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@#Epigenetic modification plays an important role in the biological regulatory process of eukaryotic cells. Tumor immunotherapy is an important means and clinical strategy for the treatment of some cancers. 5-Methylcytosine (m5C) is an important component of the epigenetic regulatory network discovered after m6A and has become a new topic for life science research in recent years. The m5C methylation of RNA can affect the fate of the modified RNA molecules and play an important role in various biological processes, including RNA stability, protein synthesis and transcriptional regulation. Recent studies have shown that m5C writers, erasers and readers are related to a variety of cellular biological processes and systemic diseases, including the occurrence, metastasis and tumor immune microenvironment. m5C methylation can widely affect gene expression and the biological process of tumorigenesis and development at multiple levels, but its specific mechanism and potential interaction with other epigenetic modifications in tumor immunotherapy are still unclear, and its regulatory mechanism, risk assessment and role in targeted therapy for malignant tumors need to be further studied. This article will review the dynamic regulatory network of m5C, the biological role of m5C modification in solid tumors and potential targets in tumor immunotherapy.
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Background: The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a dynamic tissue that provides nutrition and support to overlying epithelium. During tumorigenesis, the tumor microenvironment (TME) dysregulates the ECM. This is reflected by morphological changes seen in collagen and elastic fibers and is thought to facilitate metastasis. Aim: To study the degradation of elastic fibers in different grades of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and in oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) using histochemistry and to correlate it to the TNM stage of OSCC. Materials and Methods: Tumor cores from 38 cases of OSCC (well-differentiated[15], moderately differentiated[14], and poorly differentiated[9]) and 15 incisional biopsies of OED were analyzed. Hematoxylin-eosin and Verhoeff's–Van Gieson (VVG) stains were used. The stained sections were assessed for morphological changes in elastic fibers. Statistical Analysis: Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 software. Fisher's exact, Kruskal–Wallis, one-way ANOVA, and Turkey post hoc tests were used to establish significance (P ? 0.05). Spearman's correlation test was used to correlate elastin fiber degradation with TNM stage of OSCC. Results: All grades of OSCC showed absence of elastic fibers around the tumor islands. Elastic fiber degradation (fragmented and clumped type fibers) increased proportionately with the grade and TNM stage of OSCC. In OED, A significant reduction in the amount of elastic fibers with increasing grade was noted. Conclusion: A positive correlation was noted between elastin degradation and grade and stage of OSCC. Therefore, it may be implicated in tumor progression of OSCC.
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Pancreatic cancer is one of the most common tumors in digestive system, which is characterized by insidious clinical symptoms, strong invasion, easy metastasis and high mortality. In recent years, immunotherapy is a new direction to the treatment of solid tumors, but its applica-tion in pancreatic cancer is limited by tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer. The authors systematically analyze the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer, summarize the clinical researches related to pancreatic cancer immunotherapy, and discuss the prospect of pancreatic cancer immunotherapy.
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Chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) therapy, an emerging immunotherapy, has achieved remarkable results in the treatment of hematologic tumors. However, it's limited in the treatment of solid tumors such as esophageal squamous cell carcinoma due to various factors. Clarifying the reasons for the limitation of CAR-T therapy and exploring the corresponding solutions can provide new ideas and insights for the treatment of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
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Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) is considered as a key factor for the severely limited efficacy in tumor radiotherapy. CAFs, as the primary stromal cells in the tumor microenvironment, can lead to tumor radiotherapy resistance by secreting a series of pro-tumor cytokines and nutrients, inhibiting anti-tumor immune response and remodeling extracellular matrix. Some progress has been made in the study of targeted CAFs sensitization radiotherapy, but the relevant study system is still imperfect. Therefore, a systematic exploration of the role of CAFs in tumor radiotherapy resistance and CAFs targeted therapy strategies can provide a basis for improving the current status of tumor radiotherapy resistance.
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In recent years, immunotherapy, especially immune checkpoint inhibitors, has shown obvious advantages in prolonging the survival of patients with advanced tumors, and the tumor microenvironment is one of the important factors affecting the efficacy of immunity. Patients with microsatellite-stable colorectal cancer exhibit immune responses in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. In-depth exploration of the tumor microenvironment characteristics of microsatellite-stable colorectal cancer and the application of combined immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy can provide new ideas and directions for colorectal cancer immunotherapy.
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Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) is important channel for tumor immune cell infiltration. The existence of tumor TLSs is not only related to the prognosis of patients, but also to the efficacy of a variety of anti-tumor therapies. To explore the function and immunomodulatory mechanism of TLSs and its potential value as a tumor prognostic biomarker in comprehensive anti-tumor therapy will provide new ideas for follow-up research.
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Lymphocyte subsets and tumor-associated macrophages, which are the primary immune cells in the tumor microenvironment, interacts with its released cytokines to form the immunological microenvironment. It has grown to be a significant factor in the recurrence and metastasis of cervical cancer and influences the effectiveness of concurrent radiotherapy and chemotherapy for the disease, which in turn influences the prognosis and outcome of patients. Immunotherapy and targeted therapy for cervical cancer based on the immune microenvironment have grown in popularity as research topics in recent years.
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The occurrence and development of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) are related to many factors such as CLL cells, defective T cells and tumor microenvironment. The mutual interaction between tumor cells and immune cells in tumor microenvironment is an important factor for the progress of CLL. T cells, as the main members of adaptive immunity, play an ambiguous role in CLL. This review focuses on the immunodeficiency of T-cell subsets in CLL and recent advances in T-cell immunotherapy, in order to explore the potential role of T cells in the occurrence, development and outcome of CLL.
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Single-cell sequencing (SCS) sequences the genetic information of a single cell to better understand the differences amongst cells and reveal the unique changes of each cell type. The specific analysis of cell subsets at the single-cell level can accurately evaluate tumor cells and microenvironment cells to reveal the complexity of molecular components and the difference from the corresponding components in non-malignant tissues. Lymphoma is highly heterogeneous, some have unknown pathological types, etiology and poor prognosis. SCS is helpful to clarify the molecular mechanisms of lymphomagenesis and pathological staging, and guide clinical practice. This article reviews SCS and its application in lymphoma.
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OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the mechanism by which conditioned medium of colorectal cancer cells promotes the formation of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs).@*METHODS@#Normal human colorectal fibroblasts (CCD-18Co cells) in logarithmic growth phase were treated with the conditioned media of colorectal cancer HCT116 cells (HCT116-CM) or Caco-2 cells (Caco-2-CM) alone or in combination with 300 nmol/L ERK inhibitor SCH772984. The expression levels of CAFs-related molecular markers were detected in the treated cells with real-time quantitative PCR (RT- qPCR) and immunofluorescence assay, and the changes in cell proliferation, colony formation and migration were assessed with RTCA, colony formation and wound healing assays; Western blotting was performed to detect the activated signaling pathways in the fibroblasts and the changes in CAFs formation after blocking of the signaling pathway.@*RESULTS@#HCT116-CM and Caco-2-CM significantly upregulated mRNA expression levels of CAFs markers (including α-SMA, FAP, FN and TGF-β) in CCD-18Co cells, and strongly promoted fibroblast transformation into CAFs (P < 0.05). The two conditioned media also promoted the proliferation, colony formation and migration of CCD-18Co cells (P < 0.05) and significantly increased the levels of α-SMA protein and ERK phosphorylation in the cells (P < 0.05). The ERK inhibitor SCH772984 obviously inhibited the expression of α-SMA and the transformation of CCD-18Co cells into CAFs induced by the conditioned medium of colorectal cancer cells (P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Colorectal cancer cells may induce the formation of colorectal CAFs by activating the ERK pathway in the fibroblasts.
Subject(s)
Humans , Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts/metabolism , Culture Media, Conditioned/pharmacology , MAP Kinase Signaling System , Caco-2 Cells , Fibroblasts , Signal Transduction , Cell Proliferation , Cell Line, Tumor , Colorectal Neoplasms/genetics , Cell MovementABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate the prognosis and immunotherapy response of patients with bladder cancer by constructing a risk-score model of cellular senescence-related signature (SRS), as well as to explore the clinical application value of SRS in bladder cancer. Methods Senescence genes were screened from TCGA-BLCA, and cellular SRS genes were screened according to LASSO regression. A bladder cancer risk-score model was constructed based on the SRS genes to analyze the survival difference and model-fit degree of TCGA-BLCA high- and low-risk groups. Univariable and multivariable Cox regression was used to analyze the prognostic risk factors of bladder cancer. Overall survival differences of high- and low-risk groups in GEO-BLCA database were verified, and variations in immunotherapy responses were analyzed in IMvigor210 databases. According to the result of β-gal chromogenic reaction in bladder cancer and normal paracancer tissues, the existence of cell senescence was determined. Results Eight marker genes were screened, and patients were divided into high- and low-risk groups according to the median risk score constructed by the marker genes. The 5-year survival rate of high risk group was lower than that of low risk group (training and validation sets P < 0.05). The area under the ROC curve of TCGA-BLCA in 1-, 3-, and 5-year were 0.657, 0.660, and 0.688, and those for GSE13507 were 0.665, 0.665, and 0.613, respectively. SRS risk score can be used as an independent risk factor for the prognosis of patients with bladder cancer. The SRS risk score in the response group was lower than that in the non-response group during bladder cancer immunotherapy (P < 0.05). The β-gal staining of bladder cancer tissue was positive, but the β-gal staining of adjacent normal tissue was negative. Conclusion Cell senescence occurs in bladder cancer tissues. SRS risk score can predict the clinical prognosis of patients with bladder cancer, and patients with low score can benefit from immunotherapy. SRS is a reliable biomarker for the prognosis and immunotherapy response of bladder cancer.
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Objective To investigate the impact of PD1-TCF1+CD8+ stem-like memory T cells on immunotherapy prognosis and tertiary lymphoid structure in tumors. Methods Pathological tissue sections were collected from 33 patients treated with immunotherapy, 18 cases of NSCLC and 15 cases of ESCC. The expression of PD1-TCF1+CD8+T cells was detected through quantitative analysis by multiplex immunofluorescence. Survival curves were described by the Kaplan-Meier method. Pearson's correlation test was used for correlation analysis. Results The high levels of PD1-TCF1+CD8+T cells had a better PFS in NSCLC and ESCC cohorts. In the NSCLC cohort, high levels of PD1-TCF1+CD8+ T cells were significantly and positively correlated with the number (P=0.0151) and size (P=0.0007) of TLSs. Conclusion In patients with NSCLC and ESCCs, high PD1-TCF1+CD8+ stem-like memory T cell expression indicates improved prognosis and immune response and is associated with the formation of TLSs in the tumor microenvironment of NSCLC.
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The relationship between tumor metabolism and immunity is complex and diverse. To date, the role of tumor-specific metabolic reprogramming in shaping the specific tumor microenvironment in tumor immunotherapy remains unclear. Lactic acid is the main product of glycolysis, and the aerobic glycolysis of tumor cells causes lactic acid to accumulate in the microenvironment. Recent studies have shown that the accumulation of lactic acid in the tumor microenvironment hinders anti-tumor immunity, especially affects the function, differentiation, and metabolism of immune cells, and participates in tumor immune escape, thus promoting tumor. This article reviews the effects of lactate accumulation in the tumor microenvironment on dendritic cells, T cells, NK cells, tumor-associated macrophages, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells. Targeted intervention of lactate production and efflux by tumor cells is expected to become a new strategy for tumor immunotherapy.
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Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a common, highly aggressive and heterogeneous hematologic malignancy in adults. Patients with DLBCL have substantially differences in molecular biological characteristics, clinical manifestations, and prognosis. Increasing evidence shows that the tumor microenvironment plays an important role in the occurrence and development of DLBCL. CD47, an integrin related protein, is overexpressed in DLBCL cells and plays a key role in immune escape of lymphoma. This work reviews the research progress of CD47 in DLBCL TME in terms of CD47-related signal pathway, CD47 role in DLBCL TME, and therapeutic strategies targeting CD47 in DLBCL TME.
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Super-enhancers (SEs) are large clusters of enhancers located near the promoter and are necessary to determine the identity of cancer cells. The alterations of super-enhancers can cause dysregulation of the transcriptional program, which resulted in tumor cells being addicted to certain transcriptional programs. Tumor metastasis is the leading cause of death in cancer. Recently, SEs have been demonstrated to facilitate tumor metastasis by regulating lncRNA generation, tumor microenvironment, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and cancer stem cells. In this review, the characteristics of SEs, the relationship between SEs and tumor metastasis, and inhibitors against SEs are summarized to provide a reference for the relevant mechanism of SEs regulating tumor metastasis and provide new perspectives for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cancer metastasis.
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Sphingosine kinase (SphK), sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) and S1P receptor (S1PR) are involved in the tumor biological processes such as tumor cell proliferation and migration, and play an important role in the development of cancer. In recent years, researchers have increasingly focused on the interaction between cancer cells and the tumor microenvironment. The tumor microenvironment is genetically stable and can be induced to an antitumor phenotype, which has significant therapeutic advantages. Studies have shown that SphK/S1P/S1PR can regulate multiple aspects of the tumor microenvironment. This review summarizes the effects of SphK and S1P/S1PR signaling on the tumor microenvironment from four perspectives: tumor immune microenvironment, cancer associated fibroblasts, tumor angiogenesis and tumor hypoxic microenvironment, and also outlines potential drug research related to these signal molecules, aiming to elucidate the role of SphK/S1P/S1PR in tumor occurrence and development and provide new ideas for the research of anti-tumor drugs.
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Tumor microenvironment (TME) is composed of endothelial cells, pericytes, immune cells, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), cancer stem cells (CSCs), extracellular matrix (ECM) and other components of the complex biological environment. TME interacts with the tumor cells through a large amount of signaling pathways, participates in the process of tumor progression, invasion, and metastasis. Hence, TME has become a potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment, exhibiting excellent therapeutic potential and research value in the field of cancer treatment. Currently, the novel nanotechnology has been widely applied in anticancer therapy, and nanotechnology-mediated drug delivery system is being explored to apply in TME modulation to inhibit tumor progression. Nanotechnology-mediated drug delivery has many advantages over traditional therapeutic modalities, including longer circulation times, improved bioavailability, and reduced toxicity. This review summarized the research of targeted nano-drug delivery based on TME regulation, including regulation strategies based on CSCs, CAFs, immune cells, ECM, tumor vascularization, exosomes, and microbiota. In addition, we summarized the advantages, opportunities, and challenges of TME regulation strategy compared with traditional treatment strategy, which provides a reference for the application of nano-drug delivery system based on TME regulation strategy in tumor precision therapy.
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Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a highly malignant biliary tumor with strong invasion and poor prognosis and is insensitive to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) is an important component of the tumor microenvironment. CCA cells recruit TAM into tumor tissue by releasing cytokines and polarize them into M2 TAM, which promotes the progression of CCA through various mechanisms such as assisting immune escape, promoting tumor cell proliferation, regulating angiogenesis, promoting tumor metastasis, and mediating immune resistance. As an emerging target of tumor immunotherapy, TAM provides new ideas for targeted therapy for CCA. This article reviews the mechanisms of TAM in promoting the progression of CCA and immunotherapy targeting TAM in recent years.
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Lung cancer is one of the common malignant tumors in the world, and its incidence and mortality is increasing year by year. Interactions between tumor cells and immune cells in the tumor microenvironment(TME) affect tumor proliferation, infiltration, and metastasis. Tumor-associated macrophages(TAMs) are prominent components of TME, and they have dual regulation effects on malignant progression of lung cancer. The number, activity, and function of M2 macrophages are related to the poor prognosis of lung cancer, and M2 macrophages participate in tumor angiogenesis and immune escape. It has been proved that traditional Chinese medicines(TCMs) and their active ingredients can enhance the antitumor effects, reduce the toxicity of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and prolong the survival rates of patients with cancer. This paper summarized the role of TAMs in the lung cancer initiation and progression, explored the molecular mechanism of TCM in regulating the recruitment, polarization phenotype, activity, and expression of related factors and proteins of TAMs, and discussed related signal pathways in the prevention and treatment of lung cancer based on the TCM theory of "reinforcing healthy qi and eliminating pathogen". This paper is expected to provide new ideas for the immunotherapy of targeted TAMs.