Patent Application
20230390390
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
For countries that permit incorporation by reference, all of the references cited in this disclosure are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. In addition, any manufacturers' instructions or catalogues for any products cited or mentioned herein are incorporated by reference. Documents incorporated by reference into this text, or any teachings therein, can be used in the practice of the present invention. Documents incorporated by reference into this text are not admitted to be prior art.
Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein-4 (CTLA-4) and programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) are the best-characterized immune co-inhibitory receptors that have been successfully exploited as therapeutic targets to promote and reinvigorate immune responses against cancer. Both molecules are induced on T cells upon T-cell receptor (TCR) signaling activation, but with different kinetics. CTLA-4 is usually up-regulated during the initial stage of naïve T-cell activation, and competes with CD28 for the same ligands (CD86 and CD80) expressed on antigen presenting cells (APCs), thus limiting excessive T-cell priming (Fife and Bluestone, 2008; Pentcheva-Hoang et al., 2004). CTLA-4 is also constitutively expressed at high levels on regulatory T cells (Tregs), and constitutes one of their immunosuppressive mechanisms (Wing et al., 2008). PD-1 is generally induced during the later phases of an immune response, thus controlling previously activated T cells, typically at the effector sites of immune responses. PD-1 is considered the prototype marker of T-cell exhaustion (Fife and Bluestone, 2008; Keir et al., 2008). The CTLA-4 and PD-1 immune checkpoints are particularly deregulated in tumor-bearing hosts, where chronic ineffective immune responses usually predominate and result in T-cell exhaustion and Treg induction (Wing et al., 2008). These observations provided the rationale for developing strategies to inhibit CTLA-4 and PD-1 as new cancer immunotherapy modalities (Dong et al., 2002; Iwai et al., 2002; Leach et al., 1996; Strome et al., 2003).
Blockade of these immune checkpoints with specific antibodies (anti-CTLA-4 and/or anti-PD-1) has now become a standard of care for various cancer types (Hellmann et al., 2016; Hodi et al., 2010; Larkin et al., 2015; Lutzky et al., 2014; Robert et al., 2015; Weber et al., 2015). The clinical experience accumulated thus far reveals differing activity profiles of CTLA-4 and PD-1 blockade, which can eventually complement each other, as indicated by results from their use in combination (Larkin et al., 2015; Postow et al., 2015; Wolchok et al., 2013).
Despite these successes, immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) still does not benefit a significant proportion of patients with metastatic cancer, and poses a potentially high risk for developing severe immune-related toxicities, in particular when anti-CTLA-4 and anti-PD-1 are combined (Friedman et al., 2016). This underscores the need to achieve better anti-tumor activity in patients receiving ICB therapy.
Some of the main aspects of the present invention are summarized below. Additional aspects are described in the Detailed Description of the Invention, Examples, Drawings, and Claims sections of this disclosure. The description in each section of this disclosure is intended to be read in conjunction with the other sections. Furthermore, the various embodiments described in each section of this disclosure can be combined in various different ways, and all such combinations are intended to fall within the scope of the present invention.
We have shown previously that a specific population of T follicular helper (TFH)-like cells (CD4+Foxp3−PD-1hi cells), designated 4PD1hi, have a negative impact on anti-tumor immunity: (i) intra-tumor 4PD1hi accumulation occurs as a function of tumor progression, and (ii) tumor-associated and peripheral 4PD1hi from mice and humans limit effector T-cell (Teff) functions. In addition, we showed that CTLA-4 blockade consistently promotes increases in 4PD1hi cells, while PD-1 blockade reduces their frequency and immunosuppressive function (Zappasodi et al., 2018). We show herein that depletion of TFH cells and TFH-like 4PD1hi cells improves anti-tumor response to ICB therapy.
Accordingly, the invention provides a method of treating cancer or improving treatment response in a patient undergoing ICB therapy. In certain embodiments, the patient displays an increased frequency of 4PD1hi cells compared to the average frequency of 4PD1hi cells in healthy subjects.
One embodiment provides a method of improving response of a patient to ICB therapy, the method comprising administering to the patient an agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells in the patient, wherein administration of the agent is commenced prior to or concurrently with the ICB therapy. Another embodiment provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising an effective amount of an agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells in a patient for use in improving response of the patient to ICB therapy.
A particular embodiment provides a method of improving response of a patient to anti-CTLA-4 ICB therapy, the method comprising administering to the patient an effective amount of a B-cell lymphoma 6 (BCL6) inhibitor, wherein administration of the BCL6 inhibitor is commenced prior to or concurrently with administration of a CTLA-4 inhibitor. Another embodiment provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising an effective amount of a BCL6 inhibitor for use in improving response of a patient to anti-CTLA-4 ICB therapy.
Another particular embodiment provides a method of improving response of a patient to anti-CTLA-4 ICB therapy, the method comprising administering to the patient an effective amount of an enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) inhibitor, wherein administration of the EZH2 inhibitor is commenced prior to or concurrently with administration of a CTLA-4 inhibitor. A further embodiment provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising an effective amount of an EZH2 inhibitor for use in improving response of a patient to anti-CTLA-4 ICB therapy.
In one aspect, the agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells comprises a BCL6 inhibitor. In some embodiments of the invention, the BCL6 inhibitor is 79-6. In another aspect, the agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells comprises an EZH2 inhibitor. In certain embodiments, the EZH2 inhibitor is EPZ-6438 (tazemetostat). In other embodiments, the EZH2 inhibitor is a dual EZH2/1 inhibitor.
The agent can be administered to the patient starting, for example, between one and seven days prior to ICB therapy or starting, for instance, on the same day as ICB therapy. In certain embodiments, the agent is administered to the patient starting between one and four days prior to administration of the ICB therapy. In one embodiment, a course of the agent is administered throughout a course of the ICB therapy.
In some embodiments, the ICB therapy comprises a CTLA-4 inhibitor, a PD-1 inhibitor, or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, the ICB therapy is a CTLA-4 inhibitor. In particular embodiments, the CTLA-4 inhibitor is selected from the group consisting of ipilimumab and tremelimumab.
TFH cell frequency and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency can be measured, for example, using a method comprising immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, and/or gene expression signature. In one embodiment, the flow cytometry is fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS).
In certain aspects of the invention, the frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells is measured in a peripheral blood sample from the patient. In other aspects of the invention, the frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells is measured in a tumor biopsy sample from the patient.
In some embodiments, the patient has cancer. In one embodiment, the cancer is melanoma. In one embodiment, the cancer is non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention is related. For example, The Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology (5th ed. J. M. Lackie ed., 2013), the Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2d ed. R. Cammack et al. eds., 2008), and The Concise Dictionary of Biomedicine and Molecular Biology (2d ed. P-S. Juo, 2002) can provide one of skill with general definitions of some terms used herein.
As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The terms “a” (or “an”) as well as the terms “one or more” and “at least one” can be used interchangeably.
Furthermore, “and/or” is to be taken as specific disclosure of each of the two specified features or components with or without the other. Thus, the term “and/of” as used in a phrase such as “A and/or B” is intended to include A and B, A or B, A (alone), and B (alone). Likewise, the term “and/or” as used in a phrase such as “A, B, and/or C” is intended to include A, B, and C; A, B, or C; A or B; A or C; B or C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A (alone); B (alone); and C (alone).
Units, prefixes, and symbols are denoted in their Système International de Unites (SI) accepted form. Numeric ranges are inclusive of the numbers defining the range, and any individual value provided herein can serve as an endpoint for a range that includes other individual values provided herein. For example, a set of values such as 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, and 10 is also a disclosure of a range of numbers from 1-10. Where a numeric term is preceded by “about,” the term includes the stated number and values ±10% of the stated number. The headings provided herein are not limitations of the various aspects or embodiments of the invention, which can be had by reference to the specification as a whole. Accordingly, the terms defined immediately below are more fully defined by reference to the specification in its entirety.
Wherever embodiments are described with the language “comprising,” otherwise analogous embodiments described in terms of “consisting of” and/or “consisting essentially of” are included.
BCL6, or B-cell lymphoma 6, is a zinc finger transcription repressor that is overexpressed/mutated in lymphoid malignancies, for example, diffuse large B cell lymphoma. BCL6 plays a role in the development of TFH cells.
TFH cells are a subset of CD4m T cells found in the B cell follicles of secondary lymphoid organs. TFH cells constitutively express CXC chemokine receptor 5 (CXCR5), which enables T cells to migrate to the B cell zone. BCL6 is normally responsible for retaining germinal center TFH cells, as well as B cells, in the follicles (Mlynarczyk et al., 2019).
“4PD1hi” are Foxp3−PD-1hi CD4+ TFH-like cells that fine tune the immune system by suppressing certain immune functions while potentiating others (Zappasodi et al., 2018). They are a subset of immunosuppressive CD4+ T cells with TFH-like features, and express the highest levels of PD-1 within the CD4+ T cell pool. The observation that 4PD1hi cells increase and accumulate within the tumor microenvironment as a function of tumor growth indicates that persistent tumor-antigen exposure may facilitate and sustain their generation. For example, the average frequency of 4PD1hi cells as a percentage of CD4+ T cells is increased in advanced melanoma patients and in NSCLC patients, compared with that in healthy donors, particularly in the tumor microenvironment, as shown in Table 1.
We demonstrate herein that targeting the TFH differentiation pathway can potentiate the activity of ICB therapy. In one embodiment, the ICB therapy is CTLA-4 blockade. In addition, our results indicate that when the TFH lineage is compromised, the 4PD1hi cells that develop or are retained in the tumor after ICB therapy no longer suppress T cells and may acquire Th1-like functions. In particular, we found that the response of a subject to ICB therapy can be improved by co-administering an agent that reduces the frequency and/or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells. Improvement is assessed in comparison to a control population.
The term “immune checkpoint blockade,” “ICB,” or “ICB therapy,” as used herein, refers to the administration of one or more inhibitors of one or more immune checkpoint proteins or their ligand(s). Immune checkpoint proteins include, but are not limited to, cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4), also known as CD152, programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), also known as CD279, lymphocyte-activation gene 3 (LAG-3), also known as CD223, and T cell immunoglobulin mucin (TIM-3), also known as HAVcr2.
EZH2, or enhancer of zeste homolog 2, is the enzymatic component of the polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) and catalyzes histone 3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) at gene promoters, thus repressing transcription. EZH2 cooperates with BCL6 in B cells to execute a gene repressor program that orchestrates the germinal center reactions (Béguelin et al., 2016). The epigenetic activity of EZH2 has also been shown to contribute to the phenotypic stability and immunosuppression function of Tregs (duPage et al., 2015).
EZH1, or enhancer of zeste homoog 1, is the EZH2-paralog.
By “subject” or “individual” or “patient” is meant any subject, preferably a mammalian subject, for whom diagnosis, prognosis, or therapy is desired. Mammalian subjects include humans, domestic animals, farm animals, sports animals, and zoo animals including, e.g., humans, non-human primates, dogs, cats, guinea pigs, rabbits, rats, mice, horses, cattle, and so on.
A “control” patient or population is one that has not been subjected to methods of the invention. Control patients, or subjects in a control population, have the same disease or disorder as the patient being compared to the control population. For example, a clinical outcome of a cancer patient who is subjected to a method of the invention, e.g., treatment with ICB therapy and an agent that reduces TFH cell and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function, is compared with the average (median) outcome of subjects having the same type of cancer who were not subjected to methods of the invention, e.g., who received the same ICB therapy but did not receive an agent that reduces TFH cell and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function.
In one embodiment, a patient subjected to a method of the invention has an improved response if the patient's survival is longer than the median survival of patients having the same type of disorder as the patient, who were not subjected to a method of the invention. Survival can be overall survival, i.e., length of time a patient lives, or progression-free survival, i.e., length of time a patient is treated without progression of the disease. Survival can be measured from the date of diagnosis or from the date that treatment commences. Overall survival, median overall survival, progression-free survival, and median progression-free survival can be determined by methods known in the art and/or by those described herein. Improvement is preferably statistically significant as analyzed, for example, by Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed rank test, log-rank (Mantel-Cox) test, or paired t-test.
In one embodiment, improved response can be measured by known methods appropriate to the disease type, for instance, using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) (Ollivier et al., 2001). Patients evaluated using RECIST can have a complete response (CR), a partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), or progressive disease (PD). An improved response can also be assessed by other criteria, for example, duration of response, reduction in tumor volume, minimum residual disease (MRD), and the like.
Patients to whom the methods and uses of the invention can be applied may be undergoing ICB therapy for any type of neoplastic disease or disorder wherein 4PD1hi cells expand and contribute to immune suppression and immune refractoriness. In some embodiments, the 4PD1hi cell frequency increases in a patient during the course of ICB therapy, relative to baseline. In this context, “baseline” is the 4PD1hi cell frequency prior to treatment with the ICB therapy and/or BCL6 inhibitor, or prior to treatment with the ICB therapy and/or EZH2 inhibitor. In some embodiments, the 4PD1hi cell frequency in a patient, either at baseline or during treatment, is significantly higher than the average 4PD1hi cell frequency in healthy subjects. Examples of neoplastic diseases or disorders that can be treated by the methods of the invention include melanoma, skin carcinoma, NSCLC, kidney cancer, bladder cancer, head and neck cancers, lymphoma, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, and esophageal cancer.
A “neoplastic cell” or “neoplasm” typically has undergone some form of mutation/transformation, resulting in abnormal growth as compared to normal cells or tissue of the same type. Neoplasms include morphological irregularities, as well as pathologic proliferation. Neoplastic cells can be benign or malignant. Malignant neoplasms, i.e., cancers, are distinguished from benign in that they demonstrate loss of differentiation and orientation of cells, and have the properties of invasion and metastasis.
A “solid tumor” is a mass of neoplastic cells.
Terms such as “treating” or “treatment” or “to treat” or “alleviating” or “to alleviate” refer to therapeutic measures that cure, slow down, lessen symptoms of, and/or halt progression of a diagnosed pathologic condition or disorder. Thus, those in need of treatment include those already with the disorder. In certain embodiments, a subject is successfully “treated” for a disease or disorder according to the methods provided herein if the patient shows, e.g., total, partial, or transient alleviation or elimination of symptoms associated with the disease or disorder.
The terms “inhibit,” “block,” and “suppress” are used interchangeably and refer to any statistically significant decrease in biological activity, including full blocking of the activity. An “inhibitor” is an active agent that inhibits, blocks, or suppresses biological activity in vitro or in vivo. Inhibitors include but are not limited to small molecule compounds; nucleic acids, such as siRNA and shRNA; polypeptides, such as antibodies or antigen-binding fragments thereof, dominant-negative polypeptides, peptidomimetics, and inhibitory peptides; and oligonucleotide or peptide aptamers.
An “active agent” is an agent which itself has biological activity, or which is a precursor or prodrug that is converted in the body to an agent having biological activity.
An “effective amount” of an active agent or composition as disclosed herein is an amount sufficient to carry out a specifically stated purpose. An “effective amount” can be determined empirically and in a routine manner, in relation to the stated purpose, route of administration, and dosage form.
A “CTLA-4 inhibitor” is an active agent that antagonizes the activity of cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 or reduces its production in a cell. Examples of CTLA-4 inhibitors include ipilimumab and tremelimumab. Derivatives of these compounds that act as CTLA-4 inhibitors are also suitable for use in the invention.
A “PD-1 inhibitor” is an active agent that antagonizes the activity of programmed cell death protein 1 or reduces its production in a cell. Examples of PD-1 inhibitors that are suitable for use in the present invention include nivolumab, pembrolizumab, pidilizumab, and REGN2810. PD-1 inhibitors also include active agents that inhibit the PD-1 ligand (PD-L1), including atezolizumab, avelumab, durvalumab, and BMS-936559. Derivatives of the foregoing compounds that act as PD-1 inhibitors are also suitable for use in the invention.
A “BCL6 inhibitor” is an active agent that antagonizes the activity of B-cell lymphoma 6 or reduces its production in a cell. A BCL6 inhibitor can target BCL6 or can target BCL6 binding partners/co-repressors. Examples of BCL6 inhibitors include, but are not limited to, 79.6, Apt48, BI-3812, BBD-BPI, L-BPI, RI-BPI, FX1, Resveratrol, Rifamycin SV, SMRT1414-1441, TMX-1120, TMX-2164, and derivatives thereof (Cerchietti et al., 2010; Cardenas et al., 2017 and references cited therein; Kerres et al., 2017; Teng et al., 2020).
An “EZH2 inhibitor” is an active agent that antagonizes the activity of EZH2 or reduces its production in a cell. An EZH2 inhibitor can target EZH2 or can target EZH2 binding partners/co-repressors. Examples of EZH2 inhibitors include, but are not limited to, EPZ-6438 (tazemetostat), GSK2816126, CPI-0209, SHR2554, and PF-06821497 (Kang et al., 2020). EZH2 inhibitors may also be dual EZH2/1 inhibitors such as CPI-1205 or DS-3201.
TFH and 4PD1hi cell frequencies are measured as a percentage of CD4+ T cells in a biological sample from a subject, in particular, in a peripheral blood sample or a tumor biopsy. Cell frequency can be measured or quantified by any method known in the art. Examples of suitable techniques include, but are not limited to, those that involve immunohistochemistry (IHC), flow cytometry, and/or transcriptome analysis, each of which technique can be used to detect, measure, and/or quantify cells having a given gene expression signature.
TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell function refers to the capacity of these cells to suppress T cell activation and proliferation. For example, even when BCL6 inhibition or EZH2 inhibition or genetic inactivation of CXCR5 does not lead to substantial reduction of TFH/4PD1hi cell frequency in the tumor microenvironment, it does inhibit the capacity of tumor-infiltrating 4PD1hi cells to suppress the anti-tumor immune response. Accordingly, TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell function can be measured, for example, in T cell proliferation/suppression assays as described herein. In certain embodiments, TFH and/or 4PD1hi cells from clinical samples can be sorted by FACS and tested in ex vivo suppression assays to measure their capacity to suppress proliferation and activation of T cells in a co-culture system.
TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function can be measured according to the methods of the invention at least about one, two, three, four, five, or six weeks after a dose of ICB therapy. In some cases, TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function is measured before the first dose of the agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells to determine a patient's baseline TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function. Because ICB therapy is typically cyclical (for example, one dose is administered every three weeks for a total of four doses), a baseline TFH and/or 4PD1hi cell frequency and/or function can be acquired before the first dose and/or before one or more subsequent doses of the agent.
As used herein, the term “gene expression signature” is used consistently with its conventional meaning in the art, and refers to an expression profile of a group of genes that is characteristic of a certain cell type, a certain cell population, a certain biological phenotype, or a certain medical condition. By way of example, when the term “gene expression signature” is used in relation to TFH cells, it refers to an expression profile of a group of genes that is characteristic of TFH cells. For example, TFH cells are CXCR5-positive CD4-positive, PD-1-positive, Foxp3-negative, and BCL6-positive, i.e., TFH cells can be characterized by the “gene expression signature” CXCR5'0 CD4+PD-1+Foxp3−BCL6+. Likewise, 4PD1l cells are CD4-positive, Foxp3-negative, and PD-1-positive, i.e., 4PD1hi cells can be characterized by the “gene expression signature” CD4+Foxp3−PD-1+. Gene expression signatures can be determined using any suitable method known in the art for determining the expression of a gene, including, but not limited to, those that detect and/or measure gene expression at the mRNA level or the protein level, such as RT-PCR-based methods, immunohistochemistry (IHC)-based methods, flow cytometry-based methods, and the like.
The term “pharmaceutical composition” refers to a preparation that is in such form as to permit the biological activity of the active ingredient to be effective, and which contains no additional components that are unacceptably toxic to a subject to which the composition would be administered. Pharmaceutical compositions can be administered in any of numerous dosage forms, for example, tablet, capsule, liquid, solution, softgel, suspension, emulsion, syrup, elixir, tincture, film, powder, hydrogel, ointment, paste, cream, lotion, gel, mousse, foam, lacquer, spray, aerosol, inhaler, nebulizer, ophthalmic drops, patch, suppository, and/or enema. Pharmaceutical compositions typically comprise a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, and can comprise one or more of a buffer (e.g., acetate, phosphate, or citrate buffer), a surfactant (e.g., polysorbate), a stabilizing agent (e.g., human albumin), a preservative (e.g., benzyl alcohol), a penetration enhancer, an absorption promoter to enhance bioavailability and/or other conventional solubilizing or dispersing agents. Choice of dosage form and excipients depends upon the active agent to be delivered and the disease or disorder to be treated or prevented, and is routine to one of ordinary skill in the art.
“Systemic administration” means that a pharmaceutical composition is administered such that the active agent enters the circulatory system, for example, via enteral, parenteral, inhalational, or transdermal routes. Enteral routes of administration involve the gastrointestinal tract and include, without limitation, oral, sublingual, buccal, and rectal delivery. Parenteral routes of administration involve routes other than the gastrointestinal tract and include, without limitation, intravenous, intramuscular, intraperitoneal, intrathecal, and subcutaneous. “Local administration” means that a pharmaceutical composition is administered directly to where its action is desired (e.g., at or near the site of the injury or symptoms). Local routes of administration include, without limitation, topical, inhalational, subcutaneous, ophthalmic, and otic. It is within the purview of one of ordinary skill in the art to formulate pharmaceutical compositions that are suitable for their intended route of administration.
In some embodiments, administration can comprise systemic administration, at any suitable dose and/or according to any suitable dosing regimen, as determined by one of skill in the art. The ICB therapy, for example, a CTLA-4 inhibitor and/or a PD-1 inhibitor, and the agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells can be administered according to any suitable dosing regimen, for example, where the daily dose of one or both agents is divided into two or more separate doses. It is within the skill of the ordinary artisan to determine a dosing schedule and duration for administration.
Initially, the agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells can be administered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 days prior to administration of the ICB therapy, preferably 1, 2, 3, or 4 days prior to administration of the ICB therapy, such as a CTLA-4 inhibitor and/or a PD-1 inhibitor. Alternatively, the agent can be initially administered on the same day as the ICB therapy.
The agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells is preferably administered throughout ICB therapy, i.e., administration of a course of treatment with an agent that reduces frequency or function of TFH cells and/or 4PD1hi cells is concurrent with administration of a course of ICB therapy. In one embodiment, the agent is administered once daily. In one embodiment, the agent is administered twice daily. In one embodiment, the agent is administered one, two, three, or four times per week. In one embodiment, the agent is administered every other day. In one embodiment, the agent is administered every three days.
Embodiments of the present disclosure can be further defined by reference to the following non-limiting examples. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications, both to materials and methods, can be practiced without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
We have developed and employed the following genetic systems to eliminate TFH cells, and to test whether immune checkpoint blockade can achieve better anti-tumor activity in the absence of TFH cells: 1) a CD4 conditional Bcl6 knock out (KO) mouse model (CD4-Cre;Bcl6fl/fl) (
We determined that elimination of TFH cells using either system potentiated the anti-tumor activity of this suboptimal anti-CTLA-4 regimen (
Intriguingly, deletion of the TFH lineage did not completely eliminate intratumor infiltration with PD-1-overexpressing CD4+Foxp3− T cells (
We next tested whether we could reproduce these results with pharmacologic inhibition of Bcl6 using a selective inhibitor (Bcl6i) (Cerchietti et al., 2010) in combination with anti-CTLA-4. In these experiments, we used both WT and B cell-deficient μMT mice (
We thus reasoned that the 4PD1hi cells found intratumorally after treatment with anti-CTLA-4 in TFH deficient mice, or during Bcl6 inhibition in association with better tumor control, could be functionally different and have lost their suppression function. To test this hypothesis, we FACS-sorted 4PD1hi from B16 tumors grown in CD4KO:CXCR5KO or CD4KO:WT BMT-recipient mice, treated with the same suboptimal anti-CTLA-4 regimen. We evaluated these cells in ex vivo suppression assays, in comparison with Tregs and conventional CD4+ T cells (Tconv) (
We found that 4PD1hi from tumors implanted in CD4KO:CXCR5KO BMT recipient mice were no longer suppressive, as opposed to the same cell subset isolated from tumors of control mice (
In consideration of the known effects of EZH2 in repressing transcription in cooperation with BCL6 in the germinal centers and its role in supporting immunosuppressive function of Tregs, we examined for EZH2 expression in 4PD1hi cells in comparison with other CD4+ T-cell subsets. We found that, in naïve mouse spleen and in human healthy donor-derived peripheral monocyte blood cells, 4PD1hi cells overexpress EZH2 (
In addition, in mice treated with a CTLA-4 blocking antibody, EZH2 expression in 4PD1hi cells is further upregulated as compared to mice treated with IgG control (
These results, in particular the preferential overexpression of EZH2 in 4PD1hi cells and its further up-regulation in these cells after CTLA-4 blockade, suggest a functional role for EZH2 in 4PD1hi cells.
Strome S E, et al. (2003). B7-H1 blockade augments adoptive T-cell immunotherapy for squamous cell carcinoma. Cancer Research 63, 6501-6505.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the invention that others can, by applying knowledge within the skill of the art, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments, without undue experimentation, without departing from the general concept of the present invention. Therefore, such adaptations and modifications are intended to be within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments, based on the teaching and guidance presented herein. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation, such that the terminology or phraseology of the present specification is to be interpreted by the skilled artisan in light of the teachings and guidance. The present invention is further described by the following claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/104,056, filed on Oct. 22, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
This invention was made with government support under CA008748 awarded by the National Institutes of Health. The government has certain rights in the invention.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2021/055992 | 10/21/2021 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63104056 | Oct 2020 | US |
