Journal
NATURE BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
Volume 6, Issue 7, Pages -Publisher
NATURE PORTFOLIO
DOI: 10.1038/s41551-022-00888-0
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Funding
- Chicago Immunoengineering Innovation Center of the University of Chicago [R01 CA219304]
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Fusing a domain of the IL-12 receptor to IL-12 via a linker cleavable by tumour-associated proteases can restrict the pro-inflammatory effects of IL-12 to tumour sites, eliminating systemic immune-related adverse events and triggering potent therapeutic effects in mice bearing immunologically cold tumours.
Masking interleukin-12 with a domain of the interleukin-12 receptor via a linker cleavable by tumour-associated proteases eliminates systemic immune-related adverse events and triggers potent therapeutic effects in mice bearing immunologically cold tumours. Immune-checkpoint inhibitors have shown modest efficacy against immunologically 'cold' tumours. Interleukin-12 (IL-12)-a cytokine that promotes the recruitment of immune cells into tumours as well as immune cell activation, also in cold tumours-can cause severe immune-related adverse events in patients. Here, by exploiting the preferential overexpression of proteases in tumours, we show that fusing a domain of the IL-12 receptor to IL-12 via a linker cleavable by tumour-associated proteases largely restricts the pro-inflammatory effects of IL-12 to tumour sites. In mouse models of subcutaneous adenocarcinoma and orthotopic melanoma, masked IL-12 delivered intravenously did not cause systemic IL-12 signalling and eliminated systemic immune-related adverse events, led to potent therapeutic effects via the remodelling of the immune-suppressive microenvironment, and rendered cold tumours responsive to immune-checkpoint inhibition. We also show that masked IL-12 is activated in tumour lysates from patients. Protease-sensitive masking of potent yet toxic cytokines may facilitate their clinical translation.
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