CXCL13-producing CD4+ T cells accumulate in early phase of tertiary lymphoid structures in ovarian cancer

JCI insight

2022 May 12

Ukita, M;Hamanishi, J;Yoshitomi, H;Yamanoi, K;Takamatsu, S;Ueda, A;Suzuki, H;Hosoe, Y;Furutake, Y;Taki, M;Abiko, K;Yamaguchi, K;Nakai, H;Baba, T;Matsumura, N;Yoshizawa, A;Ueno, H;Mandai, M;
PMID: 35552285 | DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.157215

Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) are transient ectopic lymphoid aggregates whose formation might be caused by chronic inflammation states, such as cancer. However, how TLSs are induced in the tumor microenvironment (TME) and how they affect patient survival are not well understood. We investigated TLS distribution in relation to tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and related gene expression in high grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) specimens. CXCL13 gene expression correlated with TLS presence and the infiltration of T cells and B cells, and was a favorable prognostic factor for HGSC patients. Coexistence of CD8+ T cells and B-cell lineages in the TME significantly improved the prognosis of HGSC and was correlated with the presence of TLSs. CXCL13 expression was predominantly coincident with CD4+ T cells in TLSs and CD8+ T cells in TILs, and shifted from CD4+ T cells to CD21+ follicular dendritic cells as TLS matured. In a mouse ovarian cancer model, recombinant CXCL13 induced TLSs and enhanced survival by the infiltration of CD8+ T cells. These results suggest that TLS formation was associated with CXCL13-producing CD4+ T cells and that TLSs facilitated the coordinated antitumor response of cellular and humoral immunity in ovarian cancer.

Multiplexed imaging mass cytometry of the chemokine milieus in melanoma characterizes features of the response to immunotherapy

Science immunology

2022 Apr 01

Hoch, T;Schulz, D;Eling, N;Gómez, JM;Levesque, MP;Bodenmiller, B;
PMID: 35363540 | DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.abk1692

Intratumoral immune cells are crucial for tumor control and antitumor responses during immunotherapy. Immune cell trafficking into tumors is mediated by binding of specific immune cell receptors to chemokines, a class of secreted chemotactic cytokines. To broadly characterize chemokine expression and function in melanoma, we used multiplexed mass cytometry-based imaging of protein markers and RNA transcripts to analyze the chemokine landscape and immune infiltration in metastatic melanoma samples. Tumors that lacked immune infiltration were devoid of most of the profiled chemokines and exhibited low levels of antigen presentation and markers of inflammation. Infiltrated tumors were characterized by expression of multiple chemokines. CXCL9 and CXCL10 were often localized in patches associated with dysfunctional T cells expressing the B lymphocyte chemoattractant CXCL13. In tumors with B cells but no B cell follicles, T cells were the sole source of CXCL13, suggesting that T cells play a role in B cell recruitment and potentially in B cell follicle formation. B cell patches and follicles were also enriched with TCF7+ naïve-like T cells, a cell type that is predictive of response to immune checkpoint blockade. Our data highlight the strength of targeted RNA and protein codetection to analyze tumor immune microenvironments based on chemokine expression and suggest that the formation of tertiary lymphoid structures may be accompanied by naïve and naïve-like T cell recruitment, which may contribute to antitumor activity.

Spatially organized multicellular immune hubs in human colorectal cancer

Cell

2021 Aug 24

Pelka, K;Hofree, M;Chen, JH;Sarkizova, S;Pirl, JD;Jorgji, V;Bejnood, A;Dionne, D;Ge, WH;Xu, KH;Chao, SX;Zollinger, DR;Lieb, DJ;Reeves, JW;Fuhrman, CA;Hoang, ML;Delorey, T;Nguyen, LT;Waldman, J;Klapholz, M;Wakiro, I;Cohen, O;Albers, J;Smillie, CS;Cuoco, MS;Wu, J;Su, MJ;Yeung, J;Vijaykumar, B;Magnuson, AM;Asinovski, N;Moll, T;Goder-Reiser, MN;Applebaum, AS;Brais, LK;DelloStritto, LK;Denning, SL;Phillips, ST;Hill, EK;Meehan, JK;Frederick, DT;Sharova, T;Kanodia, A;Todres, EZ;Jané-Valbuena, J;Biton, M;Izar, B;Lambden, CD;Clancy, TE;Bleday, R;Melnitchouk, N;Irani, J;Kunitake, H;Berger, DL;Srivastava, A;Hornick, JL;Ogino, S;Rotem, A;Vigneau, S;Johnson, BE;Corcoran, RB;Sharpe, AH;Kuchroo, VK;Ng, K;Giannakis, M;Nieman, LT;Boland, GM;Aguirre, AJ;Anderson, AC;Rozenblatt-Rosen, O;Regev, A;Hacohen, N;
PMID: 34450029 | DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.08.003

Immune responses to cancer are highly variable, with mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) tumors exhibiting more anti-tumor immunity than mismatch repair-proficient (MMRp) tumors. To understand the rules governing these varied responses, we transcriptionally profiled 371,223 cells from colorectal tumors and adjacent normal tissues of 28 MMRp and 34 MMRd individuals. Analysis of 88 cell subsets and their 204 associated gene expression programs revealed extensive transcriptional and spatial remodeling across tumors. To discover hubs of interacting malignant and immune cells, we identified expression programs in different cell types that co-varied across tumors from affected individuals and used spatial profiling to localize coordinated programs. We discovered a myeloid cell-attracting hub at the tumor-luminal interface associated with tissue damage and an MMRd-enriched immune hub within the tumor, with activated T cells together with malignant and myeloid cells expressing T cell-attracting chemokines. By identifying interacting cellular programs, we reveal the logic underlying spatially organized immune-malignant cell networks.

Pancreatic Cancer Chemotherapy Is Potentiated by Induction of Tertiary Lymphoid Structures in Mice

Cellular and molecular gastroenterology and hepatology

2021 Jul 09

Delvecchio, FR;Fincham, REA;Spear, S;Clear, A;Roy-Luzarraga, M;Balkwill, FR;Gribben, JG;Bombardieri, M;Hodivala-Dilke, K;Capasso, M;Kocher, HM;
PMID: 34252585 | DOI: 10.1016/j.jcmgh.2021.06.023

The presence of tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) may confer survival benefit to patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), in an otherwise immunologically inert malignancy. Yet, the precise role in PDAC has not been elucidated. Here, we aim to investigate the structure and role of TLSs in human and murine pancreatic cancer.Multicolor immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry were used to fully characterize TLSs in human and murine (transgenic [KPC (KrasG12D, p53R172H, Pdx-1-Cre)] and orthotopic) pancreatic cancer. An orthotopic murine model was developed to study the development of TLSs and the effect of the combined chemotherapy and immunotherapy on tumor growth.Mature, functional TLSs are not ubiquitous in human PDAC and KPC murine cancers and are absent in the orthotopic murine model. TLS formation can be induced in the orthotopic model of PDAC after intratumoral injection of lymphoid chemokines (CXCL13/CCL21). Coadministration of systemic chemotherapy (gemcitabine) and intratumoral lymphoid chemokines into orthotopic tumors altered immune cell infiltration ,facilitating TLS induction and potentiating antitumor activity of chemotherapy. This resulted in significant tumor reduction, an effect not achieved by either treatment alone. Antitumor activity seen after TLS induction is associated with B cell-mediated dendritic cell activation.This study provides supportive evidence that TLS induction may potentiate the antitumor activity of chemotherapy in a murine model of PDAC. A detailed understanding of TLS kinetics and their induction, owing to multiple host and tumor factors, may help design personalized therapies harnessing the potential of immune-oncology.

Reduced lymphotoxin-beta production by tumour cells is associated with loss of follicular dendritic cell phenotype and diffuse growth in follicular lymphoma

J Path: Clin Res.

2018 Jan 24

Pepe G, Di Napoli A, Cippitelli C, Scarpino S, Pilozzi E, Ruc L.
PMID: - | DOI: 10.1002/cjp2.97

Cytokine production is essential for follicular dendritic cell maintenance and organization of germinal centres. In follicular lymphoma, follicular dendritic cells are often disarrayed and may lack antigens indicative of terminal differentiation. We investigated the in situ distribution of cells producing lymphotoxin-beta (LTB), lymphotoxin-alpha (LTA) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFA) transcripts in human reactive lymph nodes and in follicular lymphomas with follicular or diffuse growth pattern. LTB was the cytokine most abundantly produced in germinal centres. LTBwas present in nearly 90% of germinal centre cells whereas LTA and TNFA were detected in 30% and 50%, respectively. Moreover, the amount of LTB expressed in reactive germinal centre cells was 80-fold higher than that of LTA and 20-fold higher than that of TNFA. LTB-positive cells were more numerous in the germinal centre dark zone, whereas expression of the follicular dendritic cell proteins CD21, CD23, VCAM and CXCL13 was more intense in the light zone. Tumour cells of follicular lymphomas produced less LTB than reactive germinal centre cells. The results of the in situ study were confirmed by RT-PCR; LTB was significantly more abundant in reactive lymph nodes than in follicular lymphoma, with the lowest values detected in predominantly diffuse follicular lymphoma. In neoplastic follicles, low production of LTB by tumour B cells was associated with weaker expression of CD21+/CD23+ by follicular dendritic cells. Our findings detail for the first time the distribution of LTA-, LTB- and TNFA- producing cells in human reactive germinal centres and in follicular lymphoma. They suggest the possibility that impaired tumour-cell LTB production may represent a determinant of follicular dendritic cell phenotype loss and for defective follicular organization in follicular lymphoma.

	Description
sense Example: Hs-LAG3-sense	Standard probes for RNA detection are in antisense. Sense probe is reverse complent to the corresponding antisense probe.
Intron# Example: Mm-Htt-intron2	Probe targets the indicated intron in the target gene, commonly used for pre-mRNA detection
Pool/Pan Example: Hs-CD3-pool (Hs-CD3D, Hs-CD3E, Hs-CD3G)	A mixture of multiple probe sets targeting multiple genes or transcripts
No-XSp Example: Hs-PDGFB-No-XMm	Does not cross detect with the species (Sp)
XSp Example: Rn-Pde9a-XMm	designed to cross detect with the species (Sp)
O# Example: Mm-Islr-O1	Alternative design targeting different regions of the same transcript or isoforms
CDS Example: Hs-SLC31A-CDS	Probe targets the protein-coding sequence only
EnEm	Probe targets exons n and m
En-Em	Probe targets region from exon n to exon m
Retired Nomenclature
tvn Example: Hs-LEPR-tv1	Designed to target transcript variant n
ORF Example: Hs-ACVRL1-ORF	Probe targets open reading frame
UTR Example: Hs-HTT-UTR-C3	Probe targets the untranslated region (non-protein-coding region) only
5UTR Example: Hs-GNRHR-5UTR	Probe targets the 5' untranslated region only
3UTR Example: Rn-Npy1r-3UTR	Probe targets the 3' untranslated region only
Pan Example: Pool	A mixture of multiple probe sets targeting multiple genes or transcripts

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