Publication Date:
2012-10-12
Description:
Adoptive cell transfer therapies (ACTs) with cytotoxic T cells that target melanocytic antigens can achieve remissions in patients with metastatic melanomas, but tumours frequently relapse. Hypotheses explaining the acquired resistance to ACTs include the selection of antigen-deficient tumour cell variants and the induction of T-cell tolerance. However, the lack of appropriate experimental melanoma models has so far impeded clear insights into the underlying mechanisms. Here we establish an effective ACT protocol in a genetically engineered mouse melanoma model that recapitulates tumour regression, remission and relapse as seen in patients. We report the unexpected observation that melanomas acquire ACT resistance through an inflammation-induced reversible loss of melanocytic antigens. In serial transplantation experiments, melanoma cells switch between a differentiated and a dedifferentiated phenotype in response to T-cell-driven inflammatory stimuli. We identified the proinflammatory cytokine tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha as a crucial factor that directly caused reversible dedifferentiation of mouse and human melanoma cells. Tumour cells exposed to TNF-alpha were poorly recognized by T cells specific for melanocytic antigens, whereas recognition by T cells specific for non-melanocytic antigens was unaffected or even increased. Our results demonstrate that the phenotypic plasticity of melanoma cells in an inflammatory microenvironment contributes to tumour relapse after initially successful T-cell immunotherapy. On the basis of our work, we propose that future ACT protocols should simultaneously target melanocytic and non-melanocytic antigens to ensure broad recognition of both differentiated and dedifferentiated melanoma cells, and include strategies to sustain T-cell effector functions by blocking immune-inhibitory mechanisms in the tumour microenvironment.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Landsberg, Jennifer -- Kohlmeyer, Judith -- Renn, Marcel -- Bald, Tobias -- Rogava, Meri -- Cron, Mira -- Fatho, Martina -- Lennerz, Volker -- Wolfel, Thomas -- Holzel, Michael -- Tuting, Thomas -- England -- Nature. 2012 Oct 18;490(7420):412-6. doi: 10.1038/nature11538. Epub 2012 Oct 10.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Laboratory of Experimental Dermatology, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, University of Bonn, D-53105 Bonn, Germany.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23051752" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Adoptive Transfer
;
Animals
;
*Cell Dedifferentiation
;
Cell Differentiation
;
Cell Line, Tumor
;
Cell Proliferation/drug effects
;
Disease Models, Animal
;
Humans
;
*Immunotherapy
;
Inflammation/immunology/*pathology
;
Melanoma/immunology/metabolism/*pathology/*therapy
;
Mice
;
Mice, Inbred C57BL
;
Neoplasm Transplantation
;
T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic/*immunology/*transplantation
;
Tumor Microenvironment/immunology
;
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/immunology/pharmacology
;
gp100 Melanoma Antigen/metabolism
Print ISSN:
0028-0836
Electronic ISSN:
1476-4687
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
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