The microRNA-183/96/182 cluster inhibits lung cancer progression and metastasis by inducing an interleukin-2-mediated antitumor CD8+ cytotoxic T-cell response [Research Papers]

Samrat T. Kundu1,10, B. Leticia Rodriguez1,10, Laura A. Gibson1, Amanda N. Warner1, Mabel G. Perez1, Rakhee Bajaj1, Jared J. Fradette1, Caleb A. Class2, Luisa M. Solis3, Frank R. Rojas Alvarez3, Ignacio I. Wistuba3, Lixia Diao4, Fengju Chen5, Mohit Sachdeva6, Jing Wang4, David G. Kirsch6,7, Chad J. Creighton4,5,8 and Don L. Gibbons1,9 1Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 2Department of Biostatistics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 3Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 4Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 5Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 6Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA; 7Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA; 8Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA; 9Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas 77030, USA Corresponding authors: skundumdanderson.org, dlgibbonmdanderson.org

10 These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract

One of the mechanisms by which cancer cells acquire hyperinvasive and migratory properties with progressive loss of epithelial markers is the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). We have previously reported that in different cancer types, including nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the microRNA-183/96/182 cluster (m96cl) is highly repressed in cells that have undergone EMT. In the present study, we used a novel conditional m96cl mouse to establish that loss of m96cl accelerated the growth of Kras mutant autochthonous lung adenocarcinomas. In contrast, ectopic expression of the m96cl in NSCLC cells results in a robust suppression of migration and invasion in vitro, and tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. Detailed immune profiling of the tumors revealed a significant enrichment of activated CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CD8+ CTLs) in m96cl-expressing tumors, and m96cl-mediated suppression of tumor growth and metastasis was CD8+ CTL-dependent. Using coculture assays with naïve immune cells, we show that m96cl expression drives paracrine stimulation of CD8+ CTL proliferation and function. Using tumor microenvironment-associated gene expression profiling, we identified that m96cl elevates the interleukin-2 (IL2) signaling pathway and results in increased IL2-mediated paracrine stimulation of CD8+ CTLs. Furthermore, we identified that the m96cl modulates the expression of IL2 in cancer cells by regulating the expression of transcriptional repressors Foxf2 and Zeb1, and thereby alters the levels of secreted IL2 in the tumor microenvironment. Last, we show that in vivo depletion of IL2 abrogates m96cl-mediated activation of CD8+ CTLs and results in loss of metastatic suppression. Therefore, we have identified a novel mechanistic role of the m96cl in the suppression of lung cancer growth and metastasis by inducing an IL2-mediated systemic CD8+ CTL immune response.

Received December 17, 2021. Accepted May 16, 2022.

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