Physical detection of influenza A epitopes identifies a stealth subset on human lung epithelium evading natural CD8 immunity.

Vaccines eliciting immunity against influenza A viruses (IAVs) are currently antibody-based with hemagglutinin-directed antibody titer the only universally accepted immune correlate of protection. To investigate the disconnection between observed CD8 T-cell responses and immunity to IAV, we used a Poisson liquid chromatography data-independent acquisition MS method to physically detect PR8/34 (H1N1), X31 (H3N2), and Victoria/75 (H3N2) epitopes bound to HLA-A*02:01 on human epithelial cells following in vitro infection. Among 32 PR8 peptides (8-10mers) with predicted IC50 < 60 nM, 9 were present, whereas 23 were absent. At 18 h postinfection, epitope copies per cell varied from a low of 0.5 for M13-11 to a high of >500 for M1(58-66) with PA, HA, PB1, PB2, and NA epitopes also detected. However, aside from M1(58-66), natural CD8 memory responses against conserved presented epitopes were either absent or only weakly observed by blood Elispot. Moreover, the functional avidities of the immunodominant M1(58-66)/HLA-A*02:01-specific T cells were so poor as to be unable to effectively recognize infected human epithelium. Analysis of T-cell responses to primary PR8 infection in HLA-A*02:01 transgenic B6 mice underscores the poor avidity of T cells recognizing M1(58-66). By maintaining high levels of surface expression of this epitope on epithelial and dendritic cells, the virus exploits the combination of immunodominance and functional inadequacy to evade HLA-A*02:01-restricted T-cell immunity. A rational approach to CD8 vaccines must characterize processing and presentation of pathogen-derived epitopes as well as resultant immune responses. Correspondingly, vaccines may be directed against "stealth" epitopes, overriding viral chicanery.

Intrinsic Immunogenicity of Small Cell Lung Carcinoma Revealed by Its Cellular Plasticity.

Small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) is highly mutated, yet durable response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) is rare. SCLC also exhibits cellular plasticity, which could influence its immunobiology. Here we discover that a distinct subset of SCLC uniquely upregulates MHC I, enriching for durable ICB benefit. In vitro modeling confirms epigenetic recovery of MHC I in SCLC following loss of neuroendocrine differentiation, which tracks with derepression of STING. Transient EZH2 inhibition expands these nonneuroendocrine cells, which display intrinsic innate immune signaling and basally restored antigen presentation. Consistent with these findings, murine nonneuroendocrine SCLC tumors are rejected in a syngeneic model, with clonal expansion of immunodominant effector CD8 T cells. Therapeutically, EZH2 inhibition followed by STING agonism enhances T-cell recognition and rejection of SCLC in mice. Together, these data identify MHC I as a novel biomarker of SCLC immune responsiveness and suggest novel immunotherapeutic approaches to co-opt SCLC's intrinsic immunogenicity. SIGNIFICANCE: SCLC is poorly immunogenic, displaying modest ICB responsiveness with rare durable activity. In profiling its plasticity, we uncover intrinsically immunogenic MHC Ihi subpopulations of nonneuroendocrine SCLC associated with durable ICB benefit. We also find that combined EZH2 inhibition and STING agonism uncovers this cell state, priming cells for immune rejection.This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 1861.