Dendritic Cells (DCs) and Cancer Immunotherapy

A special issue of Vaccines (ISSN 2076-393X). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Vaccines and Immunotherapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 January 2025 | Viewed by 2394

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. Center for Cutaneous Biology and Immunology Research, Department of Dermatology, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA
2. Immunology Research Program, Henry Ford Cancer Institute, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA
Interests: dendritic cell vaccine; cancer immunotherapy; tumor immunity; cross-presentation; CD8 T cell immunity; exosomes

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Dendritic cells (DCs) are the most potent antigen-presenting cells (APC) that efficiently cross-present tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) and prime tumor antigen-specific CD8 T cells to control tumors. This specific functionality of DCs makes the DC-based vaccines one of the leading strategies for cancer immunotherapy. However, tumors often promote the tolerogenic function of host DCs to suppress anti-tumor immunity, limiting the success of the DC-based cancer vaccines.

There are several obstacles in the success of DC vaccines, i.e., tumor-mediated immunosuppression and the functional limitations of in vitro differentiated DCs. DC-derived exosomes have been considered as an alternative to cell-free therapeutic vaccines. In vivo DC-targeted vaccines and the use of naturally circulating blood DCs also offer promising alternatives to in vitro cultured DCs. There are critical gaps in our understanding of even the basic biology of these approaches, such as how DCexos and different subsets of DCs prime T cells, thus hindering their translation into clinical applications. Similarly, there is a need for a better understanding of how DCs interact with other DCs, B cells, and NK cells to fully unleash the potential of the DC-based vaccines.

This Special Issue on developing cancer vaccines welcomes new research articles and reviews on all aspects of dendritic cells and their roles in vaccine development and cancer immunotherapy.

Dr. Aimin Jiang
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • dendritic cell vaccine
  • cancer immunotherapy
  • immune checkpoint blockade
  • tumor immunity
  • CD8 T cell immunity
  • exosomes

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 4059 KiB  
Article
β-Catenin in Dendritic Cells Negatively Regulates CD8 T Cell Immune Responses through the Immune Checkpoint Molecule Tim-3
by Chunmei Fu, Jie Wang, Tianle Ma, Congcong Yin, Li Zhou, Björn E. Clausen, Qing-Sheng Mi and Aimin Jiang
Vaccines 2024, 12(5), 460; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12050460 - 25 Apr 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1777
Abstract
Recent studies have demonstrated that β-catenin in dendritic cells (DCs) serves as a key mediator in promoting both CD4 and CD8 T cell tolerance, although the mechanisms underlying how β-catenin exerts its functions remain incompletely understood. Here, we report that activation of β-catenin [...] Read more.
Recent studies have demonstrated that β-catenin in dendritic cells (DCs) serves as a key mediator in promoting both CD4 and CD8 T cell tolerance, although the mechanisms underlying how β-catenin exerts its functions remain incompletely understood. Here, we report that activation of β-catenin leads to the up-regulation of inhibitory molecule T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (Tim-3) in type 1 conventional DCs (cDC1s). Using a cDC1-targeted vaccine model with anti-DEC-205 engineered to express the melanoma antigen human gp100 (anti-DEC-205-hgp100), we demonstrated that CD11c-β-cateninactive mice exhibited impaired cross-priming and memory responses of gp100-specific CD8 T (Pmel-1) cells upon immunization with anti-DEC-205-hgp100. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis revealed that β-catenin in DCs negatively regulated transcription programs for effector function and proliferation of primed Pmel-1 cells, correlating with suppressed CD8 T cell immunity in CD11c-β-cateninactive mice. Further experiments showed that treating CD11c-β-cateninactive mice with an anti-Tim-3 antibody upon anti-DEC-205-hgp100 vaccination led to restored cross-priming and memory responses of gp100-specific CD8 T cells, suggesting that anti-Tim-3 treatment likely synergizes with DC vaccines to improve their efficacy. Indeed, treating B16F10-bearing mice with DC vaccines using anti-DEC-205-hgp100 in combination with anti-Tim-3 treatment resulted in significantly reduced tumor growth compared with treatment with the DC vaccine alone. Taken together, we identified the β-catenin/Tim-3 axis as a potentially novel mechanism to inhibit anti-tumor CD8 T cell immunity and that combination immunotherapy of a DC-targeted vaccine with anti-Tim-3 treatment leads to improved anti-tumor efficacy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dendritic Cells (DCs) and Cancer Immunotherapy)
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16 pages, 2872 KiB  
Protocol
Multiparameter Flow Cytometric Analysis of the Conventional and Monocyte-Derived DC Compartment in the Murine Spleen
by Ronald A. Backer, Hans Christian Probst and Björn E. Clausen
Vaccines 2024, 12(11), 1294; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines12111294 - 19 Nov 2024
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Abstract
Dendritic cells (DCs) are present in almost all tissues, where they act as sentinels involved in innate recognition and the initiation of adaptive immune responses. The DC family consists of several cell lineages that are heterogenous in their development, phenotype, and function. Within [...] Read more.
Dendritic cells (DCs) are present in almost all tissues, where they act as sentinels involved in innate recognition and the initiation of adaptive immune responses. The DC family consists of several cell lineages that are heterogenous in their development, phenotype, and function. Within these DC lineages, further subdivisions exist, resulting in smaller, less characterized subpopulations, each with its unique immunomodulatory capabilities. Given the interest in utilizing DC for experimental studies and for vaccination purposes, it becomes increasingly crucial to thoroughly classify and characterize these diverse DC subpopulations. This understanding is vital for comprehending their relative contribution to the initiation, regulation, and propagation of immune responses. To facilitate such investigation, we here provide an easy and ready-to-use multicolor flow cytometry staining panel for the analysis of conventional DC, plasmacytoid DC, and monocyte-derived DC populations isolated from mouse spleens. This adaptable panel can be easily customized for the analysis of other tissue-specific DC populations, providing a valuable tool for DC research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dendritic Cells (DCs) and Cancer Immunotherapy)
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