Department of Clinical Cancer Prevention, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA.
Department of Medical Oncology, Tongji Hospital, The University of Huazhong Science & Technology, Wuhan, China.
J Clin Invest. 2020 Nov 2;130(11):5951-5966. doi: 10.1172/JCI130445.
ARID1A, a component of the chromatin-remodeling complex SWI/SNF, is one of the most frequently mutated genes in human cancer. We sought to develop rational combination therapy to potentiate the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade in ARID1A-deficient tumors. In a proteomic analysis of a data set from The Cancer Genomic Atlas, we found enhanced expression of Chk2, a DNA damage checkpoint kinase, in ARID1A-mutated/deficient tumors. Surprisingly, we found that ARID1A targets the nonchromatin substrate Chk2 for ubiquitination. Loss of ARID1A increased the Chk2 level through modulating autoubiquitination of the E3-ligase RNF8 and thereby reducing RNF8-mediated Chk2 degradation. Inhibition of the ATM/Chk2 DNA damage checkpoint axis led to replication stress and accumulation of cytosolic DNA, which subsequently activated the DNA sensor STING-mediated innate immune response in ARID1A-deficient tumors. As expected, tumors with mutation or low expression of both ARID1A and ATM/Chk2 exhibited increased tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and were associated with longer patient survival. Notably, an ATM inhibitor selectively potentiated the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade in ARID1A-depleted tumors but not in WT tumors. Together, these results suggest that ARID1A's targeting of the nonchromatin substrate Chk2 for ubiquitination makes it possible to selectively modulate cancer cell-intrinsic innate immunity to enhance the antitumor activity of immune checkpoint blockade.
ARID1A 是染色质重塑复合物 SWI/SNF 的一个组成部分,是人类癌症中最常发生突变的基因之一。我们试图开发合理的联合治疗方法,以增强 ARID1A 缺陷肿瘤中免疫检查点阻断的疗效。在对癌症基因组图谱(The Cancer Genomic Atlas)数据集的蛋白质组分析中,我们发现 ARID1A 突变/缺失肿瘤中 Chk2(一种 DNA 损伤检查点激酶)的表达增强。令人惊讶的是,我们发现 ARID1A 将非染色质底物 Chk2 靶向泛素化。ARID1A 的缺失通过调节 E3 连接酶 RNF8 的自泛素化,增加了 Chk2 水平,从而减少了 RNF8 介导的 Chk2 降解。抑制 ATM/Chk2 DNA 损伤检查点轴导致复制应激和细胞质 DNA 积累,随后激活 ARID1A 缺陷肿瘤中的 DNA 传感器 STING 介导的先天免疫反应。正如预期的那样,同时具有 ARID1A 和 ATM/Chk2 突变或低表达的肿瘤表现出更多的肿瘤浸润淋巴细胞,并与患者更长的生存时间相关。值得注意的是,一种 ATM 抑制剂选择性地增强了 ARID1A 耗尽肿瘤中免疫检查点阻断的疗效,但对 WT 肿瘤没有效果。总之,这些结果表明,ARID1A 靶向非染色质底物 Chk2 进行泛素化,使其有可能选择性地调节癌细胞内在的先天免疫,以增强免疫检查点阻断的抗肿瘤活性。