Cancer immunotherapy

Chronic infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus promotes the establishment of a population of stem-like PD-1⁺ CD8⁺ T cells that reside in lymphoid tissues and preferentially expand when the PD-1 inhibitory pathway is blocked.

Analyses of tumour samples and tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes from two patients with melanoma who were treated with adoptive T-cell therapy provide evidence for tumour escape by loss and downregulation of immunogenic antigens.

The development of a nanoparticle RNA vaccine is reported that preferentially targets dendritic cells after systemic administration, and is shown to provide durable interferon-α-dependent antigen-specific immunity in mouse tumour models; initial results in advanced melanoma patients indicate potential efficacy in humans.

A study of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma shows that cancer cell proliferation is associated with increased expression of proteins that control programmed necrotic cell death and suppress the adaptive immune system.