Faculty, Staff and Student Publications
Publication Date
10-1-2024
Journal
Nature Cell Biology
Abstract
Brain metastases (BrMs) evade the immune response to develop in the brain, yet the mechanisms of BrM immune evasion remains unclear. This study shows that brain astrocytes induce the overexpression of neuronal-specific cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) in breast cancer-derived BrMs, which facilitates BrM outgrowth in mice. Cdk5-overexpressing BrMs exhibit reduced expression and function of the class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC-I) and antigen-presentation pathway, which are restored by inhibiting Cdk5 genetically or pharmacologically, as evidenced by single-cell RNA sequencing and functional studies. Mechanistically, Cdk5 suppresses MHC-I expression on the cancer cell membrane through the Irf2bp1-Stat1-importin α-Nlrc5 pathway, enabling BrMs to avoid recognition by T cells. Treatment with roscovitine-a clinically applicable Cdk5 inhibitor-alone or combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors, significantly reduces BrM burden and increases tumour-infiltrating functional CD8+ lymphocytes in mice. Thus, astrocyte-induced Cdk5 overexpression endorses BrM immune evasion, whereas therapeutically targeting Cdk5 markedly improves the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors and inhibits BrM growth.
Keywords
Animals, Astrocytes, Brain Neoplasms, Female, Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5, Breast Neoplasms, Mice, Humans, Histocompatibility Antigens Class I, Cell Line, Tumor, CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes, Roscovitine, Tumor Escape, Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic, Immune Evasion, Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating
DOI
10.1038/s41556-024-01509-5
PMID
39304713
PMCID
PMC11676029
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
4-1-2025
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Author MSS
Published Open-Access
yes
Included in
Bioinformatics Commons, Biomedical Informatics Commons, Genetic Phenomena Commons, Medical Genetics Commons, Oncology Commons