Ultrasound-guided intra-tumor injection of combined immunotherapy cures mice from orthotopic prostate cancer.

Intra-tumor injection of immunotherapeutic agents is often the most effective, likely because of concomitant modification of tumor microenvironment. We tested an immunotherapeutic regimen consisting of CpG oligonucleotides and of adenovirus-mediated gene delivery of CCL16 chemokine directly into orthotopically implanted prostate tumors by ultrasound-guided injection, followed by systemic administration of an anti-IL-10R antibody. This combination treatment induced rapid stromal rearrangement, characterized by massive leukocyte infiltration and large areas of necrosis, a scenario that eventually led to complete tumor rejection and systemic immunity in 75 % of the treated mice. In vivo T lymphocyte depletion experiments demonstrated that the efficacy of CCL16/CpG/anti-IL-10R combination treatment relies upon CD8 T lymphocytes whereas CD4 T cells are dispensable. The results underlie the feasibility of echo-guided local immunotherapy of tumors located in visceral organs that are not easily accessible.

SPARC oppositely regulates inflammation and fibrosis in bleomycin-induced lung damage.

Fibrosis results from inflammatory tissue damage and impaired regeneration. In the context of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis, we demonstrated that the matricellular protein termed secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) distinctly regulates inflammation and collagen deposition, depending on its cellular origin. Reciprocal Sparc(-/-) and wild-type (WT) bone marrow chimeras revealed that SPARC expression in host fibroblasts is required and sufficient to induce collagen fibrosis in a proper inflammatory environment. Accordingly, Sparc(-/-) >WT chimeras showed exacerbated inflammation and fibrosis due to the inability of Sparc(-/-) macrophages to down-regulate tumor necrosis factor production because of impaired responses to tumor growth factor-ß. Hence, the use of bone marrow cells expressing a dominant-negative form of tumor growth factor-ß receptor type II under the monocyte-specific CD68 promoter, as a decoy, phenocopied Sparc(-/-) donor chimeras. Our results point to an unexpected dual role of SPARC in oppositely influencing the outcome of fibrosis.

OX40 triggering concomitant to IL12-engineered cell vaccine hampers the immunoprevention of HER2/neu-driven mammary carcinogenesis.

This study evaluated the effects of combining an OX40 agonistic antibody (aOX40) with a cell vaccine targeting HER2/neu, called "Triplex". Such HER2/neu cell vaccine included two biological adjuvants (interleukin 12 (IL12) and allogeneic histocompatibility antigens) and was previously found able to prevent autochthonous HER2/neu-driven mammary carcinogenesis. Timing of aOX40 administration, concomitantly or after cell vaccination, gave opposite results. Unexpectedly, vaccine efficacy was hampered by concomitant OX40 triggering. Such decreased immunoprevention was likely due to a reduced induction of anti-HER2/neu antibodies and to a higher level of Treg activation. On the contrary, aOX40 administration after the completion of vaccination slightly but significantly increased immunopreventive vaccine efficacy, and led to increased production of GM-CSF and IL10. In conclusion, OX40 triggering can either impair or ameliorate immunoprevention of HER2/neu-driven mammary carcinogenesis depending on the schedule of aOX40 administration.

Imatinib Spares cKit-Expressing Prostate Neuroendocrine Tumors, whereas Kills Seminal Vesicle Epithelial-Stromal Tumors by Targeting PDGFR-ß.

Prostate cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related death in males worldwide. Indeed, advanced and metastatic disease characterized by androgen resistance and often associated with neuroendocrine (NE) differentiation remains incurable. Using the spontaneous prostate cancer TRAMP model, we have shown that mast cells (MCs) support in vivo the growth of prostate adenocarcinoma, whereas their genetic or pharmacologic targeting favors prostate NE cancer arousal. Aiming at simultaneously targeting prostate NE tumor cells and MCs, both expressing the cKit tyrosine kinase receptor, we have tested the therapeutic effect of imatinib in TRAMP mice. Imatinib-treated TRAMP mice experience a partial benefit against prostate adenocarcinoma, because of inhibition of supportive MCs. However, they show an unexpected outgrowth of prostate NE tumors, likely because of defective signaling pathway downstream of cKit receptor. Also unexpected but very effective was the inhibition of epithelial-stromal tumors of the seminal vesicles achieved by imatinib treatment. These tumors normally arise in the seminal vesicles of TRAMP mice, independently of the degree of prostatic glandular lesions, and resemble phyllodes tumors found in human prostate and seminal vesicles, and in breast. In both mice and in patients, these tumors are negative for cKit but express PDGFR-ß, another tyrosine kinase receptor specifically inhibited by imatinib. Our results imply a possible detrimental effect of imatinib in prostate cancer patients but suggest a promising therapeutic application of imatinib in the treatment of recurrent or metastatic phyllodes tumors. Mol Cancer Ther; 16(2); 365-75. ©2016 AACR.

Enhanced efficacy of tumor cell vaccines transfected with secretable hsp70.

Tumor immunotherapy has exploited the ability of heat shock proteins to chaperone precursors of antigenic peptides to antigen-presenting cells and to activate efficiently an immune response against tumor-associated antigens. The most common strategy is based on the purification of heat shock protein-peptide complexes from tumor cell lines or from tumor surgical samples for in vivo administration. In this article, we have modified the murine-inducible hsp70 into a secreted protein and engineered tumor cells to secrete constitutively their antigenic repertoire associated with the hsp70 protein. In vitro studies showed that the relocalization of hsp70 from the cytoplasm to the secretory pathway did not modify the ability of hsp70 to interact with peptides derived either from natural tumor-associated antigens or model antigens, and that antigen-presenting cells specifically took up the secreted hsp70 and presented the chaperoned epitopes to T cells. In vivo studies showed that tumors secreting hsp70 displayed increased immunogenicity, with induction of a strong and specific CTL response. Mice injected with hsp70-secreting tumors showed increased survival and impaired tumor take compared with mice bearing parental tumors. More than 70% of mice rejected tumor cells secreting hsp70 through mechanisms that involve T lymphocytes and natural killer cells, with the induction of a memory response in the case of T lymphocytes. Moreover, hsp70 secretion increased the immunogenic potential of tumor cell vaccines.

Genetic deletion of osteopontin in TRAMP mice skews prostate carcinogenesis from adenocarcinoma to aggressive human-like neuroendocrine cancers.

Osteopontin (OPN) is a secreted glycoprotein, that belongs to the non-structural extracellular matrix (ECM), and its over expression in human prostate cancer has been associated with disease progression, androgen independence and metastatic ability. Nevertheless, the pathophysiology of OPN in prostate tumorigenesis has never been studied. We crossed TRansgenic Adenocarcinoma of the Mouse Prostate (TRAMP) mice with OPN deficient (OPN-/-) mice and followed tumor onset and progression in these double mutants. Ultrasound examination detected the early onset of a rapidly growing, homogeneous and spherical tumor in about 60% of OPN-/- TRAMP mice. Such neoplasms seldom occurred in parental TRAMP mice otherwise prone to adenocarcinomas and were characterized for being androgen receptor negative, highly proliferative and endowed with neuroendocrine (NE) features. Gene expression profiling showed up-regulation of genes involved in tumor progression, cell cycle and neuronal differentiation in OPN-deficient versus wild type TRAMP tumors. Down-regulated genes included key genes of TGFa pathway, including SMAD3 and Filamin, which were confirmed at the protein level. Furthermore, NE genes and particularly those characterizing early prostatic lesions of OPN-deficient mice were found to correlate with those of human prostate NE tumours. These data underscore a novel role of OPN in the early stages of prostate cancer growth, protecting against the development of aggressive NE tumors.

TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand (TRAIL)-Armed Exosomes Deliver Proapoptotic Signals to Tumor Site.

PURPOSE: Exosomes deliver signals to target cells and could thus be exploited as an innovative therapeutic tool. We investigated the ability of membrane TRAIL-armed exosomes to deliver proapoptotic signals to cancer cells and mediate growth inhibition in different tumor models. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS AND RESULTS: K562 cells, transduced with lentiviral human membrane TRAIL, were used for the production of TRAIL(+) exosomes, which were studied by nanoparticle tracking analysis, cytofluorimetry, immunoelectronmicroscopy, Western blot, and ELISA. In vitro, TRAIL(+) exosomes induced more pronounced apoptosis (detected by Annexin V/propidium iodide and activated caspase-3) in TRAIL-death receptor (DR)5(+) cells (SUDHL4 lymphoma and INT12 melanoma), with respect to the DR5(-)DR4(+)KMS11 multiple myeloma. Intratumor injection of TRAIL(+) exosomes, but not mock exosomes, induced growth inhibition of SUDHL4 (68%) and INT12 (51%), and necrosis in KMS11 tumors. After rapid blood clearance, systemically administered TRAIL(+) exosomes accumulated in the liver, lungs, and spleen and homed to the tumor site, leading to a significant reduction of tumor growth (58%) in SUDHL4-bearing mice. The treatment of INT12-bearing animals promoted tumor necrosis and a not statistically significant tumor volume reduction. In KMS11-bearing mice, despite massive perivascular necrosis, no significant tumor growth inhibition was detected. CONCLUSIONS: TRAIL-armed exosomes can induce apoptosis in cancer cells and control tumor progression in vivo Therapeutic efficacy was particularly evident in intratumor setting, while depended on tumor model upon systemic administration. Thanks to their ability to deliver multiple signals, exosomes thus represent a promising therapeutic tool in cancer. Clin Cancer Res; 22(14); 3499-512. ©2016 AACR.