ABSTRACT
Cancer can be treated by adoptive cell transfer (ACT) of T lymphocytes. However, how to optimally raise human T cells to a differentiation state allowing the best persistence in ACT is a challenge. It is possible to differentiate mouse CD8(+) T cells towards stem cell-like memory (T(SCM)) phenotype upon TCR stimulation with Wnt/ß-catenin pathway activation. Here, we evaluated if T(SCM) can be obtained from human mature CD8(+) T cells following TCR and Wnt/ß-catenin activation through treatment with the chemical agent 4,6-disubstituted pyrrolopyrimidine (TWS119), which inhibits the glycogen synthase kinase-3ß (GSK-3ß), key inhibitor of the Wnt pathway. Human CD8(+) T cells isolated from peripheral blood or tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), and treated with TWS119 gave rise to CD62L(+)CD45RA(+) cells, indicative of early differentiated stage, also expressing CD127 which is normally found on memory cells, and CD133, an hematopoietic stem cell marker. T(SCM) cells raised from either TIL or blood secreted numerous inflammatory mediators, but in lower amounts than those measured without TWS119. Finally, generated T(SCM) CD8(+) T cells expressed elevated Bcl-2 and no detectable caspase-3 activity, suggesting increased persistence. Our data support a role for Wnt/ß-catenin pathway in promoting the T(SCM) subset in human CD8(+) T cells from TIL and the periphery, which are relevant for ACT.
Subject(s)
CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/physiology , Lung Neoplasms/pathology , Wnt Signaling Pathway/drug effects , Adoptive Transfer/methods , Apoptosis/drug effects , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/drug effects , CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism , Caspase 3/metabolism , Cell Differentiation , Cell Survival/drug effects , Cells, Cultured , Cytokines/metabolism , Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3/antagonists & inhibitors , Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3/metabolism , Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 beta , Humans , Lung Neoplasms/immunology , Lung Neoplasms/therapy , Lymphocyte Activation , Phenotype , Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2/metabolism , Pyrimidines/pharmacology , Pyrroles/pharmacology , Stem Cells/drug effects , Stem Cells/metabolism , Stem Cells/physiologyABSTRACT
The pseudo tyrosine kinase receptor 7 (PTK7) is an orphan tyrosine kinase receptor assigned to the planar cell polarity pathway. It plays a major role during embryogenesis and epithelial tissue organization. Here we found that PTK7 is also expressed in normal myeloid progenitors and CD34(+) CD38(-) bone marrow cells in humans. We performed an immunophenotyping screen on more than 300 patients treated for hematologic malignancies. We demonstrated that PTK7 is expressed in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and is mostly assigned to granulocytic lineage differentiation. Patients with PTK7-positive AML are more resistant to anthracycline-based frontline therapy with a significantly reduced leukemia-free survival in a multivariate analysis model. In vitro, expression of PTK7 in cultured leukemia cells promotes cell migration, cell survival, and resistance to anthracycline-induced apoptosis. The intracellular region of PTK7 is required for these effects. Furthermore, we efficiently sensitized primary AML blasts to anthracycline-mediated cell death using a recombinant soluble PTK7-Fc protein. We conclude that PTK7 is a planar cell polarity component expressed in the myeloid progenitor compartment that conveys promigratory and antiapoptotic signals into the cell and that represents an independent prognosis factor of survival in patients treated with induction chemotherapy.
