The most frequent chromosomal structural loss in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is of the short arm of chromosome 8 (8p). Genes on the remaining homologous chromosome, however, are not recurrently mutated, and the identity of key 8p tumor-suppressor genes (TSG) is unknown. In this work, analysis of minimal commonly deleted 8p segments to identify candidate TSG implicated GATA4, a master transcription factor driver of hepatocyte epithelial lineage fate. In a murine model, liver-conditional deletion of 1 Gata4 allele to model the haploinsufficiency seen in HCC produced enlarged livers with a gene expression profile of persistent precursor proliferation and failed hepatocyte epithelial differentiation. HCC mimicked this gene expression profile, even in cases that were morphologically classified as well differentiated. HCC with intact chromosome 8p also featured GATA4 loss of function via GATA4 germline mutations that abrogated GATA4 interactions with a coactivator, MED12, or by inactivating mutations directly in GATA4 coactivators, including ARID1A. GATA4 reintroduction into GATA4-haploinsufficient HCC cells or ARID1A reintroduction into ARID1A-mutant/GATA4-intact HCC cells activated hundreds of hepatocyte genes and quenched the proliferative precursor program. Thus, disruption of GATA4-mediated transactivation in HCC suppresses hepatocyte epithelial differentiation to sustain replicative precursor phenotype.

Biliary tract cancer (BTC) is a rare, but aggressive, disease that comprises of gallbladder carcinoma, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, with heterogeneous molecular profiles. Advanced disease has limited therapeutic options beyond first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. Immunotherapy has emerged as a viable option for many cancers with a similar unmet need. Therefore, we reviewed current understanding of the tumor immune microenvironment and recent advances in cellular immunotherapy and therapeutic cancer vaccines against BTC. We illustrated the efficacy of dendritic cell vaccination in one patient with advanced, chemorefractory, melanoma-associated antigen (MAGE)-positive gallbladder carcinoma, who was given multiple injections of an allogenic MAGE antigen-positive melanoma cell lysate (MCL)-based autologous dendritic cell vaccine combined with sequential anti-angiogenic therapy. This resulted in good radiological and tumor marker response and an overall survival of 3 years from diagnosis. We postulate the potential synergism of adding anti-angiogenic therapy, such as bevacizumab, to immunotherapy in BTC, as a rational scientific principle to positively modulate the tumor microenvironment to augment antitumor immunity.

Advanced, late-stage Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-positive nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is incurable, and its treatment remains a clinical and therapeutic challenge. Results from a phase II clinical trial in advanced NPC patients employing a combined chemotherapy and EBV-specific T cell (EBVST) immunotherapy regimen showed a response rate of 71.4%. Longitudinal analysis of patient samples showed that an increase in EBV DNA plasma concentrations and the peripheral monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio negatively correlated with overall survival. These parameters were combined into a multivariate analysis to stratify patients according to risk of death. Immunophenotyping at serial time points showed that low-risk individuals displayed significantly decreased amounts of monocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells postchemotherapy, which subsequently influenced successful cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) immunotherapy. Examination of the low-risk group, 2 weeks post-EBVST infusion, showed that individuals with a greater overall survival possessed an increased frequency of CD8 central and effector memory T cells, together with higher levels of plasma interferon (IFN)-g, and cytotoxic lymphocyte-associated transcripts. These results highlight the importance of the rational selection of chemotherapeutic agents and consideration of their impact on both systemic immune responses and downstream cellular immunotherapy outcomes.

Cancer vaccines as immunotherapy for solid tumours are currently in development with promising results. We report a phase 1 study of Ad-sig-hMUC1/ecdCD40L (NCT02140996), an adenoviral-vector vaccine encoding the tumour-associated antigen MUC1 linked to CD40 ligand, in patients with advanced adenocarcinoma. The primary objective of this study is safety and tolerability. We also study the immunome in vaccinated patients as a secondary outcome. This trial, while not designed to determine clinical efficacy, reports an exploratory endpoint of overall response rate. The study meets its pre-specified primary endpoint demonstrating safety and tolerability in a cohort of 21 patients with advanced adenocarcinomas (breast, lung and ovary). The maximal dose of the vaccine is 1 ×1011 viral particles, with no dose limiting toxicities. All drug related adverse events are of low grades, most commonly injection site reactions in 15 (71%) patients. Using exploratory high-dimensional analyses, we find both quantitative and relational changes in the cancer immunome after vaccination. Our data highlights the utility of high-dimensional analyses in understanding and predicting effective immunotherapy, underscoring the importance of immune competency in cancer prognosis.

The ex-vivo expansion of antigen-specific T-cells for adoptive T-cell immunotherapy requires active interaction between T-cells and antigen-presenting cells therefore culture density and environment become important variables to control. Maintenance of culture density in a static environment is traditionally performed by the expansion of the culture area through splitting of culture from a single vessel into multiple vessels—a highly laborious process. This study aims to validate the use and efficacy of a novel bioreactor, bioreactor with an expandable culture area—dual chamber (BECA-D), that was designed and developed with a cell chamber with expandable culture area (12–108 cm2) and a separate media chamber to allow for in-situ scaling of culture with maintenance of optimum culture density and improved nutrient and gas exchange while minimizing disturbance to the culture. The performance of BECA-D in the culture of Epstein–Barr virus-specific T-cells (EBVSTs) was compared to the 24-well plate. BECA-D had 0.9–9.7 times the average culture yield of the 24-well plates across 5 donor sets. BECA-D was able to maintain the culture environment with relatively stable glucose and lactate levels as the culture expanded. This study concludes that BECA-D can support the culture of ex-vivo EBVSTs with lower manufacturing labour and time requirements compared to the use of the 24-well plate. BECA-D and its adaptation into a closed system with an automated platform (currently being developed) provides cell therapy manufacturers and developers with a closed scale-out solution to producing adoptive cell therapy for clinical use.