Search

Single-cell technologies have elucidated mechanisms responsible for immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) response, but are not amenable to a clinical diagnostic setting. In contrast, bulk RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) is now routine for research and clinical applications. Our workflow uses transcription factor (TF)-directed co-expression networks (regulons) inferred from single-cell RNA-seq data to deconvolute immune functional states from bulk RNA-seq data. Regulons preserve the phenotypic variation in CD45+ immune cells from metastatic melanoma samples (n=19, discovery dataset) treated with ICIs, despite reducing dimensionality by > 100-fold. Four cell states, termed exhausted T cells, monocyte lineage cells, memory T cells, and B cells were associated with therapy response; and were characterized by differentially active and cell-state specific regulons. Clustering of bulk RNA-seq melanoma samples from four independent studies (n=209, validation dataset) according to regulon-inferred scores identified four groups with significantly different response outcomes (p < 0.001). An intercellular link was established between exhausted T cells and monocyte lineage cells, whereby their cell numbers were correlated, and exhausted T cells predicted prognosis as a function of monocyte lineage cell number. The ligand–receptor expression analysis suggested that monocyte lineage cells drive exhausted T cells into terminal exhaustion through programs that regulate antigen presentation, chronic inflammation, and negative co-stimulation. Together, our results demonstrate how regulon-based characterization of cell states provide robust and functionally informative markers that can deconvolve bulk RNA-seq data to identify ICI responders.

Contains additional information methods data associated with accompanying supplemental figures, and additional data on in vivo studies, including information on experimental animals, housing and sample size. Contains 4 supplemental figures demonstrating: Figure 1, the cytotoxicity of clodronate liposomes against macrophages and tumor cells in vitro; Figure 2, that depletion of DC abrogates the priming of tumor-antigen specific CD8 T-cells following radiation and anti-CD40 mAb therapy; Figure 3, the impact of depletion of CD169 macrophages on radiation and anti-CD40 mAb therapy; Figure 4, combination radiation and R848 (TLR-7 agonist)leads to priming of tumor-specific CD8 T-cells.

Supplementary Materials and Methods, and Supplementary Figures

The clinical benefit of PD-1 blockade can be improved by combination with CTLA4 inhibition but is commensurate with significant immune-related adverse events suboptimally limiting the doses of anti-CTLA4 mAb that can be used. MEDI5752 is a monovalent bispecific antibody designed to suppress the PD-1 pathway and provide modulated CTLA4 inhibition favoring enhanced blockade on PD-1+ activated T cells. We show that MEDI5752 preferentially saturates CTLA4 on PD-1+ T cells versus PD-1− T cells, reducing the dose required to elicit IL2 secretion. Unlike conventional PD-1/CTLA4 mAbs, MEDI5752 leads to the rapid internalization and degradation of PD-1. Moreover, we show that MEDI5752 preferentially localizes and accumulates in tumors providing enhanced activity when compared with a combination of mAbs targeting PD-1 and CTLA4 in vivo. Following treatment with MEDI5752, robust partial responses were observed in two patients with advanced solid tumors. MEDI5752 represents a novel immunotherapy engineered to preferentially inhibit CTLA4 on PD-1+ T cells.Significance:The unique characteristics of MEDI5752 represent a novel immunotherapy engineered to direct CTLA4 inhibition to PD-1+ T cells with the potential for differentiated activity when compared with current conventional mAb combination strategies targeting PD-1 and CTLA4. This molecule therefore represents a step forward in the rational design of cancer immunotherapy.See related commentary by Burton and Tawbi, p. 1008.This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 995

Murine syngeneic tumor models are critical to novel immuno-based therapy development, but the molecular and immunologic features of these models are still not clearly defined. The translational relevance of differences between the models is not fully understood, impeding appropriate preclinical model selection for target validation, and ultimately hindering drug development. Across a panel of commonly used murine syngeneic tumor models, we showed variable responsiveness to immunotherapies. We used array comparative genomic hybridization, whole-exome sequencing, exon microarray analysis, and flow cytometry to extensively characterize these models, which revealed striking differences that may underlie these contrasting response profiles. We identified strong differential gene expression in immune-related pathways and changes in immune cell–specific genes that suggested differences in tumor immune infiltrates between models. Further investigation using flow cytometry showed differences in both the composition and magnitude of the tumor immune infiltrates, identifying models that harbor “inflamed” and “non-inflamed” tumor immune infiltrate phenotypes. We also found that immunosuppressive cell types predominated in syngeneic mouse tumor models that did not respond to immune-checkpoint blockade, whereas cytotoxic effector immune cells were enriched in responsive models. A cytotoxic cell–rich tumor immune infiltrate has been correlated with increased efficacy of immunotherapies in the clinic, and these differences could underlie the varying response profiles to immunotherapy between the syngeneic models. This characterization highlighted the importance of extensive profiling and will enable investigators to select appropriate models to interrogate the activity of immunotherapies as well as combinations with targeted therapies in vivo. Cancer Immunol Res; 5(1); 29–41. ©2016 AACR.

Supplementary Figure S1: Summary of experiments Supplementary Figure S2: Gating strategy Supplementary Figure S3:Profiling by array CGH, whole-exome and targeted sequencing Supplementary Figure S4: Comparison of mutational profiles of murine syngeneic tumor cell lines and TCGA patient tumors Supplementary Figure S5: Differentially-expressed gene-sets in lymph node and spleen Supplementary Table S1: Cell line details Supplementary Table S2: Copy Number Variation Supplementary Table S3: List of 64 genes investigated by targeted sequencing Supplementary Table S4: Fluorescent antibodies used Supplementary Methods: Linear mixed-effect model

Tumor cells dying after cytotoxic therapy are a potential source of antigen for T-cell priming. Antigen-presenting cells (APC) can cross-present MHC I–restricted peptides after the uptake of dying cells. Depending on the nature of the surrounding environmental signals, APCs then orchestrate a spectrum of responses ranging from immune activation to inhibition. Previously, we had demonstrated that combining radiation with either agonistic monoclonal antibody (mAb) to CD40 or a systemically administered TLR7 agonist could enhance CD8 T-cell–dependent protection against syngeneic murine lymphoma models. However, it remains unknown how individual APC populations affect this antitumor immune response. Using APC depletion models, we now show that dendritic cells (DC), but not macrophages or B cells, were responsible for the generation of long-term immunologic protection following combination therapy with radiotherapy and either agonistic CD40 mAb or systemic TLR7 agonist therapy. Novel immunotherapeutic approaches that augment antigen uptake and presentation by DCs may further enhance the generation of therapeutic antitumor immune responses, leading to improved outcomes after radiotherapy. Cancer Immunol Res; 4(7); 621–30. ©2016 AACR.

Supplementary dataset containing raw data from targeted sequencing, whole exome sequencing, array CGH and transcriptomic analysis

Concurrent but not sequential blockade of PD-1 is required to augment the efficacy of fractionated RT

Figure legends for Supplemental Figures 1-6

Treatment with FTY-720 has no direct effect on tumor growth and leads to deletion of non-LN resident and circulating T cells

Out-of-field tumor regression is a rare event following local single dose or fractionated RT.

Purpose: Radiotherapy is a highly effective anticancer treatment forming part of the standard of care for the majority of patients, but local and distal disease recurrence remains a major cause of mortality. Radiotherapy is known to enhance tumor immunogenicity; however, the contribution and mechanisms of radiotherapy-induced immune responses are unknown.Experimental Design: The impact of low-dose fractionated radiotherapy (5 × 2 Gy) alone and in combination with αPD-1 mAb on the tumor microenvironment was evaluated by flow cytometry and next-generation sequencing of the T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire. A dual-tumor model was used, with fractionated radiotherapy delivered to a single tumor site to enable evaluation of the local and systemic response to treatment and ability to induce abscopal responses outside the radiation field.Results: We show that fractionated radiotherapy leads to T-cell infiltration at the irradiated site; however, the TCR landscape remains dominated by polyclonal expansion of preexisting T-cell clones. Adaptive resistance via the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway restricts the generation of systemic anticancer immunity following radiotherapy, which can be overcome through combination with αPD-1 mAb leading to improved local and distal tumor control. Moreover, we show that effective clearance of tumor following combination therapy is dependent on both T cells resident in the tumor at the time of radiotherapy and infiltrating T cells.Conclusions: These data provide evidence that radiotherapy can enhance T-cell trafficking to locally treated tumor sites and augment preexisting anticancer T-cell responses with the capacity to mediate regression of out-of-field tumor lesions when delivered in combination with αPD-1 mAb therapy. Clin Cancer Res; 23(18); 5514–26. ©2017 AACR.

The relative frequency of the top 25 clones from tumor 1 tracked in pre-therapy blood, post-therapy blood, and in tumor 2 post-therapy

Representative staining for PD-L1 on tumor cells (CD45-) and CD11b+Gr1+ cells

Gating strategy for tumor cells and tumor infiltrating immune cells

Supplemental figure 1: Gating strategy for determining tumor cell PD-L1 expression. Supplemental figure 2: Impact of low-dose fractionated RT on PD-L1 expression by CD11b+GR1Hi cells. Supplemental figure 3: Dual blockade of PD-1 and PD-L1 does not further enhance efficacy of RT combination. Supplemental figure 4: Blockade of PD-1 / PD-L1 in combination with local RT is well tolerated in mice. Supplemental figure 5: PD-1 / PD-L1 blockade does not directly sensitise tumor cells to RT. Supplemental figure 6: Scheduling of RT and anti-PD-L1 is critical for anti-tumor activity. Supplemental figure 7: Only acute administration of anti-PD-L1 mAb may be required to achieve efficacy when delivered in combination with RT.

A recombinant Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV), encoding either a human (NDVhuGM-CSF, MEDI5395) or murine (NDVmuGM-CSF) GM-CSF transgene, combined broad oncolytic activity with the ability to significantly modulate genes related to immune functionality in human tumor cells. Replication in murine tumor lines was significantly diminished relative to human tumor cells. Nonetheless, intratumoral injection of NDVmuGM-CSF conferred antitumor effects in three syngeneic models in vivo; with efficacy further augmented by concomitant treatment with anti–PD-1/PD-L1 or T-cell agonists. Ex vivo immune profiling, including T-cell receptor sequencing, revealed profound immune-contexture changes consistent with priming and potentiation of adaptive immunity and tumor microenvironment (TME) reprogramming toward an immune-permissive state. CRISPR modifications rendered CT26 tumors significantly more permissive to NDV replication, and in this setting, NDVmuGM-CSF confers immune-mediated effects in the noninjected tumor in vivo. Taken together, the data support the thesis that MEDI5395 primes and augments cell-mediated antitumor immunity and has significant utility as a combination partner with other immunomodulatory cancer treatments.

The prognosis for patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains extremely poor. It has been suggested that the adenosine pathway contributes to the ability of PDAC to evade the immune system and its resistance to immunotherapies (Immuno-Oncology Therapy, IOT), by generating extracellular adenosine (eAdo).Using genetically engineered allograft models of PDAC in syngeneic mice with differential immune infiltration and response to IOT, we showed enrichment of the adenosine pathway in tumour-infiltrating immune cells (in particular, myeloid populations). Using MS-Imaging, we showed that extracellular adenosine distribution is heterogeneous in tumours, with high concentrations in hypoxic margins that surround necrotic areas, associated with a rich myeloid infiltration, demonstrated using Imaging Mass Cytometry (IMC). Pro-tumorigenic M2 macrophages express high levels of the Adora2a receptor; particularly in the IOT resistant model. Blocking thein vivoformation and function of eAdo (Adoi), using a combination of anti-CD73 antibody and an Adora2a inhibitor slowed tumour growth and reduced metastatic burden. In addition, blocking the adenosine pathway improved the efficacy of combinations of cytotoxic agents or immunotherapy. Finally, Adoi remodelled the tumour microenvironment (TME), as evidenced by reduced infiltration of M2 macrophages and Tregs. RNAseq analysis showed that genes related to immune modulation, hypoxia and tumour stroma were downregulated following Adoi and a specific adenosine signature derived from this is associated with a poorer prognosis in patients with PDAC.The formation of eAdo appears to promote the development of the immunosuppressive TME in PDAC, contributing to its resistance to conventional and novel therapies. Therefore, inhibition of the adenosine pathway may represent a strategy to modulate the stroma and improve therapy response in patients with PDAC.

The clinical benefit of PD-1 blockade can be improved by combination with CTLA4 inhibition but is commensurate with significant immune-related adverse events suboptimally limiting the doses of anti-CTLA4 mAb that can be used. MEDI5752 is a monovalent bispecific antibody designed to suppress the PD-1 pathway and provide modulated CTLA4 inhibition favoring enhanced blockade on PD-1+ activated T cells. We show that MEDI5752 preferentially saturates CTLA4 on PD-1+ T cells versus PD-1− T cells, reducing the dose required to elicit IL2 secretion. Unlike conventional PD-1/CTLA4 mAbs, MEDI5752 leads to the rapid internalization and degradation of PD-1. Moreover, we show that MEDI5752 preferentially localizes and accumulates in tumors providing enhanced activity when compared with a combination of mAbs targeting PD-1 and CTLA4 in vivo. Following treatment with MEDI5752, robust partial responses were observed in two patients with advanced solid tumors. MEDI5752 represents a novel immunotherapy engineered to preferentially inhibit CTLA4 on PD-1+ T cells. Significance: The unique characteristics of MEDI5752 represent a novel immunotherapy engineered to direct CTLA4 inhibition to PD-1+ T cells with the potential for differentiated activity when compared with current conventional mAb combination strategies targeting PD-1 and CTLA4. This molecule therefore represents a step forward in the rational design of cancer immunotherapy. See related commentary by Burton and Tawbi, p. 1008. This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 995

The field of Immuno-Oncology (IO) is evolving to utilise novel antibody backbones that can co-target multiple cell-surface stimulatory and inhibitory co-receptors (SICR). This approach necessitates a better understanding of SICR co-expression at the single-cell level on IO-relevant tumor-infiltrating leukocyte (TIL) cell types such as T and natural killer (NK) cells. Using high-dimensional flow cytometry we established a comprehensive SICR profile for tumor-resident T and NK cells across a range of human solid tumors where there is a clear need for improved immunotherapeutic intervention. Leveraging the power of our large flow panel, we performed deep-phenotyping of the critical CD8

Purpose: Combining radiotherapy (RT) with DNA damage response inhibitors may lead to increased tumor cell death through radiosensitization. DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) plays an important role in DNA double-strand break repair via the nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway. We hypothesized that in addition to a radiosensitizing effect from the combination of RT with AZD7648, a potent and specific inhibitor of DNA-PK, combination therapy may also lead to modulation of an anticancer immune response. Experimental Design: AZD7648 and RT efficacy, as monotherapy and in combination, was investigated in fully immunocompetent mice in MC38, CT26, and B16-F10 models. Immunologic consequences were analyzed by gene expression and flow-cytometric analysis. Results: AZD7648, when delivered in combination with RT, induced complete tumor regressions in a significant proportion of mice. The antitumor efficacy was dependent on the presence of CD8+ T cells but independent of NK cells. Analysis of the tumor microenvironment revealed a reduction in T-cell PD-1 expression, increased NK-cell granzyme B expression, and elevated type I IFN signaling in mice treated with the combination when compared with RT treatment alone. Blocking of the type I IFN receptor in vivo also demonstrated a critical role for type I IFN in tumor growth control following combined therapy. Finally, this combination was able to generate tumor antigen-specific immunologic memory capable of suppressing tumor growth following rechallenge. Conclusions: Blocking the NHEJ DNA repair pathway with AZD7648 in combination with RT leads to durable immune-mediated tumor control.

The prognosis for patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains extremely poor. PDAC is resistant to both conventional therapies and emerging immunotherapies (IOT), apart from tumors with mismatch repair deficiency. This may be explained in part by its low tumor mutational burden (TMB) but also by its immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). It has been suggested that CD73, a member of the adenosine pathway, expressed on cancer cells contributes to immune escape and resistance to cytotoxic/radiotherapy treatment. The adenosine pathway converts the immune activator ATP, released by dying cells during cell turnover or after treatment, to extracellular Adenosine (eAdo), which is immunosuppressive. Using syngeneic, in vivo models by s.c. implantation of KPC-derived cell lines (courtesy of Ben Stanger, UPenn) with differential immune infiltration and response to IOT [resistant (IOTResi) or responsive (IOTResp)], we showed by flow cytometry that the adenosine pathway is enriched in the tumor-infiltrating immune cells (in particular myeloid populations) which co-express CD39 and CD73, enabling the formation of eAdo. Mass Spec Imaging (MSI) revealed that adenosine distribution is heterogeneous in the tumors with high concentrations in the hypoxic margins that surround necrotic areas. Subpopulations of myeloid cells infiltrating the lesions are a target for eAdo, expressing high levels of adenosine receptor Adora2a. We discovered that pro-tumorigenic M2 macrophages have the highest expression of the receptor and significantly higher in the IOTResi model. Blocking the in vivo formation and function of eAdo in IOTResi tumors, using a combination of anti-CD73 antibody (2C5, murine IgG1-Fc) and an inhibitor of Adora2a (AZD4635) reduced the presence of eAdo, slowed tumor growth and reduced the lung metastatic burden. The combination remodeled the TME, reducing the infiltration by M2 macrophages, particularly those that are PD-L1 positive and diminished the frequency of infiltrating Tregs. Bulk RNAseq analysis demonstrated a profound dependency of the TME on the presence of eAdo. Genes related to cytokine/chemokine signaling, immunosuppression/inflammation, hypoxia, metastasis and collagen production are strongly downregulated following administration of anti-CD73Ab/Adora2ai. In addition, blocking the adenosine pathway improved the efficacy of combinations of cytotoxics (gemcitabine/ATR inhibitor) and immunotherapy (aCD40/anti-PDL1Ab). The formation of eAdo appears to be a factor in the development of the immunosuppressive TME in PDAC, contributing to its resistance to conventional and novel therapies. Therefore, inhibition of the adenosine pathway using a CD73Ab and an Adora2ai may represent a strategy to modulate the PDAC stroma and improve therapy response in patients with PDAC. Citation Format: Vincenzo Graziano, Andreas Dannhorn, Kate Williamson, Heather Hulme, Hannah Buckley, Sheng Y. Lee, Sabita Islam, James E. Thaventhiran, Richard Goodwin, Rebecca Brais, Simon J. Dovedi, Alwin Schuller, Jim Eyles, Duncan I. Jodrell. Reshaping the myeloid-dependent pro-tumorigenic microenvironment in PDAC by targeting the extracellular adenosine pathway: A therapeutic opportunity [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 6103.

The clinical benefit of PD-1 blockade can be improved by combination with CTLA4 inhibition but is commensurate with significant immune-related adverse events suboptimally limiting the doses of anti-CTLA4 mAb that can be used. MEDI5752 is a monovalent bispecific antibody designed to suppress the PD-1 pathway and provide modulated CTLA4 inhibition favoring enhanced blockade on PD-1

Background Immuno-Oncology research relies heavily on murine syngeneic tumor models. However, whilst the median age for a cancer diagnosis is 65 years or older, for practical purposes the majority of preclinical studies are conducted in young mice, despite the fact that ageing has been shown to have a significant impact on the immune response. Materials and Methods Using aged mice bearing CT26 tumors, we analysed how aging impacts the immune composition of the tumor, spleen and tumor-draining lymph nodes by flow cytometry. Results We found many age-related changes between aged (60–72 weeks old) and young (6–8 weeks old) mice, such as a reduction in the naive T cell population and a decreased CD8/Treg ratio in aged animals. Profiling of co-inhibitory and co-stimulatory receptor expression levels on immune cells in aged versus young mice also identified altered expression profiles in both the periphery and tumor. We hypothesised that these differences may contribute to impaired anti-cancer immune responses in aged mice. To investigate this, we compared the anti-tumor efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade (PD-L1 and CTLA-4) and T-cell costimulation (OX-40) in aged versus young mice. Our data demonstrate that aged mice retained their capacity to generate effective anti-tumor immune responses, albeit often attenuated when compared to the responses observed in young mice. Conclusions These differences highlight the potential importance of age-related immunological changes in assessing and refining the translational insights gained from preclinical mouse models. Disclosure Information S. Sitnikova: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca. M. Morrow: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca. V. Valge-Archer: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca. R.W. Wilkinson: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca. M.J. Robinson: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca. S.J. Dovedi: A. Employment (full or part-time); Significant; AstraZeneca.

The killing of tumor cells by CD8(+) T cells is suppressed by the tumor microenvironment, and increased expression of inhibitory receptors, including programed cell death protein-1 (PD-1), is associated with tumor-mediated suppression of T cells. To discover cellular defects triggered by tumor exposure and associated PD-1 signaling, we established an ex vivo imaging approach to investigate the response of antigen-specific, activated effector CD8(+) tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) after interaction with target tumor cells. Although TIL–tumor cell couples readily formed, couple stability deteriorated within minutes. This was associated with impaired F-actin clearing from the center of the cellular interface, reduced Ca(2+) signaling, increased TIL locomotion, and impaired tumor cell killing. The interaction of CD8(+) T lymphocytes with tumor cell spheroids in vitro induced a similar phenotype, supporting a critical role of direct T cell–tumor cell contact. Diminished engagement of PD-1 within the tumor, but not acute ex vivo blockade, partially restored cell couple maintenance and killing. PD-1 thus contributes to the suppression of TIL function by inducing a state of impaired subcellular organization.

A 2‐day meeting was held by members of the UK Quantitative Systems Pharmacology Network (http://www.qsp‐uk.net/) in November 2018 on the topic of Translational Challenges in Oncology. Participants from a wide range of backgrounds were invited to discuss current and emerging modeling applications in nonclinical and clinical drug development, and to identify areas for improvement. This resulting perspective explores opportunities for impactful quantitative pharmacology approaches. Four key themes arose from the presentations and discussions that were held, leading to the following recommendations: • Evaluate the predictivity and reproducibility of animal cancer models through precompetitive collaboration. • Apply mechanism of action (MoA) based mechanistic models derived from nonclinical data to clinical trial data. • Apply MoA reflective models across trial data sets to more robustly quantify the natural history of disease and response to differing interventions. • Quantify more robustly the dose and concentration dependence of adverse events through mathematical modelling techniques and modified trial design.

Purpose: Radiotherapy is a highly effective anticancer treatment forming part of the standard of care for the majority of patients, but local and distal disease recurrence remains a major cause of mortality. Radiotherapy is known to enhance tumor immunogenicity; however, the contribution and mechanisms of radiotherapy-induced immune responses are unknown. Experimental Design: The impact of low-dose fractionated radiotherapy (5 × 2 Gy) alone and in combination with αPD-1 mAb on the tumor microenvironment was evaluated by flow cytometry and next-generation sequencing of the T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire. A dual-tumor model was used, with fractionated radiotherapy delivered to a single tumor site to enable evaluation of the local and systemic response to treatment and ability to induce abscopal responses outside the radiation field. Results: We show that fractionated radiotherapy leads to T-cell infiltration at the irradiated site; however, the TCR landscape remains dominated by polyclonal expansion of preexisting T-cell clones. Adaptive resistance via the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway restricts the generation of systemic anticancer immunity following radiotherapy, which can be overcome through combination with αPD-1 mAb leading to improved local and distal tumor control. Moreover, we show that effective clearance of tumor following combination therapy is dependent on both T cells resident in the tumor at the time of radiotherapy and infiltrating T cells. Conclusions: These data provide evidence that radiotherapy can enhance T-cell trafficking to locally treated tumor sites and augment preexisting anticancer T-cell responses with the capacity to mediate regression of out-of-field tumor lesions when delivered in combination with αPD-1 mAb therapy. Clin Cancer Res; 23(18); 5514–26. ©2017 AACR.

Background Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) promotes adaptive immunity and tumor regression in some cancer patients. However, in patients with immunologically “cold” tumors, tumor-resident innate immune cell activation may be required to prime an adaptive immune response and so exploit the full potential of ICB. Whilst Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists have been used topically to successfully treat some superficial skin tumors, systemic TLR agonists have not been well-tolerated. Methods The response of human immune cells to TLR7 and 8 agonism was measured in primary human immune cell assays. MEDI9197 (3M-052) was designed as a novel lipophilic TLR7/8 agonist that is retained at the injection site, limiting systemic exposure. Retention of the TLR7/8 agonist at the site of injection was demonstrated using quantitative whole-body autoradiography, HPLC-UV, and MALDI mass spectrometry imaging. Pharmacodynamic changes on T cells from TLR7/8 agonist treated B16-OVA tumors was assessed by histology, quantitative real time PCR, and flow cytometry. Combination activity of TLR7/8 agonism with immunotherapies was assessed in vitro by human DC-T cell MLR assay, and in vivo using multiple syngeneic mouse tumor models. Results Targeting both TLR7 and 8 triggers an innate and adaptive immune response in primary human immune cells, exemplified by secretion of IFNα, IL-12 and IFNγ. In contrast, a STING or a TLR9 agonist primarily induces release of IFNα. We demonstrate that the TLR7/8 agonist, MEDI9197, is retained at the sight of injection with limited systemic exposure. This localized TLR7/8 agonism leads to Th1 polarization, enrichment and activation of natural killer (NK) and CD8+ T cells, and inhibition of tumor growth in multiple syngeneic models. The anti-tumor activity of this TLR7/8 agonist is enhanced when combined with T cell-targeted immunotherapies in pre-clinical models. Conclusion Localized TLR7/8 agonism can enhance recruitment and activation of immune cells in tumors and polarize anti-tumor immunity towards a Th1 response. Moreover, we demonstrate that the anti-tumor effects of this TLR7/8 agonist can be enhanced through combination with checkpoint inhibitors and co-stimulatory agonists. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s40425-019-0724-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The catabolism of ATP into immunosuppressive adenosine contributes to the dysfunction of tumor infiltrating leukocytes (TIL). CD73 is an ectonucleotidase which catabolizes conversion of AMP to adenosine and is expressed on a range of immune cells including B cells. Oleclumab (MEDI9447) is a monoclonal antibody specific for human CD73 and is currently in clinical development for the treatment of cancer. B cells constitute a significant proportion of human TIL; however, their importance to Immuno-Oncology (IO) treatments remains unclear. Recent publications demonstrate that B cells sustain inflammation and predict response to immune checkpoint blockade in human melanoma, their presence within the tumor microenvironment is correlated with improved prognosis in several human tumor types, and CD73 expression has been shown to vary on different human B cell subtypes. Further investigations into the role of CD73 in control of human B cell function are therefore warranted. We show that blockade of CD73 by oleclumab and other monoclonal antibodies on peripheral blood B cells from healthy human donors upregulates expression of CD69, CD83 and CD86, and induces secretion of IL-6, MIP-1α and MIP-1β. Activation is mediated by antibodies that block and internalize CD73 and is reduced by pharmacological inhibition of BTK, thus highlighting involvement of the canonical B-cell receptor signaling pathway. Furthermore, our analyses highlight a differential effect of CD73 blockade on individual B-cell populations, with the most robust increases in activation marker expression being observed on naïve subsets that retain expression of IgD. Our research has identified that oleclumab activates human peripheral blood B cells. Given the renewed interest in B-cell biology in IO, this is an area we believe warrants further clinical investigation. Citation Format: James Hair, Fabien Garcon, Michelle Hsueh, Laura Dallaway, Elena Bibikova, Maria Letizia Giardino Torchia, Gordon Moody, Alwin Schuller, Simon J. Dovedi, Zachary A. Cooper, Kris Sachsenmeier, Rakesh Kumar, Jim Eyles, Robert W. Wilkinson. Activation of B cells by CD73 blocking antibodies [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 1695.

BackgroundImmuno-oncology therapies are now part of the standard of care for cancer in many indications. However, durable objective responses remain limited to a subset of patients. As such, there is a critical need to identify biomarkers that can predict or enrich for treatment response. So far, the majority of putative biomarkers consist of features of the tumor microenvironment (TME). However, in preclinical mouse models, the collection of tumor tissue for this type of analysis is a terminal procedure, obviating the ability to directly link potential biomarkers to long-term treatment outcomes.MethodsTo address this, we developed and validated a novel non-terminal tumor sampling method to enable biopsy of the TME in mouse models based on fine needle aspiration.ResultsWe show that this technique enables repeated in-life sampling of subcutaneous flank tumors and yields sufficient material to support downstream analyses of tumor-infiltrating immune cells using methods such as flow cytometry and single-cell transcriptomics. Moreover, using this technique we demonstrate that we can link TME biomarkers to treatment response outcomes, which is not possible using the current method of terminal tumor sampling.ConclusionThus, this minimally invasive technique is an important refinement for the pharmacodynamic analysis of the TME facilitating paired evaluation of treatment response biomarkers with outcomes and reducing the number of animals used in preclinical research.

Background Pre-treatment lymphocytopaenia may result from cytokines secreted by the tumour microenvironment in association with aggressive tumour biology. We sought to establish the prognostic significance of lymphocytopaenia in muscle-invasive and advanced bladder cancer. Patients and methods Seventy-four patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer treated with radical chemoradiotherapy and 131 patients with advanced bladder cancer treated with palliative chemotherapy were included in the study. The absolute lymphocyte count on the first day of treatment was recorded. Invasive local or systemic recurrence in the muscle-invasive bladder cancer cohort and all-cause mortality in the advanced bladder cancer cohort were defined as survival end points. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was utilized to determine the cut-off for defining lymphocytopaenia in the muscle-invasive bladder cancer cohort followed by multivariable analysis in a model evaluating the following variables: anaemia, neutrophilia, tumour stage, hydronephrosis and neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Subsequently, lymphocytopaenia was assessed in a multivariable model of the advanced bladder cancer cohort analysing the following prognostic variables: neutrophilia, anaemia, performance status and presence of bone or visceral metastases. A further analysis was carried out evaluating absolute lymphocyte count as a continuous variable. Results An absolute lymphocyte count of 1.5 × 109/l was determined as the cut-off on ROC curve analysis in the muscle-invasive bladder cancer cohort, and multivariate analysis revealed that only lymphocytopaenia was predictive for inferior outcome in this cohort. In the advanced bladder cancer cohort, lymphocytopaenia [hazard ratio (HR) 1.6, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1–2.4; P = 0.02] and performance status (HR 1.7, 95% CI 1.0–2.7; P = 0.047) were adverse prognostic factors in the binary variable multivariate model. Absolute lymphocyte count was the sole significant factor when analysed as a continuous variable (HR 0.66, 95% CI 0.5–0.87; P = 0.003). Conclusion Pre-treatment lymphocytopaenia is an independent adverse prognostic factor in both muscle-invasive and advanced bladder cancer. It may be a manifestation of cancer-induced immune suppression driving tumour progression.

CD39 has recently been identified as critically differentiating tumour-reactive from bystander tumour-infiltrating leukocyte (TIL) CD8+ T cells. CD39 is an ectonucleotidase that degrades immunostimulatory ATP to ADP and AMP. CD73 then further metabolises AMP to generate immunosuppressive adenosine in the tumor microenvironment. To facilitate our understanding of CD39 as a therapeutic target we established a detailed receptor co-expression profile for CD39 with other immuno-oncology (IO)-relevant targets on TIL T/NK cells. TIL samples from three diseases (NSCLC, Renal cancer [RC] and Melanoma) were profiled, via the creation and use of a single large flow cytometry panel, combined with computational analysis. Unbiased clustering identified the expected major T and NK cell populations, however one of the most striking findings was that CD39 was highly differentially expressed across the different cell subsets. Almost all TREG cells were CD39 positive, whereas CD8+ T cells and NK cells were highly variable in their degree of expression of CD39. CD4+CD8+ T cells predominantly did not express cell surface CD39 and only very few CD4+ TCONV cells expressed CD39. The co-expression profile for TREG, TCONV and NK cells is presented, but we have also defined a detailed phenotype of the critical tumour-specific CD39+CD8+ T cell population. Our analyses show that CD39+CD8+ T cells express more markers associated with antigen-experienced T cells versus CD39-CD8+ T cells; a significantly greater proportion of CD39+CD8+ T cells expressed TIM3, CTLA-4, PD-1, TIGIT, CD137 and GITR versus CD39-CD8+ T cells. Significantly fewer CD39+CD8+ T cells than CD39-CD8+ T cells expressed CD28, a receptor known to be downregulated on antigen-experienced cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. These data reveal the detailed co-expression patterns of key IO-relevant receptors across TIL T and NK cell subsets and are consistent with recent reports identifying CD39 as a key marker differentiating the critical tumor-specific, antigen-experienced tumor infiltrating CD8+ T cells. Citation Format: Jim Hair, Nadia Luheshi, Simon J. Dovedi, Robert W. Wilkinson. Characterisation of co-expression of CD39 with other IO-relevant markers on major T/NK cell TIL subsets [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 2152.

In vitro assays that evaluate CD8+ T cell-mediated cytotoxicity are important to aid in the development of novel therapeutic approaches to enhance anti-tumor immune responses. Here, we describe a novel cytotoxicity co-culture assay that circumvents the problem of highly variable allogeneic responses and obviates the constraints of HLA-restriction between effector and target cells. We show that this assay can be easily applied to a panel of tumor cell lines to provide additional insights into intrinsic drivers of sensitivity/resistance to T cell-mediated killing, and to evaluate the impact of targeted therapies on both tumor and T cell compartments.