Niu et al report a diabetes-induced ISG15+ Müller glial subtype, triggered by microglial immune signaling, that weakens antioxidant defenses and contributes to early retinal vascular damage in murine diabetic retinopathy. The cover image shows murine retinal vasculature isolated using trypsin digestion followed by PAS staining, with acellular capillaries visible.
Engineered T and NK cell therapies have widely been used to treat hematologic malignancies and solid tumors, with promising clinical results. Current chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapeutics are, however, associated with treatment-related adverse events such as cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and are prone to immunologic exhaustion. CAR-NK therapeutics, while not associated with CRS, have limited in vivo persistence. We now demonstrate that a population of NK-like TCRαβ+ CD8 T cells (TKLR), identified and expanded ex vivo through its expression of the activating receptor NKG2C, can be transduced to express a second-generation CD19 CAR (1928z). These CAR+ TKLR demonstrates superior tumor clearance and longer persistence compared to 1928z CAR+ conventional CD8 T cells (TConv) and 1928z CAR+ NK cells in mouse xenograft models. Moreover, CAR-modified TKLR had decreased expression of PD-1, TIM-3, and LAG-3 and elicited significantly reduced CRS compared to CAR+ CD8 TConv in mouse xenograft models. Similarly, NKG2C+ TKLR engineered with a TCR targeting the NY-ESO-1 antigen exhibited robust tumor control compared to TCR-engineered CD8 TConv in a mouse xenograft model. These data establish NKG2C+ TKLR as a promising platform for cell engineering, and offer a safer, more durable alternative to conventional CAR-T and CAR-NK therapies.
Kyle B. Lupo, M. Kazim Panjwani, Aya G. Halawi, Sanam Shahid, Rosa Sottile, Clara Lawry, Gabryelle Kolk, Theodota Kontopoulos, Anthony F Daniyan, Smita S. Chandran, Christopher A. Klebanoff, Katharine C. Hsu
Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) is a hematological neoplasm characterized by expansion of malignant monocytes. However, as a stem cell neoplasm, the disease clone comprises most blood lineages, including granulocytes. To investigate their pathogenic contribution, we performed extensive phenotypic, transcriptomic and functional characterization of CMML granulocytes. These cells exhibited reduced granularity and impaired maturation, the latter of which is associated with poor prognosis. Functionally, CMML granulocytes displayed reduced phagocytic capacity and impaired NETosis, together with aberrant gene expression programs. Notably, RETN, encoding the chemokine resistin, was uniquely upregulated in CMML granulocytes. Accordingly, resistin levels were 10-fold higher in CMML plasma, correlating with inferior survival. Ex vivo exposure to resistin directly blocked monocyte maturation and macrophage differentiation, partly via TLR4 interaction, recapitulating the classical monocytosis repartitioning phenotype that characterizes CMML. Resistin-treated monocytes upregulated gene signatures related to immune suppression and myeloid-derived suppressor cell phenotype. Consistent with these findings, CMML patients displayed higher Treg proportions and Th2/Th1 ratios. Furthermore, we demonstrated that resistin directly skews the Th2/Th1 ratio via binding to monocytes. Thus, CMML granulocytes produce high levels of resistin, which contributes to defective monocyte maturation and induction of myeloid-derived suppressor cell features in monocytes, thereby fostering an immune-suppressive state in this disease.
Nathan J. Hull, Rachel Cant, Laura A. Guest, Yu-Hung Wang, Kristian Gurashi, Roberto Paredes, Carlos Rivera Rivera, Revekka Lefkati, Hector Huerga Encabo, Chien-Chin Lin, Hwei-Fang Tien, Robert Sellers, Sudhakar Sahoo, Dominique Bonnet, Eric Solary, Dorothee Selimoglu-Buet, Daniel H. Wiseman, Kiran Batta
Filamin C (FLNC) is an essential cytoskeletal protein required for cardiomyocyte structural integrity and mechanotransduction. Truncating FLNC variants cause haploinsufficiency associated with dilated and arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathies, yet no therapies currently address the underlying defect of FLNC deficiency. Gene replacement is challenging because the approximately 8.2-kb FLNC coding sequence exceeds the packaging capacity of conventional adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors. Here, we engineered a triple-AAV strategy optimized for full-length FLNC reconstitution in the heart. Screening in HEK293 cells identified GP41-1 and IMPDH as a compatible orthogonal pair for efficient full-length FLNC reconstitution. In tamoxifen-inducible, cardiomyocyte-specific Flnc knockout mice, systemic delivery of optimized MyoAAV2A vectors restored full-length FLNC expression and re-established sarcomeric localization following cardiomyocyte FLNC depletion. A total vector dose of 1 × 10¹³ genome copies/kg restored FLNC to approximately endogenous abundance, preserved systolic function and ventricular dimensions, limited cardiac enlargement, attenuated fibrotic remodeling and prevented premature death. FLNC replacement also attenuated pathological transcriptional remodeling and compensatory changes in cytoskeletal and junction-associated proteins. These findings demonstrate that systemic split-intein-mediated reconstitution of full-length FLNC can preserve cardiac structure and function in vivo, providing preclinical support for a mutation-independent therapeutic strategy for FLNC-associated cardiomyopathy.
Zhen Jiang, Wei Feng, Zeyu Chen, Julius Bogomolovas, MengChen Li, Mao Ye, Yusu Gu, Xiaohai Zhou, Ju Chen
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Blake D. Jardin, Feiyan Liu, Li Li, Cheryl L. Smith, Jonathan A. Epstein
Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Breathing instability and exaggerated chemoreflex activation contribute to adverse HF outcomes, yet the central mechanisms linking respiratory control to cardiac dysfunction remain poorly defined. The retrotrapezoid nucleus (RTN) is a key brainstem chemosensory region regulating ventilatory and autonomic output, but whether glial dysfunction within this circuit contributes to HF pathophysiology is unknown. We hypothesized that loss of astrocytic glutamate transporter 1 (GLT-1) in the RTN disrupts glutamate homeostasis, producing chemoreflex hyperactivity and cardiorespiratory dysfunction in HF. In a rat model of nonischemic HF, reduced astrocytic GLT-1 expression in the RTN was accompanied by extracellular glutamate accumulation and heightened excitability of chemosensitive neurons. These changes were associated with exaggerated central chemoreflex responses, breathing instability, autonomic imbalance, and impaired cardiac function. Astrocyte-specific GLT-1 restoration normalized RTN glutamate levels, reduced central chemoreceptor neuron hyperexcitability, stabilized breathing, and improved cardiac performance. Systemic riluzole, an FDA-approved glutamate-modulating drug, similarly reduced RTN glutamate accumulation and attenuated chemoreflex-driven respiratory instability. These findings identify loss of astrocytic GLT-1-mediated glutamate homeostasis in the RTN as a mechanism contributing to cardiorespiratory dysfunction in HF and support pharmacological targeting of brainstem glutamate homeostasis as a therapeutic strategy requiring further investigation.
Esteban Diaz-Jara, Sinay C. Vicencio, Katherin V. Pereyra, Karla G. Schwarz, Fernando C. Ortiz, Camilo Toledo, Ignacio Bernal-Santander, Sandeep Kaur, Bisan El Dakkak, Rodrigo Del Rio
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide, with more than 2 million women diagnosed each year. This series of reviews, curated by Dr. Rinath Jeselsohn, highlights recent breakthroughs in therapeutic development that are changing the outlook for breast cancer patients, including improvements in immunotherapy, antibody-drug conjugates, endocrine therapies, and kinase inhibitors.
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