Publications by authors named "P Vlckova"

Chemotherapy, the standard of care treatment for cancer patients with advanced disease, has been increasingly recognized to activate host immune responses to produce durable outcomes. Here, in colorectal adenocarcinoma (CRC) we identify oxaliplatin-induced Thioredoxin-Interacting Protein (TXNIP), a MondoA-dependent tumor suppressor gene, as a negative regulator of Growth/Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF15). GDF15 is a negative prognostic factor in CRC and promotes the differentiation of regulatory T cells (Tregs), which inhibit CD8 T-cell activation.

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T cell-based cancer immunotherapy has typically relied on membrane-bound cytotoxicity enhancers such as chimeric antigen receptors expressed in autologous αβ T cells. These approaches are limited by tonic signaling of synthetic constructs and costs associated with manufacturing. γδ T cells are an emerging alternative for cellular therapy, having innate antitumor activity, potent antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, and minimal alloreactivity.

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Patient-derived organoids (PDOs) can model personalized therapy responses; however, current screening technologies cannot reveal drug response mechanisms or how tumor microenvironment cells alter therapeutic performance. To address this, we developed a highly multiplexed mass cytometry platform to measure post-translational modification (PTM) signaling, DNA damage, cell-cycle activity, and apoptosis in >2,500 colorectal cancer (CRC) PDOs and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in response to clinical therapies at single-cell resolution. To compare patient- and microenvironment-specific drug responses in thousands of single-cell datasets, we developed "Trellis"-a highly scalable, tree-based treatment effect analysis method.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates how cancer cells in colonic organoids are influenced by both genetic mutations (oncogenes) and their surrounding environment, particularly focusing on the roles of different cell types like fibroblasts and macrophages.
  • - Researchers conducted a detailed analysis that showed a stepwise differentiation process among cancer stem cells, highlighting that specific combinations of mutations and external signals determine whether these cells become regenerative (revCSCs) or hyper-proliferative (proCSCs).
  • - Findings suggest that the loss of the APC gene and mutations in KRAS disrupt normal communication between stromal and epithelial cells, leading to a dominance of oncogenic signals that hinder typical cell differentiation processes.
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