通过P2RX7感知细胞外ATP可通过调节性T细胞抑制功能驱动肺癌生长。
Sensing of extracellular ATP via P2RX7 drives lung tumor growth through regulatory T cell suppressive function.
作者信息
Santiago-Carvalho Igor, Francisco Ronaldo, de Gois Macedo Bruna, Salgado Caio Loureiro, Stoll Carly R, Cione Marcos Pinheiro, White Emily, Johnston Tyler, Leff Chloe Liliana, Junior Ildefonso Silva, de Souza Fabio Carvalho, Lima Maria Regina D'Império, Lancaster Jessica Naomi, da Silva Henrique Borges
机构信息
Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, AZ, US.
Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
出版信息
bioRxiv. 2025 May 8:2025.05.03.652022. doi: 10.1101/2025.05.03.652022.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and, despite treatment advances, immune suppression remains an obstacle to effective therapy. Effector CD4 T cells (CD4 Teffs) are critical for antitumor immunity, but their function is often inhibited by regulatory T cells (Tregs), which accumulate in lung tumors and perform suppressive functions through multiple mechanisms. This suppression leads to tumor progression and poor patient outcomes. However, the mechanisms underlying Treg-mediated suppression are not fully understood. Here, we identify the extracellular ATP receptor P2RX7 as a key regulator of Treg function in lung tumors. Using a murine lung cancer model induced by Lewis lung carcinoma cells, we demonstrate that P2RX7 enhances the suppressive capacity of tumor-infiltrating Tregs, promoting tumor growth. In T cell-specific P2RX7-KO mice, reduced Treg infiltration was accompanied by increased CD4 Teff accumulation and improved tumor control. Treg-specific P2RX7-KO mice exhibit reduced tumor growth, confirming a cell-intrinsic role of P2RX7 in Tregs. Suppression assays revealed that tumor-infiltrating WT Tregs have greater suppressive activity compared to P2RX7-KO Tregs, which failed to inhibit type 1 and Tfh-like responses. This was associated with increased tumor-specific IgG production by lung B cells in P2RX7-KO mice. We also observed that WT Tregs express higher levels of the immunosuppressive surface molecule CTLA-4 when compared to P2RX7-KO Tregs. In summary, we show that P2RX7 expression on Tregs is essential for their suppressive function in lung cancer, and targeting of P2RX7 may constitute a novel strategy to improve lung cancer treatment by alleviating Treg-mediated immune suppression.
肺癌是全球癌症相关死亡的主要原因,尽管治疗取得了进展,但免疫抑制仍然是有效治疗的障碍。效应性CD4 T细胞(CD4 Teffs)对抗肿瘤免疫至关重要,但其功能常被调节性T细胞(Tregs)抑制,Tregs在肺肿瘤中积聚并通过多种机制发挥抑制作用。这种抑制导致肿瘤进展和患者预后不良。然而,Treg介导的抑制作用的潜在机制尚未完全明确。在此,我们确定细胞外ATP受体P2RX7是肺肿瘤中Treg功能的关键调节因子。利用Lewis肺癌细胞诱导的小鼠肺癌模型,我们证明P2RX7增强了肿瘤浸润性Tregs的抑制能力,促进了肿瘤生长。在T细胞特异性P2RX7基因敲除小鼠中,Treg浸润减少伴随着CD4 Teff积聚增加和肿瘤控制改善。Treg特异性P2RX7基因敲除小鼠的肿瘤生长减缓,证实了P2RX7在Tregs中的细胞内在作用。抑制试验表明,与P2RX7基因敲除的Tregs相比,肿瘤浸润的野生型Tregs具有更强的抑制活性,后者无法抑制1型和Tfh样反应。这与P2RX7基因敲除小鼠肺B细胞产生的肿瘤特异性IgG增加有关。我们还观察到,与P2RX7基因敲除的Tregs相比,野生型Tregs表达更高水平的免疫抑制表面分子CTLA-4。总之,我们表明Tregs上的P2RX7表达对其在肺癌中的抑制功能至关重要,靶向P2RX7可能构成一种通过减轻Treg介导的免疫抑制来改善肺癌治疗的新策略。