Youki Ueda

Cancer cells in the tumour microenvironment use various mechanisms to evade the immune system, particularly T cell attack1. For example, metabolic reprogramming in the tumour microenvironment and mitochondrial dysfunction in tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) impair antitumour immune responses2–4. However, detailed mechanisms of such processes remain unclear. Here we analyse clinical specimens and identify mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations in TILs that are shared with cancer cells. Moreover, mitochondria with mtDNA mutations from cancer cells are able to transfer to TILs. Typically, mitochondria in TILs readily undergo mitophagy through reactive oxygen species. However, mitochondria transferred from cancer cells do not undergo mitophagy, which we find is due to mitophagy-inhibitory molecules. These molecules attach to mitochondria and together are transferred to TILs, which results in homoplasmic replacement. T cells that acquire mtDNA mutations from cancer cells exhibit metabolic abnormalities and senescence, with defects in effector functions and memory formation. This in turn leads to impaired antitumour immunity both in vitro and in vivo. Accordingly, the presence of an mtDNA mutation in tumour tissue is a poor prognostic factor for immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with melanoma or non-small-cell lung cancer. These findings reveal a previously unknown mechanism of cancer immune evasion through mitochondrial transfer and can contribute to the development of future cancer immunotherapies. Mitochondria with mutations in their DNA from cancer cells can be transferred to T cells in the tumour microenvironment, which leads to T cell dysfunction and impaired antitumour immunity.

During viral replication, the innate immune response is induced through the recognition of viral replication intermediates by host factor(s). One of these host factors, cyclic GMP-AMP synthetase (cGAS), was recently reported to be involved in the recognition of viral DNA derived from DNA viruses. However, it is uncertain whether cGAS is involved in the recognition of hepatitis B virus (HBV), which is a hepatotropic DNA virus. In the present study, we demonstrated that HBV genome-derived double-stranded DNA induced the innate immune response through cGAS and its adaptor protein, stimulator of interferon genes (STING), in human hepatoma Li23 cells expressing high levels of cGAS. In addition, we demonstrated that HBV infection induced ISG56 through the cGAS-STING signaling pathway. This signaling pathway also showed an antiviral response towards HBV through the suppression of viral assembly. From these results, we conclude that the cGAS-STING signaling pathway is required for not only the innate immune response against HBV but also the suppression of HBV assembly. The cGAS-STING signaling pathway may thus be a novel target for anti-HBV strategies.

The freezing mechanism of water contacted with mesoporous silicas with uniform pore shapes, both cylindrical and cagelike, was studied by thermodynamic and structural analyses with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) together with adsorption measurements. In the DSC data extra exothermic peaks were found at around 230 K for water confined in SBA-15, in addition to that due to the freezing of pore water. These peaks are most likely to be ascribed to the freezing of water present over the micropore and/or mesopore outlets of coronas in SBA-15. Freezing of water confined in SBA-16 was systematically analysed by DSC with changing the pore size. The freezing temperature was found to be around 232 K, close to the homogeneous nucleation temperature of bulk water, independent of the pore size when the pore diameter (d) < 7.0 nm. Water confined in the cagelike pores of SBA-16 is probably surrounded by a water layer (boundary water) at the outlets of channels to interconnect the pores and of fine corona-like pores, which is similar to that present at the outlet of cylindrical pores in MCM-41 and of cylindrical channels in SBA-15. The presence of the boundary water would be a key for water in SBA-16 to freeze at the homogeneous nucleation temperature. This phenomenon is similar to those well known for water droplets in oil and water droplets of clouds in the sky. The XRD data showed that the cubic ice I(c) was formed in SBA-16 as previously found in SBA-15 when d < 8.0 nm.

Abstract Combination therapy with anti‐cytotoxic T lymphocyte‐associated protein 4 (CTLA‐4) and anti‐programmed death‐1 (PD‐1) monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has dramatically improved the prognosis of patients with multiple types of cancer, including renal cell carcinoma (RCC). However, more than half of RCC patients fail to respond to this therapy. Regulatory T cells (Treg cells) are a subset of highly immunosuppressive CD4 + T cells that promote the immune escape of tumors by suppressing effector T cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME) through various mechanisms. CTLA‐4 is constitutively expressed in Treg cells and is regarded as a key molecule for Treg‐cell‐mediated immunosuppressive functions, suppressing antigen‐presenting cells by binding to CD80/CD86. Reducing Treg cells in the TME with an anti‐CTLA‐4 mAb with antibody‐dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) activity is considered an essential mechanism to achieve tumor regression. In contrast, we demonstrated that CTLA‐4 blockade without ADCC activity enhanced CD28 costimulatory signaling pathways in Treg cells and promoted Treg‐cell proliferation in mouse models. CTLA‐4 blockade also augmented CTLA‐4‐independent immunosuppressive functions, including cytokine production, leading to insufficient antitumor effects. Similar results were also observed in human peripheral blood lymphocytes and tumor‐infiltrating lymphocytes from patients with RCC. Our findings highlight the importance of Treg‐cell depletion to achieve tumor regression in response to CTLA‐4 blockade therapies.