Pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and docetaxel for Chinese patients with previously untreated HER2-positive locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer (PUFFIN): final analysis of a phase III, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

PURPOSE: PUFFIN (NCT02896855), a Chinese bridging study in patients with previously untreated HER2-positive locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer, assessed consistency of efficacy and safety of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and docetaxel versus placebo, trastuzumab, and docetaxel, with CLEOPATRA (NCT00567190). METHODS: Eligible patients, n = 243, were randomized 1:1, stratified by visceral disease and hormone receptor status, to pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and docetaxel or placebo, trastuzumab, and docetaxel. PRIMARY ENDPOINT: investigator-assessed progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary endpoints: safety and overall survival (OS). After primary analysis, patients could cross over to the pertuzumab arm. RESULTS: Updated median PFS: 16.5 months (pertuzumab arm) and 12.5 months (placebo arm), with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.60 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.45, 0.81; p = 0.0008]. Median OS was not reached in either arm; the OS HR was 0.68 (95% CI 0.45, 1.03; p = 0.0658). Safety was similar in both arms with no new safety signals: 73.8% (pertuzumab arm) and 69.2% (placebo arm) experienced grade ≥ 3 adverse events. No heart failure, symptomatic left ventricular systolic dysfunction, or left ventricular ejection fraction decline of < 40% were reported. CONCLUSIONS: The PUFFIN final analysis showed, per the primary analysis, that overall efficacy of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and docetaxel was consistent with CLEOPATRA. Safety remained consistent with the known pertuzumab profile. Overall, PUFFIN contributes to the totality of data with pertuzumab in previously untreated HER2-positive locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer and supports the favorable benefit-risk profile of pertuzumab in Chinese patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02896855, registered 7 September 2016.

Pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and chemotherapy in HER2-positive gastric/gastroesophageal junction cancer: end-of-study analysis of the JACOB phase III randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Dual-targeted anti-HER2 therapy significantly improves outcomes in HER2-positive breast cancer and could be beneficial in other HER2-positive cancers. JACOB's end-of study analyses aimed to evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and chemotherapy for previously untreated HER2-positive metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer. METHODS: Eligible patients were randomized 1:1 to pertuzumab/placebo plus trastuzumab and chemotherapy every 3 weeks. PRIMARY ENDPOINT: overall survival (OS). Secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), duration of response (DoR), and safety. RESULTS: The intention-to-treat population comprised 388 patients in the pertuzumab arm and 392 in the placebo arm. The safety population comprised 385 and 388 patients, respectively. Median follow-up was ≥ 44.4 months. Median OS was increased by 3.9 months (hazard ratio 0.85 [95% confidence intervals, 0.72-0.99]) and median PFS by 1.3 months (hazard ratio 0.73 [95% confidence intervals, 0.62-0.85]) in the pertuzumab vs. the placebo arm. ORR was numerically higher (57.0% vs. 48.6%) and median DoR 1.8 months longer with pertuzumab treatment. There was a trend for more favorable hazard ratios in certain subgroups related to HER2 amplification/overexpression. Safety was comparable between arms, except for serious and grade 3-5 adverse events, and any-grade diarrhea, which were more frequent with pertuzumab. CONCLUSIONS: JACOB did not meet its primary endpoint. Nonetheless, the study continues to demonstrate some, albeit limited, evidence of treatment activity and an acceptable safety profile for pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and chemotherapy in previously untreated HER2-positive metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer after long-term follow-up. Trial registration NCT01774786; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01774786 .

Mucosal tissue tropism and dissemination of HIV-1 subtype B acute envelope-expressing chimeric virus.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) transmission results from infection with one or a small number of variants from the donor quasispecies. Transmitted/founder (T/F) viruses have recently been identified from acutely infected patients, but the way in which they interact with primary targets of HIV-1 infection is poorly understood. We have conducted a biological characterization of a panel of subtype B T/F acute and chronic envelope (Env)-expressing chimeric virus in primary human target cells and mucosal tissues. Both acute and chronic Envs preferentially replicated in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and a CD4 T-cell line compared to monocyte-derived macrophages, or dendritic cells (DC). In a model of trans infection from monocyte-derived dendritic cells to T cells, chimeric virus from acute Envs achieved significantly lower titers compared to chronic Envs. Challenge of primary human mucosal tissues revealed significantly higher levels of replication in chronic Env-expressing virus in rectal tissue compared to cervical and penile tissues and enhanced replication in tonsillar tissue relative to acute Envs. In agreement with data from the DC to T-cell trans infection assay, chronic Env-chimeric virus pools were transmitted more efficiently by migratory cells from cervical and penile tissues to CD4(+) T cells than individual acute Env chimeras. These data indicate that virus with HIV-1 Envs of transmitted acute infections preferentially replicate in T cells rather than macrophages or dendritic cells and are less efficiently transmitted from antigen-presenting cells to CD4 T cells than chronic Envs. Such properties together with chemokine (C-C motif) receptor 5 (CCR5) use may confer an advantage for transmission.

CCR5- and CXCR4-tropic subtype C human immunodeficiency virus type 1 isolates have a lower level of pathogenic fitness than other dominant group M subtypes: implications for the epidemic.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) subtype C is the dominant subtype globally, due largely to the incidence of subtype C infections in sub-Saharan Africa and east Asia. We compared the relative replicative fitness (ex vivo) of the major (M) group of HIV-1 subtypes A, B, C, D, and CRF01_AE and group O isolates. To estimate pathogenic fitness, pairwise competitions were performed between CCR5-tropic (R5) or CXCR4-tropic (X4) virus isolates in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). A general fitness order was observed among 33 HIV-1 isolates; subtype B and D HIV-1 isolates were slightly more fit than the subtype A and dramatically more fit than the 12 subtype C isolates. All group M isolates were more fit (ex vivo) than the group O isolates. To estimate ex vivo transmission fitness, a subset of primary HIV-1 isolates were examined in primary human explants from penile, cervical, and rectal tissues. Only R5 isolates and no X4 HIV-1 isolates could replicate in these tissues, whereas the spread to PM1 cells was dependent on active replication and passive virus transfer. In tissue competition experiments, subtype C isolates could compete with and, in some cases, even win over subtype A and D isolates. However, when the migratory cells from infected tissues were mixed with a susceptible cell line, the subtype C isolates were outcompeted by other subtypes, as observed in experiments with PBMC. These findings suggest that subtype C HIV-1 isolates might have equal transmission fitness but reduced pathogenic fitness relative to other group M HIV-1 isolates.

Evaluation of mucosal adjuvants and immunization routes for the induction of systemic and mucosal humoral immune responses in macaques.

Delivering vaccine antigens to mucosal surfaces is potentially very attractive, especially as protection from mucosal infections may be mediated by local immune responses. However, to date mucosal immunization has had limited successes, with issues of both safety and poor immunogenicity. One approach to improve immunogenicity is to develop adjuvants that are effective and safe at mucosal surfaces. Differences in immune responses between mice and men have overstated the value of some experimental adjuvants which have subsequently performed poorly in the clinic. Due to their closer similarity, non-human primates can provide a more accurate picture of adjuvant performance. In this study we immunised rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) using a unique matrix experimental design that maximised the number of adjuvants screened while reducing the animal usage. Macaques were immunised by the intranasal, sublingual and intrarectal routes with the model protein antigens keyhole limpet haemocyanin (KLH), ß-galactosidase (ß-Gal) and ovalbumin (OVA) in combination with the experimental adjuvants Poly(I:C), Pam3CSK4, chitosan, Thymic Stromal Lymphopoietin (TSLP), MPLA and R848 (Resiquimod). Of the routes used, only intranasal immunization with KLH and R848 induced a detectable antibody response. When compared to intramuscular immunization, intranasal administration gave slightly lower levels of antigen specific antibody in the plasma, but enhanced local responses. Following intranasal delivery of R848, we observed a mildly inflammatory response, but no difference to the control. From this we conclude that R848 is able to boost antibody responses to mucosally delivered antigen, without causing excess local inflammation.

Immune dysfunction in HIV-seronegative, Cryptococcus gattii meningitis.

The pathophysiology of meningitis caused by Cryptococcus gattii in apparently immunocompetent individuals remains unclear. We measured multiple cytokines in CSF from a HIV-seronegative, apparently immunocompetent, Thai patient with C. gattii meningitis, over the first 2 weeks of antifungal therapy. Levels of proinflammatory IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, and IL-6 were very low compared to patients with HIV-related Cryptococcus neoformans meningitis and of IL-10 very high. While patients with C. gattii meningitis may be a heterogeneous group, these data suggest in this case a maladapted immune response to cryptococcal exposure had allowed progression to clinical cryptococcal disease.

Role of capsule and interleukin-6 in long-term immune control of Cryptococcus neoformans infection by specifically activated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Cryptococcus neoformans is a frequent cause of meningoencephalitis in immunosuppressed individuals. To better understand the mechanisms of a protective immune response to C. neoformans, a long-term in vitro model of human immune control of cryptococcal infection was developed. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) prestimulated with heat-killed C. neoformans significantly restricted the growth of C. neoformans after a subsequent live infection compared to that with unstimulated PBMC. Live infection with encapsulated C. neoformans was controlled for as long as 10 days, while infection with acapsular organisms could sometimes be eradicated. During immune control, fungal cells were both intracellular and extracellular within aggregates of mononuclear phagocytes and lymphocytes. Optimal immune control depended on the presence of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Immune control of cryptococcal growth was more effective following prestimulation with acapsular compared with encapsulated organisms. Prestimulation with acapsular organisms was associated with a significant and prolonged increase in interleukin-6 (IL-6) production compared with prestimulation with encapsulated C. neoformans. Addition of IL-6 and depletion of CD25+ T cells prior to prestimulation and infection with encapsulated organisms resulted in reductions in cryptococcal growth that reached borderline statistical significance. Depletion of CD25+ T cells significantly reduced cryptococcal growth in wells with unstimulated PBMC. The results demonstrate an association between high levels of IL-6 and resistance to infection and, through suppression of IL-6 release, an additional mechanism whereby the cryptococcal capsule subverts a protective immune response. Further work is required to clarify the mechanism of action of IL-6 in this setting and any interaction with regulatory T cells.

IFN-gamma at the site of infection determines rate of clearance of infection in cryptococcal meningitis.

In animal models, immunity to cryptococcal infection, as in many chronic fungal and bacterial infections, is associated with a granulomatous inflammatory response, intact cell-mediated immunity, and a Th1 pattern of cytokine release. To examine the correlates of human immunity to cryptococcal infection in vivo, we analyzed immune parameters at the site of infection over time and assessed the rate of clearance of infection by serial quantitative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fungal cultures in 62 patients in a trial of antifungal therapy for HIV-associated cryptococcal meningitis. CSF IL-6, IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, and IL-8 were significantly higher in survivors compared with nonsurvivors. There were negative correlations between log TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and IL-6 levels and baseline cryptococcal CFU. Log IFN-gamma, G-CSF, TNF-alpha, and IL-6 were correlated positively with the rate of fall in log CFU/ml CSF/day. In a linear regression model including antifungal treatment group, baseline CFU, and these cytokines, only treatment group and log IFN-gamma remained independently associated with rate of clearance of infection. The results provide direct in vivo evidence for the importance of quantitative differences in IFN-gamma secretion in human immune control of granulomatous infections, and increase the rationale for adjunctive IFN-gamma in the treatment of refractory HIV-associated cryptococcosis.

Polygenic control of human T lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) provirus load and the risk of HTLV-I-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis.

Human T lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I)-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) is one outcome of infection with HTLV-I. A population association study of 229 patients with HAM/TSP and 202 healthy carriers of HTLV-I in southern Japan showed that this outcome of HTLV-I infection and the HTLV-I provirus load are under polygenic control. Of 58 polymorphic sites studied in 39 non-HLA candidate gene loci, 3 new host genetic factors that influenced the risk of HAM/TSP or the provirus load of HTLV-I were identified. The promoter TNF -863A allele predisposed to HAM/TSP, whereas SDF-1 +801A 3'UTR, and IL-15 191C alleles conferred protection. Knowledge of HTLV-I-infected individuals' ages, sex, provirus load, HTLV-I subgroup, and genotypes at the loci HLA-A, HLA-C, SDF-1, and TNF-alpha allowed for the correct identification of 88% of cases of HAM/TSP in this Japanese cohort.