scholarly journals The Roles of CD38 and CD157 in the Solid Tumor Microenvironment and Cancer Immunotherapy

Cells ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Jun Wo ◽  
Adelia Shin Ping Gan ◽  
Xinru Lim ◽  
Isabel Shu Ying Tay ◽  
Sherlly Lim ◽  
...  

The tumor microenvironment (TME) consists of extracellular matrix proteins, immune cells, vascular cells, lymphatics and fibroblasts. Under normal physiological conditions, tissue homeostasis protects against tumor development. However, under pathological conditions, interplay between the tumor and its microenvironment can promote tumor initiation, growth and metastasis. Immune cells within the TME have an important role in the formation, growth and metastasis of tumors, and in the responsiveness of these tumors to immunotherapy. Recent breakthroughs in the field of cancer immunotherapy have further highlighted the potential of targeting TME elements, including these immune cells, to improve the efficacy of cancer prognostics and immunotherapy. CD38 and CD157 are glycoproteins that contribute to the tumorigenic properties of the TME. For example, in the hypoxic TME, the enzymatic functions of CD38 result in an immunosuppressive environment. This leads to increased immune resistance in tumor cells and allows faster growth and proliferation rates. CD157 may also aid the production of an immunosuppressive TME, and confers increased malignancy to tumor cells through the promotion of tumor invasion and metastasis. An improved understanding of CD38 and CD157 in the TME, and how these glycoproteins affect cancer progression, will be useful to develop both cancer prognosis and treatment methods. This review aims to discuss the roles of CD38 and CD157 in the TME and cancer immunotherapy of a range of solid tumor types.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahid Hussain ◽  
Bo Peng ◽  
Mathew Cherian ◽  
Jonathan W. Song ◽  
Dinesh K. Ahirwar ◽  
...  

The intricate interplay between malignant cells and host cellular and non-cellular components play crucial role in different stages of tumor development, progression, and metastases. Tumor and stromal cells communicate to each other through receptors such as integrins and secretion of signaling molecules like growth factors, cytokines, chemokines and inflammatory mediators. Chemokines mediated signaling pathways have emerged as major mechanisms underlying multifaceted roles played by host cells during tumor progression. In response to tumor stimuli, host cells-derived chemokines further activates signaling cascades that support the ability of tumor cells to invade surrounding basement membrane and extra-cellular matrix. The host-derived chemokines act on endothelial cells to increase their permeability and facilitate tumor cells intravasation and extravasation. The tumor cells-host neutrophils interaction within the vasculature initiates chemokines driven recruitment of inflammatory cells that protects circulatory tumor cells from immune attack. Chemokines secreted by tumor cells and stromal immune and non-immune cells within the tumor microenvironment enter the circulation and are responsible for formation of a “pre-metastatic niche” like a “soil” in distant organs whereby circulating tumor cells “seed’ and colonize, leading to formation of metastatic foci. Given the importance of host derived chemokines in cancer progression and metastases several drugs like Mogamulizumab, Plerixafor, Repertaxin among others are part of ongoing clinical trial which target chemokines and their receptors against cancer pathogenesis. In this review, we focus on recent advances in understanding the complexity of chemokines network in tumor microenvironment, with an emphasis on chemokines secreted from host cells. We especially summarize the role of host-derived chemokines in different stages of metastases, including invasion, dissemination, migration into the vasculature, and seeding into the pre-metastatic niche. We finally provide a brief description of prospective drugs that target chemokines in different clinical trials against cancer.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 8-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Nisticò ◽  
Gennaro Ciliberto

Our view of cancer biology radically shifted from a “cancer-cell-centric” vision to a view of cancer as an organ disease. The concept that genetic and/or epigenetic alterations, at the basis of cancerogenesis, are the main if not the exclusive drivers of cancer development and the principal targets of therapy, has now evolved to include the tumor microenvironment in which tumor cells can grow, proliferate, survive, and metastasize only within a favorable environment. The interplay between cancer cells and the non-cellular and cellular components of the tumor microenvironment plays a fundamental role in tumor development and evolution both at the primary site and at the level of metastasis. The shape of the tumor cells and tumor mass is the resultant of several contrasting forces either pro-tumoral or anti-tumoral which have at the level of the tumor microenvironment their battle field. This crucial role of tumor microenvironment composition in cancer progression also dictates whether immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitor antibodies is going to be efficacious. Hence, tumor microenvironment deconvolution has become of great relevance in order to identify biomarkers predictive of efficacy of immunotherapy. In this short paper we will briefly review the relationship between inflammation and cancer, and will summarize in 10 short points the key concepts learned so far and the open challenges to be solved.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 4346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony M. Battram ◽  
Mireia Bachiller ◽  
Beatriz Martín-Antonio

Cellular senescence was first described as a physiological tumor cell suppressor mechanism that leads to cell growth arrest with production of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype known as SASP. The main role of SASP in physiological conditions is to attract immune cells to clear senescent cells avoiding tumor development. However, senescence can be damage-associated and, depending on the nature of these stimuli, additional types of senescence have been described. In the context of cancer, damage-associated senescence has been described as a consequence of chemotherapy treatments that were initially thought of as a tumor suppressor mechanism. However, in certain contexts, senescence after chemotherapy can promote cancer progression, especially when immune cells become senescent and cannot clear senescent tumor cells. Moreover, aging itself leads to continuous inflammaging and immunosenescence which are responsible for rewiring immune cells to become defective in their functionality. Here, we define different types of senescence, pathways that activate them, and functions of SASP in these events. Additionally, we describe the role of senescence in cancer and its treatments, including how aging and chemotherapy contribute to senescence in tumor cells, before focusing on immune cell senescence and its role in cancer. Finally, we discuss potential therapeutic interventions to reverse cell senescence.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 3529
Author(s):  
Mihnea P. Dragomir ◽  
Vlad Moisoiu ◽  
Roxana Manaila ◽  
Barbara Pardini ◽  
Erik Knutsen ◽  
...  

One of the limitations of cancer research has been the restricted focus on tumor cells and the omission of other non-malignant cells that are constitutive elements of this systemic disease. Current research is focused on the bidirectional communication between tumor cells and other components of the tumor microenvironment (TME), such as immune and endothelial cells, and nerves. A major success of this bidirectional approach has been the development of immunotherapy. Recently, a more complex landscape involving a multi-lateral communication between the non-malignant components of the TME started to emerge. A prime example is the interplay between immune and endothelial cells, which led to the approval of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor-therapy combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors and classical chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer. Hence, a paradigm shift approach is to characterize the crosstalk between different non-malignant components of the TME and understand their role in tumorigenesis. In this perspective, we discuss the interplay between nerves and immune cells within the TME. In particular, we focus on exosomes and microRNAs as a systemic, rapid and dynamic communication channel between tumor cells, nerves and immune cells contributing to cancer progression. Finally, we discuss how combinatorial therapies blocking this tumorigenic cross-talk could lead to improved outcomes for cancer patients.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1452
Author(s):  
Damiana Alvarez-Errico

The interaction of tumor cells with immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME) is the basis for several strategies of tumor evasion from immune surveillance, which nurture cancer development [...]


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaolei Li ◽  
Zhiqiang Wu ◽  
Xiaobing Fu ◽  
Weidong Han

The interplay between tumor cells and their microenvironment plays a pivotal role in tumor development and progression. Although a growing body of evidence has established the importance of the tumor microenvironment, an understanding of the crosstalk between its components and cancer cells remains elusive. The pathways triggered by microenvironmental factors could modulate cancer-related gene transcription, also affecting small noncoding RNAs, microRNAs, which have emerged as key posttranscriptional regulators of gene expression, directly involved in human cancers. Although microRNAs regulate most biological mechanisms, their role in the tumor microenvironment has only recently become the focus of intense research. In this paper, we focus on the intertwined connection between the tumor microenvironment and aberrant expression of microRNAs involved in carcinogenesis. We also discuss the emerging roles of microRNAs in the tumor microenvironment as it relates to cancer progression. We conclude that microRNAs are critical for our understanding of the development of cancer, and that targeting microRNA signaling pathways in the microenvironment as well as in tumor cells opens new therapeutic avenues to the global control of cancer.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiecheng Wang ◽  
Jiakang Jin ◽  
Chao Qian ◽  
Jianan Lou ◽  
Jinti Lin ◽  
...  

AbstractAs the essential sexual hormone, estrogen and its receptor has been proved to participate in the regulation of autoimmunity diseases and anti-tumor immunity. The adjustment of tumor immunity is related to the interaction between cancer cells, immune cells and tumor microenvironment, all of which is considered as the potential target in estrogen-induced immune system regulation. However, the specific mechanism of estrogen-induced immunity is poorly understood. Typically, estrogen causes the nuclear localization of estrogen/estrogen receptor complex and alternates the transcription pattern of target genes, leading to the reprogramming of tumor cells and differentiation of immune cells. However, the estrogen-induced non-canonical signal pathway activation is also crucial to the rapid function of estrogen, such as NF-κB, MAPK-ERK, and β-catenin pathway activation, which has not been totally illuminated. So, the investigation of estrogen modulatory mechanisms in these two manners is vital for the tumor immunity and can provide the potential for endocrine hormone targeted cancer immunotherapy. Here, this review summarized the estrogen-induced canonical and non-canonical signal transduction pathway and aimed to focus on the relationship among estrogen and cancer immunity as well as immune-related tumor microenvironment regulation. Results from these preclinical researches elucidated that the estrogen-target therapy has the application prospect of cancer immunotherapy, which requires the further translational research of these treatment strategies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (Suppl 3) ◽  
pp. A308-A308
Author(s):  
Lingkang Huang ◽  
Jared Lunceford ◽  
Junshui Ma ◽  
Kenneth Emancipator

BackgroundPD-L1 is expressed on both tumor and immune cells; however, the mechanism by which PD-L1 modulates the adaptive immune response on tumor versus immune cells may differ. Additionally, the prevalence of PD-L1 expression and the partitioning between tumor and immune compartments varies by tumor type. While PD-L1 expression on tumor or immune cells can be scored separately, the PD-L1 combined positive score (CPS) captures both tumor and immune cell expression in one aggregate score. We performed a retrospective, exploratory analysis of the effectiveness of CPS as an enrichment biomarker across several studies of pembrolizumab monotherapy in patients with multiple tumor types.MethodsPD-L1 expression was assessed using PD-L1 IHC 22C3 pharmDx. Expression was measured using CPS (defined as the number of PD-L1–staining cells [tumor cells, lymphocytes, macrophages] divided by the total number of tumor cells, multiplied by 100) in tumor samples from single-arm (KEYNOTE-052 [UC], KEYNOTE-059 cohort 1 [G/GEJ], KEYNOTE-086 [TNBC], KEYNOTE-158 [cervical; SCLC], KEYNOTE-180 [EC], KEYNOTE-224 [HCC], KEYNOTE-427 [RCC]) and randomized (KEYNOTE-040 [HNSCC], KEYNOTE-045 [UC], KEYNOTE-061 [G/GEJ], KEYNOTE-119 [TNBC], KEYNOTE-240 [HCC]) pembrolizumab studies. Data were pooled across tumor types for pembrolizumab and for standard-of-care (in controlled studies), and then estimates of response rate, prevalence, and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis were performed over various CPS cutpoints. CPS distribution by response, tumor type, and line of therapy were also assessed.ResultsThere were 3769 treated patients with available PD-L1 CPS (pembrolizumab, n=2678; standard-of-care, n=1091). The area under the ROC curve for ORR was 0.63 (95% CI, 0.61–0.66) for pembrolizumab and 0.48 (95% CI, 0.43–0.53) for standard-of-care when a positive association was evaluated between CPS and ORR (figure 1); individual cutpoints of 1, 10, 20, and 50 were examined (table 1). Figure 2 shows a boxplot of CPS distribution for response in pembrolizumab-treated patients.Abstract 282 Table 1Response Rates and Sensitivity at Individual CPS Cutpoints for Pembrolizumab-Treated PatientsAbstract 282 Figure 1ROC analysis of PD-L1 CPS for pembrolizumab versus standard-of-care therapyAbstract 282 Figure 2Boxplot of PD-L1 CPS distribution for responders versus nonresponders in pembrolizumab-treated patients by tumor type and line of therapy in order of descending median CPSConclusionsThis retrospective, exploratory pan-tumor analysis demonstrates that CPS is an effective scoring method for measuring PD-L1 expression and can be used as a predictive biomarker to identify patients likely to respond to pembrolizumab monotherapy. CPS demonstrated enrichment of response to pembrolizumab monotherapy across most, but not all, tumor types, including some tumor types for which efficacy favors pembrolizumab regardless of PD-L1 expression, and for which a companion diagnostic is therefore not needed. In the randomized studies, CPS did not show a consistent association with ORR for standard-of-care therapy.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 377 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Franzolin ◽  
Luca Tamagnone

The inflammatory and immune response elicited by the growth of cancer cells is a major element conditioning the tumor microenvironment, impinging on disease progression and patients’ prognosis. Semaphorin receptors are widely expressed in inflammatory cells, and their ligands are provided by tumor cells, featuring an intense signaling cross-talk at local and systemic levels. Moreover, diverse semaphorins control both cells of the innate and the antigen-specific immunity. Notably, semaphorin signals acting as inhibitors of anti-cancer immune response are often dysregulated in human tumors, and may represent potential therapeutic targets. In this mini-review, we provide a survey of the best known semaphorin regulators of inflammatory and immune cells, and discuss their functional impact in the tumor microenvironment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saurabh Satija ◽  
Harpreet Kaur ◽  
Murtaza M. Tambuwala ◽  
Prabal Sharma ◽  
Manish Vyas ◽  
...  

Hypoxia is an integral part of tumor microenvironment, caused primarily due to rapidly multiplying tumor cells and a lack of proper blood supply. Among the major hypoxic pathways, HIF-1 transcription factor activation is one of the widely investigated pathways in the hypoxic tumor microenvironment (TME). HIF-1 is known to activate several adaptive reactions in response to oxygen deficiency in tumor cells. HIF-1 has two subunits, HIF-1β (constitutive) and HIF-1α (inducible). The HIF-1α expression is largely regulated via various cytokines (through PI3K-ACT-mTOR signals), which involves the cascading of several growth factors and oncogenic cascades. These events lead to the loss of cellular tumor suppressant activity through changes in the level of oxygen via oxygen-dependent and oxygen-independent pathways. The significant and crucial role of HIF in cancer progression and its underlying mechanisms have gained much attention lately among the translational researchers in the fields of cancer and biological sciences, which have enabled them to correlate these mchanisms with various other disease modalities. In the present review, we have summarized the key findings related to the role of HIF in the progression of tumors.


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