Lin Yu-Chen, Chu Cheng-Ying, Hsieh Tsung-Han, Lin Bo-Jyun, Liou Jing-Ping, Yen Yun, Chen Chun-Han
Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Cell Death Dis. 2025 Jul 2;16(1):485. doi: 10.1038/s41419-025-07821-8.
Bladder cancer (BC) is the second most prevalent genitourinary malignancy worldwide. Treatment options remain limited for patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). Up to 70% of NMIBC cases harbor fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) alterations, and FGFR inhibition has shown potential to enhance the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI). Interferon (IFN)-γ, a cytokine produced by activated T cells and associated with better response to immunotherapy in BC, is a key inducer of PD-L1 expression in the tumor microenvironment. However, the interaction between FGFR inhibitors and IFN-γ-induced PD-L1 expression in FGFR3-activated NMIBC cells remains unclear. Here, we show that FGFR inhibitors significantly reduced IFN-γ-induced PD-L1 expression in NMIBC cells harboring FGFR3-TACC3 fusions. Mechanistically, FGFR inhibitors restored IFN-γ-suppressed SIRT1 expression, promoted LC3B deacetylation and nuclear export, and enhanced autophagy-lysosomal degradation of PD-L1. Blocking autophagy, overexpression SIGMAR1, or inhibiting lysosomal activity significantly reversed PD-L1 degradation. Notably, we demonstrate for the first time that IFN-γ-induced PD-L1 directly binds to the FGFR3 promoter and represses FGFR3-TACC3 transcription-an effect that can be rescued by FGFR inhibitors or PD-L1 knockdown. Functionally, FGFR inhibitors ameliorated PD1/PD-L1-mediated T cell suppression in co-culture assays. Together, these findings highlight a novel mechanism by which FGFR inhibitors suppress IFN-γ-induced PD-L1 via autophagy and suggest a potential strategy to improve ICI therapy in FGFR3-altered NMIBC.
膀胱癌(BC)是全球第二常见的泌尿生殖系统恶性肿瘤。对于卡介苗(BCG)无反应的非肌层浸润性膀胱癌(NMIBC)患者,治疗选择仍然有限。高达70%的NMIBC病例存在成纤维细胞生长因子受体3(FGFR3)改变,FGFR抑制已显示出增强免疫检查点抑制剂(ICI)疗效的潜力。干扰素(IFN)-γ是一种由活化T细胞产生的细胞因子,与BC中对免疫治疗的更好反应相关,是肿瘤微环境中PD-L1表达的关键诱导因子。然而,FGFR抑制剂与FGFR3激活的NMIBC细胞中IFN-γ诱导的PD-L1表达之间的相互作用仍不清楚。在这里,我们表明FGFR抑制剂显著降低了携带FGFR3-TACC3融合的NMIBC细胞中IFN-γ诱导的PD-L1表达。从机制上讲,FGFR抑制剂恢复了IFN-γ抑制的SIRT1表达,促进了LC3B去乙酰化和核输出,并增强了PD-L1的自噬-溶酶体降解。阻断自噬、过表达SIGMAR1或抑制溶酶体活性显著逆转了PD-L1降解。值得注意的是,我们首次证明IFN-γ诱导的PD-L1直接与FGFR3启动子结合并抑制FGFR3-TACC3转录——FGFR抑制剂或PD-L1敲低可以挽救这种效应。在共培养试验中,FGFR抑制剂在功能上改善了PD1/PD-L1介导的T细胞抑制。总之,这些发现突出了一种新机制,即FGFR抑制剂通过自噬抑制IFN-γ诱导的PD-L1,并提出了一种在FGFR3改变的NMIBC中改善ICI治疗的潜在策略。
J Immunother Cancer. 2016-10-18
Cancer Commun (Lond). 2024-10