Géraldine Gentric

Abstract A subset of cancer-associated fibroblasts (FAP+/CAF-S1) mediates immunosuppression in breast cancers, but its heterogeneity and its impact on immunotherapy response remain unknown. Here, we identify 8 CAF-S1 clusters by analyzing more than 19,000 single CAF-S1 fibroblasts from breast cancer. We validate the five most abundant clusters by flow cytometry and in silico analyses in other cancer types, highlighting their relevance. Myofibroblasts from clusters 0 and 3, characterized by extracellular matrix proteins and TGFβ signaling, respectively, are indicative of primary resistance to immunotherapies. Cluster 0/ecm-myCAF upregulates PD-1 and CTLA4 protein levels in regulatory T lymphocytes (Tregs), which, in turn, increases CAF-S1 cluster 3/TGFβ-myCAF cellular content. Thus, our study highlights a positive feedback loop between specific CAF-S1 clusters and Tregs and uncovers their role in immunotherapy resistance. Significance: Our work provides a significant advance in characterizing and understanding FAP+ CAF in cancer. We reached a high resolution at single-cell level, which enabled us to identify specific clusters associated with immunosuppression and immunotherapy resistance. Identification of cluster-specific signatures paves the way for therapeutic options in combination with immunotherapies. This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 1241

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) remains an unmet medical challenge. Here, we unravel an unanticipated metabolic heterogeneity in HGSOC. By combining proteomic, metabolomic, and bioergenetic analyses, we identify two molecular subgroups, low- and high-OXPHOS. While low-OXPHOS exhibit a glycolytic metabolism, high-OXPHOS HGSOCs rely on oxidative phosphorylation, supported by glutamine and fatty acid oxidation, and show chronic oxidative stress. We identify an important role for the PML-PGC-1α axis in the metabolic features of high-OXPHOS HGSOC. In high-OXPHOS tumors, chronic oxidative stress promotes aggregation of PML-nuclear bodies, resulting in activation of the transcriptional co-activator PGC-1α. Active PGC-1α increases synthesis of electron transport chain complexes, thereby promoting mitochondrial respiration. Importantly, high-OXPHOS HGSOCs exhibit increased response to conventional chemotherapies, in which increased oxidative stress, PML, and potentially ferroptosis play key functions. Collectively, our data establish a stress-mediated PML-PGC-1α-dependent mechanism that promotes OXPHOS metabolism and chemosensitivity in ovarian cancer.

Abstract High-grade serous ovarian cancers (HGSOC) have been subdivided into molecular subtypes. The mesenchymal HGSOC subgroup, defined by stromal-related gene signatures, is invariably associated with poor patient survival. We demonstrate that stroma exerts a key function in mesenchymal HGSOC. We highlight stromal heterogeneity in HGSOC by identifying four subsets of carcinoma-associated fibroblasts (CAF-S1-4). Mesenchymal HGSOC show high content in CAF-S1 fibroblasts, which exhibit immunosuppressive functions by increasing attraction, survival, and differentiation of CD25 + FOXP3 + T lymphocytes. The beta isoform of the CXCL12 chemokine (CXCL12β) specifically accumulates in the immunosuppressive CAF-S1 subset through a miR-141/200a dependent-mechanism. Moreover, CXCL12β expression in CAF-S1 cells plays a crucial role in CAF-S1 immunosuppressive activity and is a reliable prognosis factor in HGSOC, in contrast to CXCL12α. Thus, our data highlight the differential regulation of the CXCL12α and CXCL12β isoforms in HGSOC, and reveal a CXCL12β-associated stromal heterogeneity and immunosuppressive environment in mesenchymal HGSOC.

Polyploidization is one of the most dramatic changes that can occur in the genome. In the liver, physiological polyploidization events occur during both liver development and throughout adult life. Here, we determined that a pathological polyploidization takes place in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a widespread hepatic metabolic disorder that is believed to be a risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In murine models of NAFLD, the parenchyma of fatty livers displayed alterations of the polyploidization process, including the presence of a large proportion of highly polyploid mononuclear cells, which are rarely observed in normal hepatic parenchyma. Biopsies from patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) revealed the presence of alterations in hepatocyte ploidy compared with tissue from control individuals. Hepatocytes from NAFLD mice revealed that progression through the S/G2 phases of the cell cycle was inefficient. This alteration was associated with activation of a G2/M DNA damage checkpoint, which prevented activation of the cyclin B1/CDK1 complex. Furthermore, we determined that oxidative stress promotes the appearance of highly polyploid cells, and antioxidant-treated NAFLD hepatocytes resumed normal cell division and returned to a physiological state of polyploidy. Collectively, these findings indicate that oxidative stress promotes pathological polyploidization and suggest that this is an early event in NAFLD that may contribute to HCC development.

SIGNIFICANCE: In the last years, metabolic reprogramming, fluctuations in bioenergetic fuels, and modulation of oxidative stress became new key hallmarks of tumor development. In cancer, elevated glucose uptake and high glycolytic rate, as a source of adenosine triphosphate, constitute a growth advantage for tumors. This represents the universally known Warburg effect, which gave rise to one major clinical application for detecting cancer cells using glucose analogs: the positron emission tomography scan imaging. Recent Advances: Glucose utilization and carbon sources in tumors are much more heterogeneous than initially thought. Indeed, new studies emerged and revealed a dual capacity of tumor cells for glycolytic and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) metabolism. OXPHOS metabolism, which relies predominantly on mitochondrial respiration, exhibits fine-tuned regulation of respiratory chain complexes and enhanced antioxidant response or detoxification capacity. CRITICAL ISSUES: OXPHOS-dependent cancer cells use alternative oxidizable substrates, such as glutamine and fatty acids. The diversity of carbon substrates fueling neoplastic cells is indicative of metabolic heterogeneity, even within tumors sharing the same clinical diagnosis. Metabolic switch supports cancer cell stemness and their bioenergy-consuming functions, such as proliferation, survival, migration, and invasion. Moreover, reactive oxygen species-induced mitochondrial metabolism and nutrient availability are important for interaction with tumor microenvironment components. Carcinoma-associated fibroblasts and immune cells participate in the metabolic interplay with neoplastic cells. They collectively adapt in a dynamic manner to the metabolic needs of cancer cells, thus participating in tumorigenesis and resistance to treatments. FUTURE DIRECTIONS: Characterizing the reciprocal metabolic interplay between stromal, immune, and neoplastic cells will provide a better understanding of treatment resistance. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 26, 462-485.