PD-L1 is a direct target of cancer-FOXP3 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), and combined immunotherapy with antibodies against PD-L1 and CCL5 is effective in the treatment of PDAC

Signal Transduct Target Ther. 2020 Apr 17;5(1):38. doi: 10.1038/s41392-020-0144-8.

Abstract

High expression of PD-L1 marks the poor prognosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDAC). However, the regulatory mechanism of PD-L1 remains elusive. We recently reported that cancer Forkhead box protein 3 (Cancer-FOXP3 or C-FOXP3) promoted immune evasion of PDAC by recruiting Treg cells into PDAC via upregulation of CCL5. In this study, we confirmed that PD-L1 was overexpressed in PDAC samples from two independent cohorts of patients with radical resection. Moreover, C-FOXP3 was colocalized and correlated with the expression of PD-L1 in tumor cells at the mRNA and protein levels, and this finding was confirmed by the The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) revealed that C-FOXP3 directly bound to the promoter region of PD-L1 in pancreatic cancer cells. Furthermore, overexpression of C-FOXP3 activated the luciferase reporter gene under the control of the PD-L1 promoter. However, mutation of the binding motif-a completely reversed the luciferase activity. In addition, C-FOXP3-induced upregulation of PD-L1 effectively inhibited the activity of CD8+ T cells. Based on our recent finding that the CCL-5 antibody achieved a better response to PDAC models with high C-FOXP3 levels, we further demonstrated that the PD-L1 antibody strengthened the antitumor effect of CCL-5 blockade in xenograft and orthotopic mouse models with high C-FOXP3 levels. In conclusion, C-FOXP3 directly activates PD-L1 and represents a core transcription factor that mediates the immune escape of PDAC. Combined blockade of PD-L1 and CCL-5 may provide an effective therapy for patients with PDAC that have high C-FOXP3 levels.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenocarcinoma / genetics
  • Adenocarcinoma / immunology*
  • Adenocarcinoma / pathology
  • Adenocarcinoma / therapy
  • Aged
  • Animals
  • B7-H1 Antigen / antagonists & inhibitors
  • B7-H1 Antigen / genetics*
  • B7-H1 Antigen / immunology
  • CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / immunology
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / genetics
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / immunology*
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / pathology
  • Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal / therapy
  • Chemokine CCL5 / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Chemokine CCL5 / genetics*
  • Female
  • Forkhead Transcription Factors / genetics*
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / drug effects
  • Heterografts
  • Humans
  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Immunotherapy / methods
  • Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating / drug effects
  • Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating / immunology
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Middle Aged
  • Prognosis
  • T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / immunology

Substances

  • B7-H1 Antigen
  • CD274 protein, human
  • Chemokine CCL5
  • FOXP3 protein, human
  • Forkhead Transcription Factors
  • Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors