Similar Datasets
Project description:Liver dysfunction is associated with diseases ranging from metabolic disorders to hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). Here we employed single-cell RNA-sequencing to extensively characterise the cellular landscape of human liver, from development to disease. We analysed ~212,000 cells representing human fetal liver, HCC and mouse liver. Our analysis revealed a remarkable fetal-like reprogramming of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Specifically, the HCC ecosystem displayed features reminiscent of fetal development, including the re-emergence of fetal-associated endothelial cells (PLVAP+/VEGFR2+), and fetal-like (FOLR2+) tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). In a cross-species comparative analysis, we discovered remarkable similarity of gene expression and regulatory networks between mouse embryonically-seeded, fetal-liver and FOLR2+ tumor macrophages. Spatial transcriptomics further corroborated a shared onco-fetal ecosystem between fetal-liver and HCC. Furthermore, gene regulatory analysis, spatial transcriptomics, and in vitro functional assays implicated VEGF and NOTCH signaling in maintaining onco-fetal ecosystem. Taken together, we report a shared immunosuppressive onco-fetal ecosystem between the human fetal-liver and HCC. Our results unravel a previously unexplored onco-fetal reprogramming of tumor ecosystem, provides a novel target for therapeutic interventions in HCC and also opens up avenues for identifying similar paradigms in other cancers and disease states.
2020-09-24 | GSE156626 | GEO
Project description:Liver dysfunction is associated with diseases ranging from metabolic disorders to hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). Here we employed single-cell RNA-sequencing to extensively characterise the cellular landscape of human liver, from development to disease. We analysed ~212,000 cells representing human fetal liver, HCC and mouse liver. Our analysis revealed a remarkable fetal-like reprogramming of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Specifically, the HCC ecosystem displayed features reminiscent of fetal development, including the re-emergence of fetal-associated endothelial cells (PLVAP+/VEGFR2+), and fetal-like (FOLR2+) tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). In a cross-species comparative analysis, we discovered remarkable similarity of gene expression and regulatory networks between mouse embryonically-seeded, fetal-liver and FOLR2+ tumor macrophages. Spatial transcriptomics further corroborated a shared onco-fetal ecosystem between fetal-liver and HCC. Furthermore, gene regulatory analysis, spatial transcriptomics, and in vitro functional assays implicated VEGF and NOTCH signaling in maintaining onco-fetal ecosystem. Taken together, we report a shared immunosuppressive onco-fetal ecosystem between the human fetal-liver and HCC. Our results unravel a previously unexplored onco-fetal reprogramming of tumor ecosystem, provides a novel target for therapeutic interventions in HCC and also opens up avenues for identifying similar paradigms in other cancers and disease states.
2020-09-24 | GSE156625 | GEO
Project description:Onco-fetal reprogramming of endothelial cells drives immunosuppressive macrophages in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
| PRJNA658535 | ENA
Project description:Onco-fetal reprogramming of endothelial cells drives immunosuppressive macrophages in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (Nanostring)
| PRJNA658540 | ENA
Project description:Onco-fetal reprogramming of endothelial cells drives immunosuppressive macrophages in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (scRNA-seq)
| PRJNA658541 | ENA
Project description:Obesity increases the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) especially in men, but the molecular mechanism remains obscure. Here, we show that an androgen receptor (AR)-driven oncogene, cell cycle-related kinase (CCRK), collaborates with obesity-induced pro-inflammatory signaling to promote non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)-related hepatocarcinogenesis. Lentivirus-mediated Ccrk ablation in liver of male mice fed with high-fat high-carbohydrate diet abrogates not only obesity-associated lipid accumulation, glucose intolerance and insulin resistance, but also HCC development. Mechanistically, CCRK fuels a feedforward loop by inducing STAT3-AR promoter co-occupancy and transcriptional up-regulation, which in turn activates mTORC1/4E-BP1/S6K/SREBP1 cascades via GSK3β phosphorylation. Moreover, hepatic CCRK induction in transgenic mice stimulates mTORC1-dependent G-csf expression to enhance polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cell recruitment and tumorigenicity. Finally, the STAT3-AR-CCRK-mTORC1 pathway components are concordantly over-expressed in human NASH-associated HCCs. These findings unveil the dual roles of an inflammatory-CCRK circuitry in driving metabolic and immunosuppressive reprogramming through mTORC1 activation, thereby establishing a pro-tumorigenic microenvironment for HCC development.
| S-EPMC6283830 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and aimsPyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) is an essential regulator of the Warburg effect, but its biological function promoting immune escape of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear.MethodsGEPIA web tool and immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis were employed to evaluate the clinical relevance of PKM2 in HCC patients. Both in vitro CCK-8, colony formation, and transwell assays, and in vivo xenografts were performed to evaluate the malignancy of HCC cells. PKM2 and PD-L1 levels were examined by Western blot, qRT-PCR, and IHC. The role of PKM2 on in vivo immune response was also investigated.ResultsPKM2 was significantly upregulated in HCC and associated with a poor prognosis of HCC patients. Knockdown of PKM2 inhibited in vitro proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCC cells, as well as in vivo tumor growth. Strikingly, PKM2 showed a strong correlation with the expression of immune inhibitory cytokines and lymphocyte infiltration in HCC. The overexpression of PKM2 sensitized HCC to immune checkpoint blockade, which enhanced IFN-γ positive CD8 T cells in HCC mice models.ConclusionPKM2 might be a predictor and a potential therapeutic target for immune checkpoint inhibitors in HCC.
| S-EPMC7606949 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignancy with limited treatment options and poor prognosis. Macrophages are enriched in the HCC microenvironment and have a significant impact on disease progression and therapy efficacy. We aim to identify critical macrophages subsets involved in HCC development.MethodsMacrophage-specific marker genes were identified through single-cell RNA sequencing analyses. The clinical significance of macrophages with palmitoyl-protein thioesterase 1 (PPT1) positive was investigated in 169 patients with HCC from Zhongshan Hospital using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence. The immune microenvironment of HCC and the functional phenotype of PPT1+ macrophages were explored using cytometry by time-of-flight (CyTOF) and RNA sequencing.ResultsSingle-cell RNA sequencing analyses revealed that PPT1 was predominantly expressed in macrophages in HCC. Intratumoral PPT1+ macrophages abundance was associated with inferior survival durations of patients and an independent risk factor of prognosis for HCC. High throughput analyses of immune infiltrates showed that PPT1+ macrophage-enriched HCCs were characterized by high infiltration of CD8+ T cells with increased programmed death-1 (PD-1) expression. PPT1+ macrophages exhibited higher galectin-9, CD172a, and CCR2 levels but lower CD80 and CCR7 levels than PPT1- macrophages. Pharmacological inhibition of PPT1 by DC661 suppressed mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway activity but activated nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway in macrophages. In addition, DC661 enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of anti-PD-1 antibody in the HCC mouse model.ConclusionsPPT1 is mainly expressed in macrophages in HCC and promotes immunosuppressive transformation of macrophages and tumor microenvironment. PPT1+ macrophage infiltration is associated with poor prognosis of patients with HCC. Targeting PPT1 may potentiate the efficacy of immunotherapy for HCC.
| S-EPMC10314632 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Recently, attention has been focused on the central role of TREM2 in diverse pathologies. However, the role of TREM2 signaling in the tumor microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains poorly understood. Herein, we systematically investigated the single-cell transcriptomes of human HCC tissues and found that TREM2 was predominantly expressed by a macrophage subpopulation enriched in tumor tissues that resemble lipid-associated macrophages (LAMs). The accumulation of TREM2+ LAM-like cells in HCC was confirmed in two additional cohorts using scRNA-seq analysis and immunohistochemistry. High expression of TREM2 correlated with high infiltrating macrophage abundance and poor prognosis. Based on systematic interrogations of transcriptional profiles and cellular interactions, TREM2+ LAM-like cells were identified to mainly originate from S100A8 + monocytes and represented an immunosuppressive state. TREM2+ LAM-like cells recruited suppressive Treg cells, facilitating microenvironment remodeling. Furthermore, gene regulatory analysis and in vitro functional assays indicated that activation of LXR signaling could promote the reprogramming of TREM2 + LAM-like cells. Correlation analysis of bulk RNA-sequencing data demonstrated that the enrichment of TREM2 + LAM-like cells was an independent indicator of adverse clinical outcomes in HCC patients. Our comprehensive analyses provide deeper insights into the immunosuppressive role of TREM2+ LAM-like cells in HCC.
| S-EPMC8963870 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for tumor progression and recurrence. However, the mechanisms regulating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) stemness remain unclear. Applying a genome-scale CRISPR knockout screen, we identified that the H3K4 methyltransferase SETD1A and other members of Trithorax group proteins drive cancer stemness in HCC. SET domain containing 1A (SETD1A) was positively correlated with poor clinical outcome in patients with HCC. Combination of SETD1A and serum alpha fetoprotein substantially improved the accuracy of predicting HCC relapse. Mechanistically, SETD1A mediates transcriptional activation of various histone-modifying enzymes, facilitates deposition of trimethylated H3K4 (H3K4me3) and H3K27me3, and activates oncogenic enhancers and super-enhancers, leading to activation of oncogenes and inactivation of tumor suppressor genes simultaneously in liver CSCs. In addition, SETD1A cooperates with polyadenylate-binding protein cytoplasmic 1 to regulate H3K4me3 modification on oncogenes. Our data pinpoint SETD1A as a key epigenetic regulator driving HCC stemness and progression, highlighting the potential of SETD1A as a candidate target for HCC intervention and therapy.
| S-EPMC10561725 | biostudies-literature