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      PD-L1, Galectin-9 and CD8 + tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes are associated with survival in hepatocellular carcinoma

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          ABSTRACT

          Novel systemic treatments for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are strongly needed. Immunotherapy is a promising strategy that can induce specific antitumor immune responses. Understanding the mechanisms of immune resistance by HCC is crucial for development of suitable immunotherapeutics. We used immunohistochemistry on tissue-microarrays to examine the co-expression of the immune inhibiting molecules PD-L1, Galectin-9, HVEM and IDO, as well as tumor CD8 + lymphocyte infiltration in HCC, in two independent cohorts of patients. We found that at least some expression in tumor cells was seen in 97% of cases for HVEM, 83% for PD-L1, 79% for Gal-9 and 66% for IDO. In the discovery cohort (n = 94), we found that lack of, or low, tumor expression of PD-L1 ( p < 0.001), Galectin-9 ( p < 0.001) and HVEM ( p < 0.001), and low CD8 +TIL count ( p = 0.016), were associated with poor HCC-specific survival. PD-L1, Galectin-9 and CD8 +TIL count were predictive of HCC-specific survival independent of baseline clinicopathologic characteristics and the combination of these markers was a powerful predictor of HCC-specific survival (HR 0.29; p <0.001). These results were confirmed in the validation cohort (n = 60). We show that low expression levels of PD-L1 and Gal-9 in combination with low CD8 +TIL count predict extremely poor HCC-specific survival and it requires a change in two of these parameters to significantly improve prognosis. In conclusion, intra-tumoral expression of these immune inhibiting molecules was observed in the majority of HCC patients. Low expression of PD-L1 and Galectin-9 and low CD8 +TIL count are associated with poor HCC-specific survival. Combining immune biomarkers leads to superior predictors of HCC mortality.

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          Overexpression of PD-L1 significantly associates with tumor aggressiveness and postoperative recurrence in human hepatocellular carcinoma.

          The aberrant expression of programmed cell death 1 ligands 1 and 2 (PD-Ls) on tumor cells dampens antitumor immunity, resulting in tumor immune evasion. In this study, we investigated the expression of PD-Ls in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to define their prognostic significance after curative surgery. Immunohistochemistry was used to investigate PD-Ls expression as well as granzyme B+ cytotoxic and FoxP3+ regulatory T cell infiltration on tissue microarrays containing 240 randomly selected HCC patients who underwent surgery. The results were further verified in an independent cohort of 125 HCC patients. PD-Ls expression on HCC cell lines was detected by Western blot assay. Patients with higher expression of PD-L1 had a significantly poorer prognosis than patients with lower expression. Although patients with higher expression of PD-L2 also had a poorer survival, the difference in recurrence was not statistically significant. Multivariate analysis identified tumor expression of PD-L1 as an independent predictor for postoperative recurrence. No correlation was found between PD-Ls expression and granzyme B+ lymphocyte infiltration, whereas a significant positive correlation was detected between PD-Ls expression and FoxP3+ lymphocyte infiltration. In addition, tumor-infiltrating cytotoxic and regulatory T cells were also independent prognosticators for both survival and recurrence. The prognostic value of PD-L1 expression was validated in the independent data set. Our data suggest for the first time that PD-L1 status may be a new predictor of recurrence for HCC patients and provide the rationale for developing a novel therapy of targeting the PD-L1/PD-1 pathway against this fatal malignancy.
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            Programmed death ligand-1 expression in non-small cell lung cancer.

            Recent strategies targeting the interaction of the programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1, B7-H1, CD274) with its receptor, PD-1, resulted in promising activity in early phase clinical trials. In this study, we used various antibodies and in situ mRNA hybridization to measure PD-L1 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using a quantitative fluorescence (QIF) approach to determine the frequency of expression and prognostic value in two independent populations. A control tissue microarray (TMA) was constructed using PD-L1-transfected cells, normal human placenta and known PD-L1-positive NSCLC cases. Only one of four antibodies against PD-L1 (5H1) validated for specificity on this TMA. In situ PD-L1 mRNA using the RNAscope method was similarly validated. Two cohorts of NSCLC cases in TMAs including 340 cases from hospitals in Greece and 204 cases from Yale University were assessed. Tumors showed PD-L1 protein expression in 36% (Greek) and 25% (Yale) of the cases. PD-L1 expression was significantly associated with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in both cohorts. Patients with PD-L1 (both protein and mRNA) expression above the detection threshold showed statistically significant better outcome in both series (log-rank P=0.036 and P=0.027). Multivariate analysis showed that PD-L1 expression was significantly associated with better outcome independent of histology. Measurement of PD-L1 requires specific conditions and some commercial antibodies show lack of specificity. Expression of PD-L1 protein or mRNA is associated with better outcome. Further studies are required to determine the value of this marker in prognosis and prediction of response to treatments targeting this pathway.
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              Tryptophan catabolism in cancer: beyond IDO and tryptophan depletion.

              Tryptophan catabolism in cancer is increasingly being recognized as an important microenvironmental factor that suppresses antitumor immune responses. It has been proposed that the essential amino acid tryptophan is catabolized in the tumor tissue by the rate-limiting enzyme indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) expressed in tumor cells or antigen-presenting cells. This metabolic pathway creates an immunosuppressive milieu in tumors and in tumor-draining lymph nodes by inducing T-cell anergy and apoptosis through depletion of tryptophan and accumulation of immunosuppressive tryptophan catabolites. Competitive inhibitors of IDO are currently being tested in clinical trials in patients with solid cancer, with the aim of enhancing the efficacy of conventional chemotherapy. There are, however, certain tumor types that are capable of catabolizing tryptophan but are largely IDO-negative. Recent evidence from studies in malignant gliomas and other types of cancers points to alternative enzymatic pathways of tryptophan catabolism involving tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase (TDO). TDO, which is considered responsible for regulating systemic tryptophan levels in the liver, is constitutively expressed in some cancers and is equally capable of suppressing antitumor immune responses. Depletion of tryptophan induces signaling events in T cells, leading to anergy and apoptosis; however, active immunomodulation by accumulating tryptophan catabolites, most notably kynurenine, appears to play an equally important role. These immunomodulatory effects of kynurenine are mediated by the aryl hydrocarbon receptor. This intracellular transcription factor has classically been viewed as a receptor for environmental toxins, such as dioxin, and its important role in influencing immune responses, especially in epithelial barriers, is only beginning to emerge. This review summarizes the exciting developments in our understanding of tryptophan catabolism as a key factor in the immunobiology of cancer. ©2012 AACR.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Oncoimmunology
                Oncoimmunology
                KONI
                koni20
                Oncoimmunology
                Taylor & Francis
                2162-4011
                2162-402X
                2017
                3 January 2017
                3 January 2017
                : 6
                : 2
                : e1273309
                Affiliations
                [a ]Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus MC-University Medical Center , Rotterdam, the Netherlands
                [b ]Department of Pathology, Erasmus MC-University Medical Center , Rotterdam, the Netherlands
                [c ]Department of Pathology, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam, the Netherlands
                [d ]Academic Medical Center, Tytgat Institute for Liver and Intestinal Research, University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam, the Netherlands
                [e ]Department of Experimental Surgery, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam, the Netherlands
                [f ]Department of Surgery, Erasmus MC-University Medical Center , Rotterdam, the Netherlands
                [g ]Department of Oncology, Erasmus MC-University Medical Center, Erasmus MC Cancer Institute , Rotterdam, the Netherlands
                Author notes
                CONTACT Jaap Kwekkeboom j.kwekkeboom@ 123456erasmusmc.nl Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus MC - University Medical Center , Room Na-1009, 3015 CE Rotterdam, the Netherlands

                Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher's website.

                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3558-1039
                Article
                1273309
                10.1080/2162402X.2016.1273309
                5353918
                28344887
                8a0a8efa-783b-4c65-9600-0b887c9ceba9
                © 2017 Erasmus MC. Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

                This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 12 July 2016
                : 7 November 2016
                : 10 December 2016
                Page count
                Figures: 5, Tables: 2, Equations: 0, References: 59, Pages: 11
                Categories
                Original Research

                Immunology
                galectin-9,hepatocellular carcinoma,hvem,ido,pd-l1,tissue microarrays,tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes

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