integration and expression of reporter genes at multiple genomic loci in various cell types,showing up to 6-fold higher efficiency compared to unfused Cas9,especially for large transgenes in primary cells. Notably,enGager enables efficient integration of a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) transgene in 33% of primary human T cells,enhancing anti-tumor functionality. This ‘tripartite editor with ssDNA optimized genome engineering (TESOGENASE) offers a safer,more efficient alternative to viral vectors for therapeutic gene modification. Non-viral DNA donor templates are commonly used for targeted genomic integration via homologous recombination. Here the authors present the TESOGENASE system which enhances CRISPR-based gene integration by tethering circular single-stranded DNA to Cas9. View Publication

AbstractObjectiveNatural killer (NK) cells are the largest innate lymphocyte subset with potent antitumour and antiviral functions. However,clinical utilisation of human NK cells is hampered due to a lack of reliable methods to augment their antitumour potential. We demonstrated technology in which human NK cells were cocultured with osteoclasts in the presence of probiotic bacteria. This approach significantly augmented the antitumour cytotoxicity and polyfunctionality of human NK cells,resulting in the generation of supercharged NK (sNK) cells.Methods and analysisWe explored the proteomic,transcriptomic and functional characterisation of sNK cells using cell imaging,flow cytometric analysis,51-chromium release cytotoxicity assay,ELISA,ELIspot,IsoPLexis single-cell secretome analysis,proteomic analysis,RNA analysis,western blot and enzyme kinetics.ResultsWe found that sNK cells were less susceptible to split anergy and tumour-induced exhaustion. Proteomic analyses revealed that sNK cells significantly increased their cell motility and proliferation. Single-cell transcriptomes uncovered sNK cells undertaking a unique differentiation trajectory and turning on STAT1,JUN,BHLHE40,ELF1,MAX and MYC regulons essential for augmenting antitumour effector functions and proliferation,respectively. Both proteomic and single-cell transcriptomes revealed that an increase in Cathepsin C helped to augment the quantity and function of Granzyme B.ConclusionsThese results support that this unique method produces potent NK cells for clinical utilisation and delineate the molecular mechanisms associated with this process. View Publication