Blocking IL1RAP on cancer-associated fibroblasts in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma suppresses IL-1-induced neutrophil recruitment.

Background: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) represents a major clinical challenge due to its tumor microenvironment, which exhibits immune-suppressive properties that facilitate cancer progression, metastasis, and therapy resistance. Interleukin 1 (IL-1) signaling has been implicated as a driver in this process. Mechanistically, both IL-1α and IL-1β bind to the IL-1 receptor type 1, forming a complex with IL-1-receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP), which triggers downstream signaling pathways.

IL1RAP Blockade With a Monoclonal Antibody Reduces Cardiac Inflammation and Preserves Heart Function in Viral and Autoimmune Myocarditis.

Background: Currently, there are no therapies targeting specific pathogenic pathways in myocarditis. IL (interleukin)-1 blockade has shown promise in preclinical studies and case reports. We hypothesized that blockade of IL1RAP (IL-1 receptor accessory protein), a shared subunit of the IL-1, IL-33, and IL-36 receptors, could be more efficient than IL-1 blockade alone.

Antibodies targeting the shared cytokine receptor IL-1 receptor accessory protein invoke distinct mechanisms to block all cytokine signaling.

Interleukin-1 (IL-1)-family cytokines are potent modulators of inflammation, coordinating a vast array of immunological responses across innate and adaptive immune systems. Dysregulated IL-1-family cytokine signaling, however, is involved in a multitude of adverse health effects, such as chronic inflammatory conditions, autoimmune diseases, and cancer. Within the IL-1 family of cytokines, six-IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-33, IL-36α, IL-36β, and IL-36γ-require the IL-1 receptor accessory protein (IL-1RAcP) as their shared co-receptor.

Combined inhibition of IL-1, IL-33 and IL-36 signalling by targeting IL1RAP ameliorates skin and lung fibrosis in preclinical models of systemic sclerosis.

Background: The interleukin (IL)-1 receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP) is an essential coreceptor required for signalling through the IL-1, IL-33 and IL-36 receptors. Here, we investigate the antifibrotic potential of the combined inhibition of these cytokines by an anti-IL1RAP antibody to provide a scientific background for clinical development in systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Methods: The expression of IL1RAP-associated signalling molecules was determined by data mining of publicly available RNA sequencing (RNAseq) data as well as by imaging mass cytometry.

Interleukin-1 receptor accessory protein blockade limits the development of atherosclerosis and reduces plaque inflammation.

Aims: The interleukin-1 receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP) is a co-receptor required for signalling through the IL-1, IL-33, and IL-36 receptors. Using a novel anti-IL1RAP-blocking antibody, we investigated the role of IL1RAP in atherosclerosis.

Methods And Results: Single-cell RNA sequencing data from human atherosclerotic plaques revealed the expression of IL1RAP and several IL1RAP-related cytokines and receptors, including IL1B and IL33.

Blockade of IL-1α and IL-1β signaling by the anti-IL1RAP antibody nadunolimab (CAN04) mediates synergistic anti-tumor efficacy with chemotherapy.

IL-1α and IL-1β are both involved in several aspects of tumor biology, including tumor initiation, progression, metastasis, and not least in resistance to various therapies. IL-1α can function as an alarmin to signal cellular stress, and acts to induce downstream events, including production of IL-1β, to amplify the signal. Both IL-1α and IL-1β act through the same receptor complex, IL-1R1-IL1RAP, to mediate signal transduction.

Molecular Basis of Selective Cytokine Signaling Inhibition by Antibodies Targeting a Shared Receptor.

Interleukin-1 (IL-1) family cytokines are potent mediators of inflammation, acting to coordinate local and systemic immune responses to a wide range of stimuli. Aberrant signaling by IL-1 family cytokine members, however, is linked to myriad inflammatory syndromes, autoimmune conditions and cancers. As such, blocking the inflammatory signals inherent to IL-1 family signaling is an established and expanding therapeutic strategy.

First-in-human phase 1 dose-escalation study of CAN04, a first-in-class interleukin-1 receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP) antibody in patients with solid tumours.

Background: Interleukin-1 (IL-1) signalling is involved in various protumoural processes including proliferation, immune evasion, metastasis and chemoresistance. CAN04 is a first-in-class monoclonal antibody that binds IL-1 receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP), required for IL-1 signalling. In this first-in-human phase 1 study, we assessed safety, recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D), pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and preliminary anti-tumour activity of CAN04 monotherapy.

Paquinimod reduces skin fibrosis in tight skin 1 mice, an experimental model of systemic sclerosis.

Background: Systemic Sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by vascular and immune dysfunction. A hallmark of SSc is the excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix in the skin and in internal organs. There is a high and unmet medical need for novel therapies in this disease.

Tasquinimod triggers an early change in the polarization of tumor associated macrophages in the tumor microenvironment.

Background: Tasquinimod (a quinoline-3-carboxyamide) is a small molecule immunotherapy with demonstrated effects on the tumor microenvironment (TME) involving immunomodulation, anti-angiogenesis and inhibition of metastasis. A target molecule of tasquinimod is the inflammatory protein S100A9 which has been shown to affect the accumulation and function of suppressive myeloid cell subsets in tumors. Given the major impact of myeloid cells to the tumor microenvironment, manipulation of this cell compartment is a desirable goal in cancer therapeutics.

Vesicular Location and Transport of S100A8 and S100A9 Proteins in Monocytoid Cells.

We show here, by using surface biotinylation, followed by Western blotting or surface plasmon resonance analysis, that very low levels of S100A8 and/or S100A9 can be detected on the surface of THP-1 cells or freshly isolated human monocytes. This was supported by immune-electron microscopy where we observed membrane-associated expression of the proteins restricted to small patches. By using confocal microscopy we could determine that S100A8 and S100A9 protein in THP-1 cells or freshly isolated human monocytes was mostly present in vesicular structures.

S100A9 as a Pharmacological Target Molecule in Inflammation and Cancer.

Upon tissue injury and infection both stressed and dying cells can release proteins that normally reside inside the cells. Some of the released proteins become ligands of various cell surface receptors expressed by local cells and such proteins are denoted as damage associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). Binding of some DAMPs to certain cell surface receptors induces signals emanating in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, ultimately leading to an inflammatory response.

Common interactions between S100A4 and S100A9 defined by a novel chemical probe.

S100A4 and S100A9 proteins have been described as playing roles in the control of tumor growth and metastasis. We show here that a chemical probe, oxyclozanide (OX), selected for inhibiting the interaction between S100A9 and the receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) interacts with both S100A9 and S100A4. Furthermore, we show that S100A9 and S100A4 interact with RAGE and TLR4; interactions that can be inhibited by OX.

CD11b+Ly6C++Ly6G- cells show distinct function in mice with chronic inflammation or tumor burden.

Background: S100A9 has been shown to be important for the function of so called Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSC). Cells with a similar phenotype are also involved in pro-inflammatory processes, and we therefore wanted to investigate the gene expression and function of these cells in animals that were either subjected to chronic inflammation, or inoculated with tumors.

Methods: CD11b(+)Ly6C(++) and Ly6G(+) cells were isolated from spleen, tumor tissue or inflammatory granulomas.

S100A9 interaction with TLR4 promotes tumor growth.

By breeding TRAMP mice with S100A9 knock-out (S100A9(-/-)) animals and scoring the appearance of palpable tumors we observed a delayed tumor growth in animals devoid of S100A9 expression. CD11b(+) S100A9 expressing cells were not observed in normal prostate tissue from control C57BL/6 mice but were readily detected in TRAMP prostate tumors. Also, S100A9 expression was observed in association with CD68(+) macrophages in biopsies from human prostate tumors.

Identification of human S100A9 as a novel target for treatment of autoimmune disease via binding to quinoline-3-carboxamides.

Despite more than 25 years of research, the molecular targets of quinoline-3-carboxamides have been elusive although these compounds are currently in Phase II and III development for treatment of autoimmune/inflammatory diseases in humans. Using photoaffinity cross-linking of a radioactively labelled quinoline-3-carboxamide compound, we could determine a direct association between human S100A9 and quinoline-3-carboxamides. This interaction was strictly dependent on both Zn++ and Ca++.

Ikaros DNA-binding proteins as integral components of B cell developmental-stage-specific regulatory circuits.

Ikaros DNA-binding proteins are critical for the development of lymphocytes and other hematopoietic lineages, but it remains unclear how they cooperate with other regulators of signaling and transcription to achieve ordered gene expression during development. Here, we show that Ikaros proteins regulate the pre-BCR component lambda5 in a stage-specific manner. In pre-BI cells, Ikaros modulated lambda5 expression in competition with the transcriptional activator EBF.

CArG box-binding factor-A interacts with multiple motifs in immunoglobulin promoters and has a regulated subcellular distribution.

CArG box-binding factor-A (CBF-A) is a protein involved in transcriptional control and interacts specifically with the penta-decameric (pd) element in kappa promoters. We show here that CBF-A will also bind specifically to a second region in the kappa promoter that overlaps with an early B cell factor binding site. Furthermore, the same region is present in multiple Ig promoters and we show that CBF-A can bind to several of these.

SPI-C and STAT6 can cooperate to stimulate IgE germline transcription.

SPI-C is a novel ETS protein that is expressed in B lymphocytes. No target gene for SPI-C has so far been defined. We have performed a yeast two-hybrid screen using SPI-C as bait in order to further analyze the functional role of this orphan transcription factor.

Gene expression analysis suggests that EBF-1 and PPARgamma2 induce adipogenesis of NIH-3T3 cells with similar efficiency and kinetics.

Differentiation of multipotent mesenchymal stem cells into lipid-accumulating adipocytes is a physiological process induced by transcription factors in combination with hormonal stimulation. We have used Affymetrix microarrays to compare the adipogenic differentiation pathways of NIH-3T3 fibroblasts induced to undergo in vitro differentiation by ectopic expression of early B cell factor (EBF)-1 or peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)gamma2. These experiments revealed that commitment to the adipogenic pathway in the NIH-3T3 cells was not reflected in gene expression until 4 days after induction of differentiation.

Upstream of Ikaros.

Haematopoiesis - the process by which pluripotent haematopoietic stem cells choose to become lymphocytes, myeloid cells, red blood cells or platelets - has long been a useful model to study cellular commitment and differentiation. Each cell type is defined by lineage-specific patterns of gene expression. The DNA binding protein Ikaros is an important regulator of haematopoiesis and recent work promises to shed light on how Ikaros itself is regulated.

RNA analysis of B cell lines arrested at defined stages of differentiation allows for an approximation of gene expression patterns during B cell development.

The development of a mature B lymphocyte from a bone marrow stem cell is a highly ordered process involving stages with defined features and gene expression patterns. To obtain a deeper understanding of the molecular genetics of this process, we have performed RNA expression analysis of a set of mouse B lineage cell lines representing defined stages of B cell development using Affymetrix microarrays. The cells were grouped based on their previously defined phenotypic features, and a gene expression pattern for each group of cell lines was established.

Genomic structure of mouse SPI-C and genomic structure and expression pattern of human SPI-C.

Erythroblast transformation-specific domain (ETS) transcription factors regulate some of the critical molecular mechanisms controlling the differentiation of multipotent haematopoietic progenitor cells into effector B-lymphocytes. The SPI-group ETS-protein transcription factors PU.1 and SPI-B play essential and, although coexpressed and binding to similar DNA sequences, unique roles in B-cell differentiation in mice.

Early B-cell factor (O/E-1) is a promoter of adipogenesis and involved in control of genes important for terminal adipocyte differentiation.

Olf-1/early B-cell factor (O/E-1) is a transcription factor important for B-lymphocyte and neuronal gene regulation. Here we report that all three known O/E genes (O/E-1, -2, and -3) are expressed in mouse adipose tissue and are upregulated during adipocyte differentiation. Forced expression of O/E-1 in either the preadipocyte cell line 3T3-L1 or mouse embryonic fibroblasts augmented adipogenesis, and constitutive expression of O/E-1 in uncommitted NIH 3T3 fibroblasts led to initiation of adipocyte differentiation.