Publications
Science advancesDec 2023 |
9
(
48
),
eadg8014
DOI:
10.1126/sciadv.adg8014

Harnessing T cell exhaustion and trogocytosis to isolate patient-derived tumor-specific TCR

Manfredi, Francesco; Stasi, Lorena; Buonanno, Silvia; Marzuttini, Francesca; Noviello, Maddalena; Mastaglio, Sara; Abbati, Danilo; Potenza, Alessia; Balestrieri, Chiara; Cianciotti, Beatrice Claudia; Tassi, Elena; Feola, Sara; Toffalori, Cristina; Punta, Marco; Magnani, Zulma; Camisa, Barbara; Tiziano, Elena; Lupo-Stanghellini, Maria Teresa; Branca, Rui Mamede; Lehtiö, Janne; Sikanen, Tiina M; Haapala, Markus J; Cerullo, Vincenzo; Casucci, Monica; Vago, Luca; Ciceri, Fabio; Bonini, Chiara; Ruggiero, Eliana
Product Used
Genes
Abstract
To study and then harness the tumor-specific T cell dynamics after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant, we typed the frequency, phenotype, and function of lymphocytes directed against tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in 39 consecutive transplanted patients, for 1 year after transplant. We showed that TAA-specific T cells circulated in 90% of patients but display a limited effector function associated to an exhaustion phenotype, particularly in the subgroup of patients deemed to relapse, where exhausted stem cell memory T cells accumulated. Accordingly, cancer-specific cytolytic functions were relevant only when the TAA-specific T cell receptors (TCRs) were transferred into healthy, genome-edited T cells. We then exploited trogocytosis and ligandome-on-chip technology to unveil the specificities of tumor-specific TCRs retrieved from the exhausted T cell pool. Overall, we showed that harnessing circulating TAA-specific and exhausted T cells allow to isolate TCRs against TAAs and previously not described acute myeloid leukemia antigens, potentially relevant for T cell-based cancer immunotherapy.
Product Used
Genes

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