A novel engineered IL-21 receptor arms T-cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T cells) against hepatocellular carcinoma.
Signal Transduct Target Ther
; 9(1): 101, 2024 Apr 20.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38643203
ABSTRACT
Strategies to improve T cell therapy efficacy in solid tumors such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are urgently needed. The common cytokine receptor γ chain (γc) family cytokines such as IL-2, IL-7, IL-15 and IL-21 play fundamental roles in T cell development, differentiation and effector phases. This study aims to determine the combination effects of IL-21 in T cell therapy against HCC and investigate optimized strategies to utilize the effect of IL-21 signal in T cell therapy. The antitumor function of AFP-specific T cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T) was augmented by exogenous IL-21 in vitro and in vivo. IL-21 enhanced proliferation capacity, promoted memory differentiation, downregulated PD-1 expression and alleviated apoptosis in TCR-T after activation. A novel engineered IL-21 receptor was established, and TCR-T armed with the novel engineered IL-21 receptors (IL-21R-TCR-T) showed upregulated phosphorylated STAT3 expression without exogenous IL-21 ligand. IL-21R-TCR-T showed better proliferation upon activation and superior antitumor function in vitro and in vivo. IL-21R-TCR-T exhibited a less differentiated, exhausted and apoptotic phenotype than conventional TCR-T upon repetitive tumor antigen stimulation. The novel IL-21 receptor in our study programs powerful TCR-T and can avoid side effects induced by IL-21 systemic utilization. The novel IL-21 receptor creates new opportunities for next-generation TCR-T against HCC.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Carcinoma Hepatocelular
/
Neoplasias Hepáticas
Limite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article