Digital Spatial Profiling of tumor microenvironment of classic Hodgkin lymphoma.
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ABSTRACT: Classic Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) harbors a small number of Hodgkin-Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells scattering among numerous lymphocytes. HRS cells are surrounded by distinct CD4+ T cells in a rosette-like manner. These CD4+ T cell rosettes play an important role in tumor microenvironment (TME) of CHL. To elucidate the interaction between HRS cells and CD4+ T cell rosettes, we performed digital spatial profiling (DSP) and compared gene expression profile between CD4+ T cell rosettes and other CD4+ cells separated from HRS cells. programed cell death-1 (PD-1) and tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member (TNFRSF) 4 were significantly highly expressed in CD4+ T cell rosettes than others. Immunohistochemistry confirmed PD-1 and TNFRSF4-expressing CD4+ T cell rosettes. This study introduced the new pathological approach to TME and provided deeper insight to CD4+ T cells in CHL.
Project description:Classic Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) harbors a small number of Hodgkin-Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells scattered among numerous lymphocytes. HRS cells are surrounded by distinct CD4+ T cells in a rosette-like manner. These CD4+ T cell rosettes play an important role in the tumor microenvironment (TME) of CHL. To elucidate the interaction between HRS cells and CD4+ T cell rosettes, we completed digital spatial profiling to compare the gene expression profiles of CD4+ T cell rosettes and other CD4+ T cells separated from the HRS cells. Tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member (TNFRSF) 4 or OX40 showed significantly higher expression in CD4+ T cell rosettes when compared with other CD4+ T cells. Programed cell death-1 (PD-1) and cytotoxic T lymphocyte associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) tended to be highly expressed in CD4+ T cell rosettes compared to other CD4+ T cells. Immunohistochemistry revealed variable expression of these immune checkpoint molecules in the CD4+ T cell rosettes. This study introduced a new pathological approach to the TME and provided deeper insight into CD4+ T cells in CHL.
Project description:Hodgkin-like adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) is a rare subtype of ATLL harboring human T cell lymphotropic virus type-1-infected Hodgkin-Reed-Sternberg (HRS)-like cells and small to medium CD4+ T cells, which histologically mimics classic Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL). CD30+ tumor cells or HRS cells are surrounded by CD4+ non-neoplastic T cells in a rosette-like manner in CHL. Interaction between HRS cells and surrounding CD4+ T cells is important for tumor microenvironment (TME) in CHL. Tumor microenvironment of Hodgkin-like ATLL remains unclear. Here, Digital Spatial Profiling was performed on Hodgkin-like ATLL to elucidate the interaction between HRS-like cells and CD4+ T cells in Hodgkin-like ATLL. We identified CD4+ T cells expressing co-stimulatory molecules, CD28 and inducible T cell co-stimulator (ICOS), in CD4+ T cells surrounding the HRS-like cells than in those apart from HRS-like cells. Immunohistochemistry was performed in 11 cases of Hodgkin-like ATLL, which detected distinct CD4+ T cells expressing CD28 in a rosette-like manner around HRS-like cells. HRS-like cells widely expressed CD80 and CD86, which suggested CD28-CD80/CD86 interaction was important in pathogenesis of Hodgkin-like ATLL. ICOS and immune checkpoint molecules, including T cell immunoreceptor with immunoglobulin and ITIM domain (TIGIT) and programmed death-1 (PD-1) were also variably expressed in CD4+ T cells surrounding HRS-like cells. Our findings provide new insights into the tumor microenvironment of Hodgkin-like ATLL and implicate a new therapeutic strategy targeting these molecules.
Project description:The classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) environment is comprised of a rich and varied immune cell infiltrate that is co-opted to support the survival and growth of malignant Hodgkin-Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells. Several lines of evidence support the notion that, despite the immune suppressive environment that characterizes this disease, HRS cells are actively surveilled by endogenous T cells. For instance, HRS cells recurrently acquire genetic lesions associated with impaired antigen presentation and PD-L1 upregulation. Moreoever, cHL is particularly vulnerable to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy, which indicates that T cells can recognize and eliminate HRS cells when dominant immune checkpoints are disabled. However, the T cells that drive responses to anti-PD-1 therapy in cHL have not been defined. Furthermore, there is a paucity of data linking phenotypic and functional T cell states with clonality at the single cell level in cHL. To address this knowledge gap, we performed paired single cell RNA and T cell receptor sequencing (scRNA/TCR-seq) on 14 cHL and 5 reactive lymphoid tissue (RLT) specimens. Recurrent and significant clonal expansion within effector and exhausted CD8+ T cell and regulatory T (TREG) cell clusters was uniquely observed in most cHL specimens. Surprisingly, CD8+ T cells exhibiting transcriptional features of exhaustion were relatively uncommon in cHL specimens. Multi-plex flow cytometric analysis revealed maintained effector cytokine secretion by most conventional lymphoma-infiltrating T cells upon ex vivo restimulation, which argued against a profound T cell dysfunctional state in cHL, and suggested that lymphoma-iniltrating T cells, when removed from the immune suppressive cHL environment, are capable of exerting effector functions. Finally, these results raise new questions about the nature of the T cells that mediate response to PD-1 blockade therapy in patients with cHL.
Project description:The cellular microenvironment in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is dominated by a mixed infiltrate of inflammatory cells with typically only about 1% Hodgkin and Reed/Sternberg (HRS) tumor cells. T cells are usually the largest population of cells in the cHL microenvironment, encompassing T helper (Th) cells, regulatory T (Treg) cells and cytotoxic T cells. Th and Treg cells presumably provide essential survival signals for HRS cells. Treg cells are also involved in rescuing HRS cells from anti-tumor immune responses. An understanding of the immune evasion strategies of HRS cells is not only highly relevant for a characterization of the pathophysiology of cHL, but also clinically, given the current treatment approaches targeting checkpoint inhibitors. Here, we characterized the cHL-specific CD4+ T cell infiltrate regarding its role in immune evasion. Global gene expression analysis of CD4+ Th and Treg cells isolated from cHL lymph nodes and reactive tonsils revealed that Treg cell signatures were enriched in CD4+ Th cells of cHL. Hence, HRS cells may induce a Treg differentiation in Th cells, which was supported by in vitro studies with Th cells and cHL cell lines. Furthermore, we found indication for immune-suppressive purinergic signaling and a role of the inhibitory receptor-ligand pairs BTLA-HVEM and CD200R-CD200 in promoting immune evasion. Taken together, this study reveals that the immune evasion strategies in cHL are even more complex and multifaceted than previously recognized.
Project description:Lymphocyte-rich classic Hodgkin lymphoma (LR-CHL) is a rare subtype of Hodgkin lymphoma. Recent technical advances have allowed for the characterization of specific crosstalk mechanisms between malignant Hodgkin Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells and different normal immune cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME) of CHL. However, the TME of LR-CHL has not yet been characterized at single cell resolution. Here, using single cell RNA sequencing, we examined the immune cell profile of 8 cell suspension samples of LR-CHL in comparison to 20 samples of the mixed cellularity (9 cases) and nodular sclerosis (11 cases) subtypes of CHL, as well as 5 reactive lymph node controls.
Project description:The pathogenesis of classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL), the most common lymphoma in the young, is still enigmatic, largely because its Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) tumor cells are rare in the involved lymph node and therefore difficult to analyze. Here, by overcoming this technical challenge and performing for the first time a genome-wide transcriptional analysis of microdissected HRS cells in comparison to other B-cell lymphomas, cHL lines and normal B-cell subsets, we show that they differ extensively from the usually studied cHL cell lines, that the lost B-cell identity of cHLs is not linked to the acquisition of a plasma cell-like gene expression program, and that Epstein-Barr virus infection of HRS cells has a minor transcriptional influence on the established cHL clone. Moreover, although cHL appears a distinct lymphoma entity overall, HRS cells of its histological subtypes diverged in their similarity to other related lymphomas. Unexpectedly, we identified two molecular subgroups of cHL associated to differential strengths of the transcription factor activity of the NOTCH1, MYC and IRF4 proto-oncogenes. Finally, HRS cells display deregulated expression of several genes potentially highly relevant to lymphoma pathogenesis, including silencing of the apoptosis-inducer BIK and of INPP5D, an inhibitor of the PI3K-driven oncogenic pathway.
Project description:The pathogenesis of classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL), the most common lymphoma in the young, is still enigmatic, largely because its Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) tumor cells are rare in the involved lymph node and therefore difficult to analyze. Here, by overcoming this technical challenge and performing for the first time a genome-wide transcriptional analysis of microdissected HRS cells in comparison to other B-cell lymphomas, cHL lines and normal B-cell subsets, we show that they differ extensively from the usually studied cHL cell lines, that the lost B-cell identity of cHLs is not linked to the acquisition of a plasma cell-like gene expression program, and that Epstein-Barr virus infection of HRS cells has a minor transcriptional influence on the established cHL clone. Moreover, although cHL appears a distinct lymphoma entity overall, HRS cells of its histological subtypes diverged in their similarity to other related lymphomas. Unexpectedly, we identified two molecular subgroups of cHL associated to differential strengths of the transcription factor activity of the NOTCH1, MYC and IRF4 proto-oncogenes. Finally, HRS cells display deregulated expression of several genes potentially highly relevant to lymphoma pathogenesis, including silencing of the apoptosis-inducer BIK and of INPP5D, an inhibitor of the PI3K-driven oncogenic pathway. The present study complements the GSE12453 and GSE14879 records by adding the following 10 samples: 5 primary tumor samples and 5 cell line samples. The 5 primary tumor samples represent 1000-2000 neoplastic cells microdissected from frozen biopsies of 5 cases of primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma (PMBL). The 5 cell line samples represent 500-1000 living neoplastic cells isolated by fluorescence-activated cell sorting from growing cultures of the classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) cell lines L1236, L428, KMH2 and HDLM2 and the lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (lpHL) cell line DEV.
Project description:Persistent NF-κB activation is a hallmark of the malignant Hodgkin/Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). Analysis of the cHL cell-secreted key factors for NF-κB activation by chromatography and subsequent mass spectrometry revealed lymphotoxin-α (LTA) as the causative factor for autocrine and paracrine activation of canonical and noncanonical NF-κB in cHL cell lines. Upon CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene knockout of LTA in the cell line L-1236, we performed expression analysis of LTA knockout versus control cells by using the Affymetrix array, Clariom S human, profiling tool.
Project description:A unique feature of the tumour cells (Hodgkin/Reed-Sternberg (HRS)) of classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is the loss of their B-cell phenotype despite their B-cell origin. Several lines of evidence suggest that epigenomic events, especially promoter DNA-methylation, are involved in this silencing of many B-cell associated genes. Here we show that DNA-demethylation alone or in conjunction with histone-acetylation is not able to reconstitute the B-cell gene expression program in cultured HRS cells. Instead, combined DNA-demethylation and histone-acetylation of B cells induce a nearly complete extinction of their B-cell expression program and a tremendous up-regulation of numerous cHL characteristic genes including key players such as Id2 known to be involved in the suppression of the B-cell phenotype. Since the up-regulation of cHL characteristic genes and the extinction of the B-cell expression program occurred simultaneously, epigenetic changes may also be responsible for the malignant transformation of cHL. The epigenetic up-regulation of cHL characteristic genes thus play - in addition to promoter DNA-hypermethylation of B-cell associated genes – a pivotal role for the reprogramming of HRS cells and explain why DNA-demethylation alone is unable to reconstitute the B-cell expression program in HRS cells. Keywords: Epigenetic modification
Project description:Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) is one of the most frequent hematological malignancies. Due to its extraordinary composition, few tumor cells surrounded by a reactive infiltrate, HL can be seen as an ideal model system for research focusing on tumor immunology. In fact, the tumor cells of HL, so called Hodgkin/Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells attract CD4+ T cells, which then build rosettes with the HRS cells. HRS cells further modulate the tumor microenvironment with the help of CD4+ T cells to avoid tumor rejection. Here, we mimicked this scenario using compatible CD4+ T cells receiveing data of profound interactions for the first time, as former studies were performed with allogeneic donors. Finally, we genetically retargeted compatible CD4+ T cells to kill HRS cells.