Eliminating METTL1-mediated accumulation of PMN-MDSCs prevents hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence after radiofrequency ablation.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is an important curative therapy in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but recurrence rate remains as high as all the other HCC therapeutic modalities. Methyltransferase 1 (METTL1), an enzyme for m 7 G tRNA modification, was reported to promote HCC development. Here, we assessed the role of METTL1 in shaping the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment after insufficient RFA (iRFA). APPROACH AND RESULTS: By immunohistochemistry and multiplex immunofluorescence (mIF) staining, we showed that METTL1 expression was enhanced in post-RFA recurrent HCC, accompanied by increased CD11b + CD15 + polymorphonuclear-myeloid-derived suppressor cells (PMN-MDSCs) and decreased CD8 + T cells. Mechanistically, heat-mediated METTL1 upregulation enhanced TGF-ß2 translation to form the immunosuppressive environment by induction of myeloid-derived suppressor cell. Liver-specific overexpression or knockdown of Mettl1 significantly affected the accumulation of PMN-MDSCs and subsequently affected CD8 + T cell infiltration. Complete RFA successfully eliminated the tumor, whereas iRFA-treated mice exhibited enhanced tumor growth and metastasis with increased PMN-MDSC accumulation and decreased CD8 + T cells compared to sham surgery. Interrupting METTL1-TGF-ß2-PMN-MDSC axis by anti-Ly6G antibody, or knockdown of hepatoma-intrinsic Mettl1 or Tgfb2 , or TGF-ß signaling blockade significantly mitigated tumor progression induced by iRFA and restored CD8 + T cell population. CONCLUSIONS: Our study sheds light on the pivotal role of METTL1 in modulating an immunosuppressive microenvironment and demonstrated that interrupting METTL1-TGF-ß2-PMN-MDSC axis could be a therapeutic strategy to restore antitumor immunity and prevent HCC recurrence after RFA treatment, meriting further clinical studies.

METTL5-mediated 18S rRNA m6A modification promotes oncogenic mRNA translation and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma progression.

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is a deadly cancer with rapid tumor progression. While hyperactive mRNA translation caused by mis-regulated mRNA or tRNA modifications promotes ICC development, the role of rRNA modifications remains elusive. Here, we found that 18S rRNA m6A modification and its methyltransferase METTL5 were aberrantly upregulated in ICC and associated with poorer survival (log rank test, p < 0.05). We further revealed the critical role of METTL5-mediated 18S rRNA m6A modification in regulation of ICC cell growth and metastasis using loss- and gain-of function assays in vitro and in vivo. The oncogenic function of METTL5 is corroborated using liver-specific knockout and overexpression ICC mouse models. Mechanistically, METTL5 depletion impairs 18S rRNA m6A modification that hampers ribosome synthesis and inhibits translation of G-quadruplex-containing mRNAs that are enriched in the transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß pathway. Our study uncovers the important role of METTL5-mediated 18S rRNA m6A modification in ICC and unravels the mechanism of rRNA m6A modification-mediated oncogenic mRNA translation control.

Targeting tumour-intrinsic N7-methylguanosine tRNA modification inhibits MDSC recruitment and improves anti-PD-1 efficacy.

OBJECTIVE: Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) exhibits very low response rate to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and the underlying mechanism is largely unknown. We investigate the tumour immune microenvironment (TIME) of ICCs and the underlying regulatory mechanisms with the aim of developing new target to inhibit tumour growth and improve anti-programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) efficacy. DESIGN: Tumour tissues from patients with ICC together with hydrodynamic ICC mouse models were employed to identify the key cell population in TIME of ICCs. Functional analysis and mechanism studies were performed using cell culture, conditional knockout mouse model and hydrodynamic transfection ICC model. The efficacy of single or combined therapy with anti-PD-1 antibody, gene knockout and chemical inhibitor were evaluated in vivo. RESULTS: Polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cells (PMN-MDSCs) are enriched in advanced ICCs and significantly correlated with N7-methylguanosine tRNA methyltransferase METTL1. Using diverse in vivo cancer models, we demonstrate the crucial immunomodulator function of METTL1 in regulation of PMN-MDSC accumulation in TIME and ICC progression. Mechanistically, CXCL8 in human and Cxcl5 in mouse are key translational targets of METTL1 that facilitate its function in promoting PMN-MDSC accumulation in TIME and ICC progression in vivo. Co-blockade of METTL1 and its downstream chemokine pathway enhances the anti-PD-1 efficacy in ICC preclinical mouse models. CONCLUSIONS: Our data uncover novel mechanisms underlying chemokine regulation and TIME shaping at the layer of messenger RNA translation level and provide new insights for development of efficient cancer immunotherapeutic strategies.

The activation of mTOR signalling modulates DNA methylation by enhancing DNMT1 translation in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Both dysregulation of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signalling and DNA methylation patterns have been shown to be closely associated with tumor progression and serve as promising targets for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) therapy. Although their respective roles in HCC have been extensively revealed, the existence of molecular interactions between them remains largely unknown. METHODS: The association of DNA methylation and mTOR signalling in HCC tissues and cell lines was assessed. A Kaplan‒Meier analysis was applied to estimate the overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) of HCC patients. The modulation of DNMT1 by mTOR in HCC cell lines was determined. The effect of the drug combination in cell lines and mouse models was examined. RESULTS: The results showed that the DNA methylation level was positively associated with the activation of mTOR signalling in HCC tissues and cell lines. Moreover, HCC patients with higher DNA methylation levels and enhanced activation of mTOR signalling exhibited the worst prognosis. Then, we screened methylation-related enzymes and found that the activation of mTOR signalling increased DNMT1 expression and activity. In addition, mTOR enhanced the translational efficiency of DNMT1 in a 4E-BP1-dependent manner, which is based on the pyrimidine rich translational element (PRTE)-containing 5'UTR of DNMT1. Moreover, we demonstrated that the combined inhibition of mTOR and DNMT synergistically inhibited HCC growth in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to some already identified pro-cancer downstream molecules, the activation of mTOR signalling was found to promote DNA methylation by increasing the translation of DNMT1. Furthermore, combined targeting of mTOR and DNMT1 has been demonstrated to have a more effective tumor suppressive function in HCC.

Pretreatment of Grape Seed Proanthocyanidin Extract Exerts Neuroprotective Effect in Murine Model of Neonatal Hypoxic-ischemic Brain Injury by Its Antiapoptotic Property.

Grape seed proanthocyanidin extract (GSPE), an active component extracted from the grape, has been reported to demonstrate antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and antiapoptosis effects. However, little is known about the role of GSPE on neonatal hypoxic-ischemic (HI) brain injury. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuroprotective effect of GSPE pretreatment on neonatal HI brain injury in mice. A modified Rice-Vannucci method was performed to induce neonatal HI brain injury in the 7-day-old mouse pups pretreated with GSPE or vehicle. The infarct volumes were determined by TTC staining. TUNEL staining was used to detect cells apoptosis, and the expressions of apoptosis-related proteins: bax, bcl2, and cleaved caspase-3 were assayed by Western blot. Behavioral tests were also conducted to assess the functional recovery after injury. We showed that the brain damage and neurobehavioral outcomes improvement was observed in GSPE pretreated group. GSPE was proved to suppress apoptosis through inhibition of bax and cleaved caspase-3 expression. It demonstrates that GSPE could alleviate brain damage maybe through its antiapoptotic activity in a neonatal HI brain injury model, and GSPE has the potential to be a new drug for effective prevention of this disorder.

Intratumoral erythroblastic islands restrain anti-tumor immunity in hepatoblastoma.

Erythroblastic islands (EBIs) are the specialized structures for erythropoiesis, but they have never been found functional in tumors. As the most common pediatric liver malignancy, hepatoblastoma (HB) requires more effective and safer therapies to prevent progression and the lifelong impact of complications on young children. However, developing such therapies is impeded by a lack of comprehensive understanding of the tumor microenvironment. By single-cell RNA sequencing of 13 treatment-naive HB patients, we discover an immune landscape characterized by aberrant accumulation of EBIs, formed by VCAM1+ macrophages and erythroid cells, which is inversely correlated with survival of HB. Erythroid cells inhibit the function of dendritic cells (DCs) via the LGALS9/TIM3 axis, leading to impaired anti-tumor T cell immune responses. Encouragingly, TIM3 blockades relieve the inhibitory effect of erythroid cells on DCs. Our study provides an immune evasion mechanism mediated by intratumoral EBIs and proposes TIM3 as a promising therapeutic target for HB.

Cross-talk between Myeloid and B Cells Shapes the Distinct Microenvironments of Primary and Secondary Liver Cancer.

The tumor microenvironment is distinctive in primary and secondary liver cancer. B cells represent an important component of immune infiltrates. Here, we demonstrated that B cells are an important regulator in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and colorectal cancer liver metastasis (CRLM) microenvironments. B cells displayed distinct developmental trajectories in HCC and CRLM. Single-cell analysis revealed that IgG+ plasma cells preferentially accumulated in HCC, whereas IgA+ plasma cells were preferentially enriched in CRLM. Mechanistically, IgG+ plasma cells in HCC were recruited by tumor-associated macrophages via the CXCR3-CXCL10 axis, whereas IgA+ plasma cells in CRLM were recruited by metastatic tumor cells via CCR10-CCL28 signaling. Functionally, IgG+ plasma cells preferentially promoted protumorigenic macrophages formation in HCC, and IgA+ plasma cells preferentially induced granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells activation in CRLM. Clinically, increased infiltration of IgG+ plasma cells and macrophages in HCC was correlated to worse survival, whereas increased intratumoral IgA+ plasma cells and neutrophils in CRLM indicated poor prognosis. Taken together, this study demonstrated plasma and myeloid cell-mediated immunosuppression in HCC and CRLM, suggesting that selectively modulating primary or secondary tumor-related immunosuppressive regulatory networks might reprogram the microenvironment and provide an immunotherapeutic strategy for treating liver cancer. SIGNIFICANCE: The immunomodulatory patterns of tumor-infiltrating B cells are distinct in primary and secondary liver cancer, with plasma cells mediating important physiologic processes that drive cancer progression.

METTL1 promotes hepatocarcinogenesis via m7 G tRNA modification-dependent translation control.

BACKGROUND: N7 -methylguanosine (m7 G) modification is one of the most common transfer RNA (tRNA) modifications in humans. The precise function and molecular mechanism of m7 G tRNA modification in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remain poorly understood. METHODS: The prognostic value and expression level of m7 G tRNA methyltransferase complex components methyltransferase-like protein-1 (METTL1) and WD repeat domain 4 (WDR4) in HCC were evaluated using clinical samples and TCGA data. The biological functions and mechanisms of m7 G tRNA modification in HCC progression were studied in vitro and in vivo using cell culture, xenograft model, knockin and knockout mouse models. The m7 G reduction and cleavage sequencing (TRAC-seq), polysome profiling and polyribosome-associated mRNA sequencing methods were used to study the levels of m7 G tRNA modification, tRNA expression and mRNA translation efficiency. RESULTS: The levels of METTL1 and WDR4 are elevated in HCC and associated with advanced tumour stages and poor patient survival. Functionally, silencing METTL1 or WDR4 inhibits HCC cell proliferation, migration and invasion, while forced expression of wild-type METTL1 but not its catalytic dead mutant promotes HCC progression. Knockdown of METTL1 reduces m7 G tRNA modification and decreases m7 G-modified tRNA expression in HCC cells. Mechanistically, METTL1-mediated tRNA m7 G modification promotes the translation of target mRNAs with higher frequencies of m7 G-related codons. Furthermore, in vivo studies with Mettl1 knockin and conditional knockout mice reveal the essential physiological function of Mettl1 in hepatocarcinogenesis using hydrodynamics transfection HCC model. CONCLUSIONS: Our work reveals new insights into the role of the misregulated tRNA modifications in liver cancer and provides molecular basis for HCC diagnosis and treatment.

Decreased expression of ubiquilin­1 following neonatal hypoxia­ischemic brain injury in mice.

Ubiquilin­1 (Ubqln), a ubiquitin­like protein, regulates degradation of misfolded proteins and has been reported to have a crucial role in multiple pathologic and physiologic conditions. The current study was undertaken to investigate the expression of Ubqln in the brain of a neonatal hypoxia­ischemic (HI) brain injury model induced using the Rice method with some modifications. Mouse pups at postnatal day 7 day were used in this study. Pups underwent permanent ligation of the left common carotid artery and a consecutive hypoxic challenge (8% O2 and 92% N2 for 120 min). The expression of Ubqln in the brain of pups following HI was analyzed by immunofluorescence staining and western blot analysis. Immunofluorescence staining demonstrated that Ubqln was extensively distributed in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus, and Ubqln was expressed in neurons, astrocytes and microglia in the brains of the HI brain injury model mice. Western blot analyses revealed decreased expression of Ubqln in the HI penumbra of the mouse model compared with Ubqln in the sham control group. The results of this study revealed that HI alters the expression of Ubqln, thus may provide a novel understanding of role of Ubqln in neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.