Targeting the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a promising strategy for cancer therapy. However, the mTOR kinase functions in two complexes, TORC1 and TORC2, neither of which is fully inhibited by the allosteric inhibitor rapamycin or analogs. We compared rapamycin with the active-site TORC1/2 inhibitor PP242, in acute leukemia models harboring the Philadelphia chromosome (Ph) translocation. We demonstrate that PP242, but not rapamycin, causes death of mouse and human leukemia cells. In vivo, PP242 delays leukemia onset and augments the effects of current front-line tyrosine kinase inhibitors, more effectively than rapamycin. Surprisingly, PP242 has much weaker effects than rapamycin on proliferation and function of normal lymphocytes. PI-103, a less selective TORC1/2 inhibitor that also targets phosphoinositide 3-kinase, is more immunosuppressive than PP242. These findings establish that Ph+ transformed cells are more sensitive than normal lymphocytes to selective TORC1/2 inhibitors, and support the development of such inhibitors for leukemia therapy.

Type I and III interferons (IFNs) activate similar downstream signaling cascades, but unlike type I IFNs, type III IFNs (IFNl) do not elicit strong inflammatory responses in vivo. Here, we examined the molecular mechanisms underlying this disparity. Type I and III IFNs displayed kinetic differences in expression of IFN-stimulated genes and proinflammatory responses, with type I IFNs preferentially stimulating expression of the transcription factor IRF1. Type III IFNs failed to induce IRF1 expression because of low IFNl receptor abundance and insufficient STAT1 activation on epithelial cells and thus did not activate the IRF1 proinflammatory gene program. Rather, IFNl stimulation preferentially induced factors implicated in tissue repair. Our findings suggest that IFN receptor compartmentalization and abundance confer a spatiotemporal division of labor where type III IFNs control viral spread at the site of the infection while restricting tissue damage; the transient induction of inflammatory responses by type I IFNs recruits immune effectors to promote protective immunity.

Synopsis Activation of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) is a shared response to engagement of diverse types of transmembrane receptors. Depending on the cell type and stimulus, PI3K activation can promote different fates including proliferation, survival, migration and differentiation. The diverse roles of PI3K signaling are well illustrated by studies of lymphocytes, the cells that mediate adaptive immunity. Genetic and pharmacological experiments have shown that PI3K activation regulates many steps in the development, activation and differentiation of both B and T cells. These findings have prompted the development of PI3K inhibitors for the treatment of autoimmunity and inflammatory diseases. However, PI3K activation has both positive and negative roles in immune system activation. Consequently, while PI3K suppression can attenuate immune responses it can also enhance inflammation, disrupt peripheral tolerance and promote autoimmunity. An exciting discovery is that a selective inhibitor of the p110δ catalytic isoform of PI3K, CAL-101, achieves impressive clinical efficacy in certain B cell malignancies. A model is emerging in which p110δ inhibition disrupts signals from the lymphoid microenvironment, leading to release of leukemia and lymphoma cells from their protective niche. These encouraging findings have given further momentum to PI3K drug development efforts in both cancer and immune diseases.

Cancer cells develop mechanisms to escape immunosurveillance, among which modulating the expression of immune suppressive messenger RNAs is most well-documented. However, how this is molecularly achieved remains largely unresolved. Here, we develop an in vivo mouse model of liver cancer to study oncogene cooperation in immunosurveillance. We show that MYC overexpression (MYCTg) synergizes with KRASG12D to induce an aggressive liver tumor leading to metastasis formation and reduced mouse survival compared with KRASG12D alone. Genome-wide ribosomal footprinting of MYCTg;KRASG12 tumors compared with KRASG12D revealed potential alterations in translation of mRNAs, including programmed-death-ligand 1 (PD-L1). Further analysis revealed that PD-L1 translation is repressed in KRASG12D tumors by functional, non-canonical upstream open reading frames in its 5′ untranslated region, which is bypassed in MYCTg;KRASG12D tumors to evade immune attack. We show that this mechanism of PD-L1 translational upregulation was effectively targeted by a potent, clinical compound that inhibits eIF4E phosphorylation, eFT508, which reverses the aggressive and metastatic characteristics of MYCT9;KRASG12D tumors. Together, these studies reveal how immune-checkpoint proteins are manipulated by distinct oncogenes at the level of mRNA translation, which can be exploited for new immunotherapies.