Semmaphorin 3 A causes immune suppression by inducing cytoskeletal paralysis in tumour-specific CD8+ T cells.

Semaphorin-3A (SEMA3A) functions as a chemorepulsive signal during development and can affect T cells by altering their filamentous actin (F-actin) cytoskeleton. The exact extent of these effects on tumour-specific T cells are not completely understood. Here we demonstrate that Neuropilin-1 (NRP1) and Plexin-A1 and Plexin-A4 are upregulated on stimulated CD8+ T cells, allowing tumour-derived SEMA3A to inhibit T cell migration and assembly of the immunological synapse. Deletion of NRP1 in both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells enhance CD8+ T-cell infiltration into tumours and restricted tumour growth in animal models. Conversely, over-expression of SEMA3A inhibit CD8+ T-cell infiltration. We further show that SEMA3A affects CD8+ T cell F-actin, leading to inhibition of immune synapse formation and motility. Examining a clear cell renal cell carcinoma patient cohort, we find that SEMA3A expression is associated with reduced survival, and that T-cells appear trapped in SEMA3A rich regions. Our study establishes SEMA3A as an inhibitor of effector CD8+ T cell tumour infiltration, suggesting that blocking NRP1 could improve T cell function in tumours.

Interferon-γ couples CD8+ T cell avidity and differentiation during infection.

Effective responses to intracellular pathogens are characterized by T cell clones with a broad affinity range for their cognate peptide and diverse functional phenotypes. How T cell clones are selected throughout the response to retain a breadth of avidities remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that direct sensing of the cytokine IFN-γ by CD8+ T cells coordinates avidity and differentiation during infection. IFN-γ promotes the expansion of low-avidity T cells, allowing them to overcome the selective advantage of high-avidity T cells, whilst reinforcing high-avidity T cell entry into the memory pool, thus reducing the average avidity of the primary response and increasing that of the memory response. IFN-γ in this context is mainly provided by virtual memory T cells, an antigen-inexperienced subset with memory features. Overall, we propose that IFN-γ and virtual memory T cells fulfil a critical immunoregulatory role by enabling the coordination of T cell avidity and fate.

IFNγ signaling in cytotoxic T cells restricts anti-tumor responses by inhibiting the maintenance and diversity of intra-tumoral stem-like T cells.

IFNγ is an immune mediator with concomitant pro- and anti-tumor functions. Here, we provide evidence that IFNγ directly acts on intra-tumoral CD8 T cells to restrict anti-tumor responses. We report that expression of the IFNγ receptor ß chain (IFNγR2) in CD8 T cells negatively correlates with clinical responsiveness to checkpoint blockade in metastatic melanoma patients, suggesting that the loss of sensitivity to IFNγ contributes to successful antitumor immunity. Indeed, specific deletion of IFNγR in CD8 T cells promotes tumor control in a mouse model of melanoma. Chronic IFNγ inhibits the maintenance, clonal diversity and proliferation of stem-like T cells. This leads to decreased generation of T cells with intermediate expression of exhaustion markers, previously associated with beneficial anti-tumor responses. This study provides evidence of a negative feedback loop whereby IFNγ depletes stem-like T cells to restrict anti-tumor immunity. Targeting this pathway might represent an alternative strategy to enhance T cell-based therapies.

Th1 responses in vivo require cell-specific provision of OX40L dictated by environmental cues.

The OX40-OX40L pathway provides crucial co-stimulatory signals for CD4 T cell responses, however the precise cellular interactions critical for OX40L provision in vivo and when these occur, remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that provision of OX40L by dendritic cells (DCs), but not T cells, B cells nor group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3s), is critical specifically for the effector Th1 response to an acute systemic infection with Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). OX40L expression by DCs is regulated by cross-talk with NK cells, with IFNγ signalling to the DC to enhance OX40L in a mechanism conserved in both mouse and human DCs. Strikingly, DC expression of OX40L is redundant in a chronic intestinal Th1 response and expression by ILC3s is necessary. Collectively these data reveal tissue specific compartmentalisation of the cellular provision of OX40L and define a mechanism controlling DC expression of OX40L in vivo.

Visualization of immediate immune responses to pioneer metastatic cells in the lung.

Lung metastasis is the lethal determinant in many cancers and a number of lines of evidence point to monocytes and macrophages having key roles in its development. Yet little is known about the immediate fate of incoming tumour cells as they colonize this tissue, and even less known about how they make first contact with the immune system. Primary tumours liberate circulating tumour cells (CTCs) into the blood and we have developed a stable intravital two-photon lung imaging model in mice for direct observation of the arrival of CTCs and subsequent host interaction. Here we show dynamic generation of tumour microparticles in shear flow in the capillaries within minutes of CTC entry. Rather than dispersing under flow, many of these microparticles remain attached to the lung vasculature or independently migrate along the inner walls of vessels. Using fluorescent lineage reporters and flow cytometry, we observed 'waves' of distinct myeloid cell subsets that load differentially and sequentially with this CTC-derived material. Many of these tumour-ingesting myeloid cells collectively accumulated in the lung interstitium along with the successful metastatic cells and, as previously understood, promote the development of successful metastases from surviving tumour cells. Although the numbers of these cells rise globally in the lung with metastatic exposure and ingesting myeloid cells undergo phenotypic changes associated with microparticle ingestion, a consistently sparse population of resident conventional dendritic cells, among the last cells to interact with CTCs, confer anti-metastatic protection. This work reveals that CTC fragmentation generates immune-interacting intermediates, and defines a competitive relationship between phagocyte populations for tumour loading during metastatic cell seeding.

Detection of rare antigen-presenting cells through T cell-intrinsic meandering motility, mediated by Myo1g.

To mount an immune response, T lymphocytes must successfully search for foreign material bound to the surface of antigen-presenting cells. How T cells optimize their chances of encountering and responding to these antigens is unknown. T cell motility in tissues resembles a random or Levy walk and is regulated in part by external factors including chemokines and lymph-node topology, but motility parameters such as speed and propensity to turn may also be cell intrinsic. Here we found that the unconventional myosin 1g (Myo1g) motor generates membrane tension, enforces cell-intrinsic meandering search, and enhances T-DC interactions during lymph-node surveillance. Increased turning and meandering motility, as opposed to ballistic motility, is enhanced by Myo1g. Myo1g acts as a "turning motor" and generates a form of cellular "flânerie." Modeling and antigen challenges show that these intrinsically programmed elements of motility search are critical for the detection of rare cognate antigen-presenting cells.

Evidence for a positive role of PtdIns5P in T-cell signal transduction pathways.

Phosphatidylinositol 5-phosphate (PtdIns5P) is emerging as a potential lipid messenger involved in several cell types, from plants to mammals. Expression of IpgD, a PtdIns(4,5)P(2) 4-phosphatase induces Src kinase and Akt, but not ERK activation and enhances interleukin II promoter activity in T-cells. Expression of a new PtdIns5P interacting domain blocks IpgD-induced T-cell activation and selective signaling molecules downstream of TCR triggering. Altogether, these data suggest that PtdIns5P may play a sensor function in setting the threshold of T-cell activation and contributing to maintain T-cell homeostasis.

Cutting edge: Dok-1 and Dok-2 adaptor molecules are regulated by phosphatidylinositol 5-phosphate production in T cells.

Downstream of tyrosine kinase (Dok) proteins Dok-1 and Dok-2 are involved in T cell homeostasis maintenance. Dok protein tyrosine phosphorylation plays a key role in establishing negative feedback loops of T cell signaling. These structurally related adapter molecules contain a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain generally acting as a lipid/protein-interacting module. We show that the presence of this PH domain is necessary for the tyrosine phosphorylation of Dok proteins and their negative functions in T cells. We find that Dok-1/Dok-2 PH domains bind in vitro to the rare phosphoinositide species, phosphatidylinositol 5-phosphate (PtdIns5P). Dok tyrosine phosphorylation correlates with PtdIns5P production in T cells upon TCR triggering. Furthermore, we demonstrate that PtdIns5P increase regulates Dok tyrosine phosphorylation in vivo. Together, our data identify a novel lipid mediator in T cell signaling and suggest that PH-PtdIns5P interactions regulate T cell responses.

The Rac activator Tiam1 controls efficient T-cell trafficking and route of transendothelial migration.

Migration toward chemoattractants is a hallmark of T-cell trafficking and is essential to produce an efficient immune response. Here, we have analyzed the function of the Rac activator Tiam1 in the control of T-cell trafficking and transendothelial migration. We found that Tiam1 is required for chemokine- and S1P-induced Rac activation and subsequent cell migration. As a result, Tiam1-deficient T cells show reduced chemotaxis in vitro, and impaired homing, egress, and contact hypersensitivity in vivo. Analysis of the T-cell transendothelial migration cascade revealed that PKCzeta/Tiam1/Rac signaling is dispensable for T-cell arrest but is essential for the stabilization of polarization and efficient crawling of T cells on endothelial cells. T cells that lack Tiam1 predominantly transmigrate through individual endothelial cells (transcellular migration) rather than at endothelial junctions (paracellular migration), suggesting that T cells are able to change their route of transendothelial migration according to their polarization status and crawling capacity.

The Par polarity complex regulates Rap1- and chemokine-induced T cell polarization.

Cell polarization is required for virtually all functions of T cells, including transendothelial migration in response to chemokines. However, the molecular pathways that establish T cell polarity are poorly understood. We show that the activation of the partitioning defective (Par) polarity complex is a key event during Rap1- and chemokine-induced T cell polarization. Intracellular localization and activation of the Par complex are initiated by Rap1 and require Cdc42 activity. The Rac activator Tiam1 associates with both Rap1 and components of the Par complex, and thereby may function to connect the Par polarity complex to Rap1 and to regulate the Rac-mediated actin remodelling required for T cell polarization. Consistent with these findings, Tiam1-deficient T cells are impaired in Rap1- and chemokine-induced polarization and chemotaxis. Our studies implicate Tiam1 and the Par polarity complex in polarization of T cells, and provide a mechanism by which chemokines and Rap1 regulate T cell polarization and chemotaxis.

The SH3 domain of Tec kinase is essential for its targeting to activated CD28 costimulatory molecule.

The Tec family of protein tyrosine kinases plays an important role in T cell signaling. Tec, the prototypical member of this kinase family, can interact with CD28, which is a costimulatory molecule. However, the regulation of Tec upon CD28 stimulation remains poorly understood. Here we show that CD28-B7-mediated interactions are likely involved in the relocalization of Tec at the contact zone between T cells and APC. Upon CD28 ligation with specific antibodies or natural ligands, Tec translocates to the plasma membrane where it colocalizes with the CD28 molecule. The Src-homology 3(SH3) domain of Tec and the two proline-rich motifs of CD28 are involved in this process. Furthermore, we show that CD28 signaling requires the SH3 domain of Tec as well as proline residues present in the intracytoplasmic tail of CD28. These results should provide new insights into the complex regulation of Tec kinases in T cells.

Functional interaction of RasGAP-binding proteins Dok-1 and Dok-2 with the Tec protein tyrosine kinase.

The Dok adaptor family of proteins binding to RasGAP, consisting of Dok-1 and Dok-2, are critical regulators in cell proliferation. These molecules are partners and/or substrates of different protein tyrosine kinases considered as oncoproteins. Here, we show that Dok-1 and Dok-2 are the major tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins associated to Tec, a protein tyrosine kinase expressed in T cells. Furthermore, we evaluate the effect of Dok-1 or Dok-2 on Tec-mediated signalling pathways in T cells. Here, we provide evidence that Dok-1 and Dok-2 proteins are involved in a negative feedback regulation of Tec via a downregulation of its tyrosine phosphorylation and downstream signalling pathways including the Ras pathway. Either Dok-1 or Dok-2 therefore represents a mean of potent retrograde control for protein tyrosine kinase signalling, and then possibly of tumor development.