Radiation-induced immune responses: mechanisms and therapeutic perspectives.

Recent advancement in the radiotherapy technology has allowed conformal delivery of high doses of ionizing radiation precisely to the tumors while sparing large volume of the normal tissues, which have led to better clinical responses. Despite this technological advancement many advanced tumors often recur and they do so within the previously irradiated regions. How could tumors recur after receiving such high ablative doses of radiation? In this review, we outlined how radiation can elicit anti-tumor responses by introducing some of the cytokines that can be induced by ionizing radiation. We then dis-cuss how tumor hypoxia, a major limiting factor responsible for failure of radiotherapy, may also negatively impact the anti-tumor responses. In addition, we highlight how there may be other populations of immune cells including regulatory T cells (Tregs), mye-loid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) that can be recruited to tumors interfering with the anti-tumor immunity. Finally, the impact of irradiation on tumor hypoxia and the immune responses according to different radio-therapy regimen is also delineated. It is indeed an exciting time to see that radiotherapy is being combined with immunotherapy in the clinic and we hope that this review can add an excitement to the field.11Yscopuskc

Tumor hypoxia and reoxygenation: the yin and yang for radiotherapy.

Tumor hypoxia, a common feature occurring in nearly all human solid tumors is a major contributing factor for failures of anticancer therapies. Because ionizing radiation depends heavily on the presence of molecular oxygen to produce cytotoxic effect, the negative impact of tumor hypoxia had long been recognized. In this review, we will highlight some of the past attempts to overcome tumor hypoxia including hypoxic radiosensitizers and hypoxia-selective cytotoxin. Although they were (still are) a very clever idea, they lacked clinical efficacy largely because of ‘reoxygenation’ phenomenon occurring in the conventional low dose hyperfractionation radiotherapy prevented proper activation of these compounds. Recent meta-analysis and imaging studies do however indicate that there may be a significant clinical benefit in lowering the locoregional failures by using these compounds. Latest technological advancement in radiotherapy has allowed to deliver high doses of radiation conformally to the tumor volume. Although this technology has brought superb clinical responses for many types of cancer, recent modeling studies have predicted that tumor hypoxia is even more serious because ‘reoxygenation’ is low thereby leaving a large portion of hypoxic tumor cells behind. Wouldn’t it be then reasonable to combine hypoxic radiosensitizers and/or hypoxia-selective cytotoxin with the latest radiotherapy? We will provide some preclinical and clinical evidence to support this idea hoping to revamp an enthusiasm for hypoxic radiosensitizers or hypoxia-selective cytotoxins as an adjunct therapy for radiotherapy. © 2016. The Korean Society for Radiation Oncology.11Yscopu

Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha regulates microglial functions affecting neuronal survival in the acute phase of ischemic stroke in mice

Cells universally adapt to ischemic conditions by turning on a transcription factor hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), in which its role is known to differ widely across many different types of cells. Given that microglia have been reported as an essential mediator of neuroinflammation in many brain diseases, we examined the role of HIF in microglia in the progression of an acute phase of ischemic stroke by challenging our novel strains of myeloid-specific Hif-1 alpha or Hif-2 alpha knockout (KO) mice created by Cre-loxP system via middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). We observed that Hif-1 alpha but not Hif-2 alpha KO mice exhibited an improved recovery compared to wild-type (WT) mice determined by behavioral tests. Immunostaining analyses revealed that there were increased numbers of both mature and immature neurons while microglia and apoptotic cells were significantly decreased in the dentate gyrus of Hif-1 alpha KO mice following MCAO. By isolating microglia with fluorescence-activated cell sorter, we found that HIF-1 alpha-deficient microglia were impaired in phagocytosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) secretion. We further observed a significant decrease in the expression of Cd36 and milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor 8 (Mfg-e8) genes, both of which contain hypoxia-responsive element (HRE). Knocking down either of these genes in BV2 microglial cells was sufficient to abrogate HIF-mediated increase in phagocytosis, production of intracellular ROS, or TNF-alpha secretion. Our results therefore suggest that HIF-1 alpha in microglia is a novel therapeutic target to protect neuronal survival following an acute phase of ischemic stroke.113Ysciescopu

Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α regulates microglial functions affecting neuronal survival in the acute phase of ischemic stroke in mice

Cells universally adapt to ischemic conditions by turning on a transcription factor hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), in which its role is known to differ widely across many different types of cells. Given that microglia have been reported as an essential mediator of neuroinflammation in many brain diseases, we examined the role of HIF in microglia in the progression of an acute phase of ischemic stroke by challenging our novel strains of myeloid-specific Hif-1α or Hif-2α knockout (KO) mice created by Cre-loxP system via middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). We observed that Hif-1α but not Hif-2α KO mice exhibited an improved recovery compared to wild-type (WT) mice determined by behavioral tests. Immunostaining analyses revealed that there were increased numbers of both mature and immature neurons while microglia and apoptotic cells were significantly decreased in the dentate gyrus of Hif-1α KO mice following MCAO. By isolating microglia with fluorescence-activated cell sorter, we found that HIF-1α-deficient microglia were impaired in phagocytosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) secretion. We further observed a significant decrease in the expression of Cd36 and milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor 8 (Mfg-e8) genes, both of which contain hypoxia-responsive element (HRE). Knocking down either of these genes in BV2 microglial cells was sufficient to abrogate HIF-mediated increase in phagocytosis, production of intracellular ROS, or TNF-α secretion. Our results therefore suggest that HIF-1α in microglia is a novel therapeutic target to protect neuronal survival following an acute phase of ischemic stroke.1

Moxifloxacin: Clinically compatible contrast agent for multiphoton imaging

Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) is a nonlinear fluorescence microscopic technique widely used for cellular imaging of thick tissues and live animals in biological studies. However, MPM application to human tissues is limited by weak endogenous fluorescence in tissue and cytotoxicity of exogenous probes. Herein, we describe the applications of moxifloxacin, an FDA-approved antibiotic, as a cell-labeling agent for MPM. Moxifloxacin has bright intrinsic multiphoton fluorescence, good tissue penetration and high intracellular concentration. MPM with moxifloxacin was demonstrated in various cell lines, and animal tissues of cornea, skin, small intestine and bladder. Clinical application is promising since imaging based on moxifloxacin labeling could be 10 times faster than imaging based on endogenous fluorescence.1152sciescopu

Moxifloxacin: Clinically compatible contrast agent for multiphoton imaging

Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) is a nonlinear fluorescence microscopic technique widely used for cellular imaging of thick tissues and live animals in biological studies. However, MPM application to human tissues is limited by weak endogenous fluorescence in tissue and cytotoxicity of exogenous probes. Herein, we describe the applications of moxifloxacin, an FDA-approved antibiotic, as a cell-labeling agent for MPM. Moxifloxacin has bright intrinsic multiphoton fluorescence, good tissue penetration and high intracellular concentration. MPM with moxifloxacin was demonstrated in various cell lines, and animal tissues of cornea, skin, small intestine and bladder. Clinical application is promising since imaging based on moxifloxacin labeling could be 10 times faster than imaging based on endogenous fluorescence.David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT (Bridge Initiative

Targeted Degradation of Transcription Coactivator SRC-1 through the N-Degron Pathway

Aberrantly elevated steroid receptor coactivator-1 (SRC-1) expression and activity are strongly correlated with cancer progression and metastasis. Here we report, for the first time, the development of a proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC) that is composed of a selective SRC-1 binder linked to a specific ligand for UBR box, a unique class of E3 ligases recognizing N-degrons. We showed that the bifunctional molecule efficiently and selectively induced the degradation of SRC-1 in cells through the N-degron pathway. Importantly, given the ubiquitous expression of the UBR protein in most cells, PROTACs targeting the UBR box could degrade a protein of interest regardless of cell types. We also showed that the SRC-1 degrader significantly suppressed cancer cell invasion and migration in vitro and in vivo. Together, these results demonstrate that the SRC-1 degrader can be an invaluable chemical tool in the studies of SRC-1 functions. Moreover, our findings suggest PROTACs based on the N-degron pathway as a widely useful strategy to degrade disease-relevant proteins.N

Impact of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) in tumor hypoxia and aerobic glycolysis

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Role of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) in modulating the tumor metabolism

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A novel role of tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) in modulating tumor metabolism

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