New Post has been published on Biotech Advisers
Weekly Top Scientific Research Review (15/5/2017-19/5/2017)
Topic preview: The relationship between integrin α4β7 and HIV-1, the function of GARP-TGFβ axis, what controls IRF3 activation, pathway that associate with anti–PD-1 therapy and multiple myeloma therapeutic strategy.
1. Virion incorporation of integrin α4β7 facilitates HIV-1 infection and intestinal homing.
The intestinal mucosa is a key anatomical site for HIV-1 replication and CD4+ T cell depletion. Accordingly, in vivo treatment with an antibody to the gut-homing integrin α4β7 was shown to reduce viral transmission, delay disease progression, and induce persistent virus control in macaques challenged with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). Christina Guzzo at National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, USA and her colleagues show that integrin α4β7 is efficiently incorporated into the envelope of HIV-1 virions. Incorporated α4β7 is functionally active as it binds mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule–1 (MAdCAM-1), promoting HIV-1 capture by and infection of MAdCAM-expressing cells, which in turn mediate trans-infection of bystander cells. Functional α4β7 is present in circulating virions from HIV-infected patients and SIV-infected macaques, with peak levels during the early stages of infection. In vivo homing experiments documented selective and specific uptake of α4β7+ HIV-1 virions by high endothelial venules in the intestinal mucosa. These results extend the paradigm of tissue homing to a retrovirus and are relevant for the pathogenesis, treatment, and prevention of HIV-1 infection, the authors suggest.
Read more, please click http://immunology.sciencemag.org/content/2/11/eaam7341
2. Platelets subvert T cell immunity against cancer via GARP-TGFβ axis.
Cancer-associated thrombocytosis has long been linked to poor clinical outcome, but the underlying mechanism is enigmatic. Saleh Rachidi at Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, USA and his colleagues hypothesized that platelets promote malignancy and resistance to therapy by dampening host immunity. They show that genetic targeting of platelets enhances adoptive T cell therapy of cancer. An unbiased biochemical and structural biology approach established transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) and lactate as major platelet-derived soluble factors to obliterate CD4+ and CD8+ T cell functions. Moreover, they found that platelets are the dominant source of functional TGFβ systemically as well as in the tumor microenvironment through constitutive expression of the TGFβ-docking receptor glycoprotein A repetitions predominant (GARP) rather than secretion of TGFβ per se. Platelet-specific deletion of the GARP-encoding gene Lrrc32 blunted TGFβ activity at the tumor site and potentiated protective immunity against both melanoma and colon cancer. Last, this study shows that T cell therapy of cancer can be substantially improved by concurrent treatment with readily available antiplatelet agents. They conclude that platelets constrain T cell immunity through a GARP-TGFβ axis and suggest a combination of immunotherapy and platelet inhibitors as a therapeutic strategy against cancer.
Read more, please click http://immunology.sciencemag.org/content/2/11/eaai7911
3. Ubiquitination of STING at lysine 224 controls IRF3 activation.
Cytosolic DNA species derived from invading microbes or leaked from the nuclear or mitochondrial compartments of the cell can trigger the induction of host defense genes by activating the endoplasmic reticulum–associated protein STING (stimulator of interferon genes). Using a mass spectrometry–based approach, Guoxin Ni at University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in Miami, USA and his colleagues show that after association with cyclic dinucleotides, delivery of Tank-binding kinase 1 to interferon regulatory factors (IRFs), such as IRF3, relies on K63-linked ubiquitination of K224 on STING. Blocking K224 ubiquitination specifically prevented IRF3 but not nuclear factor κB activation, additionally indicating that STING trafficking is not required to stimulate the latter signaling pathway. By carrying out a limited small interfering RNA screen, they have identified MUL1 (mitochondrial E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 1) as an E3 ligase that catalyzes the ubiquitination of STING on K224. These data demonstrate the critical role of K224 ubiquitination in STING function and provide molecular insight into the mechanisms governing host defense responses.
Read more, please click http://immunology.sciencemag.org/content/2/11/eaah7119
4. In vivo imaging reveals a tumor-associated macrophage–mediated resistance pathway in anti–PD-1 therapy.
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) targeting the immune checkpoint anti–programmed cell death protein 1 (aPD-1) have demonstrated impressive benefits for the treatment of some cancers; however, these drugs are not always effective, and we still have a limited understanding of the mechanisms that contribute to their efficacy or lack thereof. Sean P. Arlauckas at Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA and his colleagues used in vivo imaging to uncover the fate and activity of aPD-1 mAbs in real time and at subcellular resolution in mice. They show that aPD-1 mAbs effectively bind PD-1+ tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells at early time points after administration. However, this engagement is transient, and aPD-1 mAbs are captured within minutes from the T cell surface by PD-1− tumor-associated macrophages. They further show that macrophage accrual of aPD-1 mAbs depends both on the drug’s Fc domain glycan and on Fcγ receptors (FcγRs) expressed by host myeloid cells and extend these findings to the human setting. Finally, they demonstrate that in vivo blockade of FcγRs before aPD-1 mAb administration substantially prolongs aPD-1 mAb binding to tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells and enhances immunotherapy-induced tumor regression in mice. These investigations yield insight into aPD-1 target engagement in vivo and identify specific Fc/FcγR interactions that can be modulated to improve checkpoint blockade therapy.
Read more, please click http://stm.sciencemag.org/content/9/389/eaal3604
5. Inhibiting the oncogenic translation program is an effective therapeutic strategy in multiple myeloma.
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a frequently incurable hematological cancer in which overactivity of MYC plays a central role, notably through up-regulation of ribosome biogenesis and translation. To better understand the oncogenic program driven by MYC and investigate its potential as a therapeutic target, Salomon Manier at Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA and his colleagues screened a chemically diverse small-molecule library for anti-MM activity. The most potent hits identified were rocaglate scaffold inhibitors of translation initiation. Expression profiling of MM cells revealed reversion of the oncogenic MYC-driven transcriptional program by CMLD010509, the most promising rocaglate. Proteome-wide reversion correlated with selective depletion of short-lived proteins that are key to MM growth and survival, most notably MYC, MDM2, CCND1, MAF, and MCL-1. The efficacy of CMLD010509 in mouse models of MM confirmed the therapeutic relevance of these findings in vivo and supports the feasibility of targeting the oncogenic MYC-driven translation program in MM with rocaglates.
Read more, please click http://stm.sciencemag.org/content/9/389/eaal2668
