PARP Inhibitor Upregulates PD-L1 Expression and Provides a New Combination Therapy in Pancreatic Cancer

oleh: Yali Wang, Kun Zheng, Hua Xiong, Yongbiao Huang, Xiuqiong Chen, Yilu Zhou, Yilu Zhou, Wan Qin, Jinfang Su, Rui Chen, Hong Qiu, Xianglin Yuan, Yihua Wang, Yihua Wang, Yanmei Zou

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-12-01

Deskripsi

Despite recent improvements in treatment modalities, pancreatic cancer remains a highly lethal tumor with mortality rate increasing every year. Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors are now used in pancreatic cancer as a breakthrough in targeted therapy. This study focused on whether PARP inhibitors (PARPis) can affect programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) expression in pancreatic cancer and whether immune checkpoint inhibitors of PD-L1/programmed death 1 (PD-1) can enhance the anti-tumor effects of PARPis. Here we found that PARPi, pamiparib, up-regulated PD-L1 expression on the surface of pancreatic cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, pamiparib induced PD-L1 expression via JAK2/STAT3 pathway, at least partially, in pancreatic cancer. Importantly, pamiparib attenuated tumor growth; while co-administration of pamiparib with PD-L1 blockers significantly improved the therapeutic efficacy in vivo compared with monotherapy. Combination therapy resulted in an altered tumor immune microenvironment with a significant increase in windiness of CD8+ T cells, suggesting a potential role of CD8+ T cells in the combination therapy. Together, this study provides evidence for the clinical application of PARPis with anti-PD-L1/PD-1 drugs in the treatment of pancreatic cancer.