Person:

Ferrone, Soldano

An important checkpoint in the progression of melanoma is the metastasis to lymph nodes. Here, to investigate the role of lymph node NK cells in disease progression, we analyze frequency, phenotype and functions of NK cells from tumor-infiltrated (TILN) and tumor-free ipsilateral lymph nodes (TFLN) of the same patients. We show an expansion of CD56dimCD57dimCD69+CCR7+KIR+ NK cells in TILN. TILN NK cells display robust cytotoxic activity against autologous melanoma cells. In the blood of metastatic melanoma patients the frequency of NK cells expressing the receptors for CXCL8 receptor is increased compared to healthy subjects, and blood NK cells also express the receptors for CCL2 and IL6. These factors are produced in high amount in TILN and in vitro switch the phenotype of blood NK cells from healthy donors to the phenotype associated with TILN. Our data suggest that the microenvironment of TILN generates and/or recruits a particularly effective NK cell subset.

The frequent development of drug resistance to targeted therapies in cancer patients has stimulated interest in strategies counteracting resistance. Combining immunotherapies with targeted therapies is one such strategy. In this context, we asked whether human NK cells can target melanoma cells that have acquired resistance to selective inhibitors targeting activating mutants of the B‐Raf kinase (BRAF inhibitors, BRAFi). We generated drug‐resistant cell variants in vitro from human BRAF‐mutant melanoma cell lines MEL‐HO, COLO‐38, SK‐MEL‐37, 1520 and from primary melanoma cells freshly isolated from two patients. All drug‐resistant cell variants remained susceptible to lysis by IL‐2‐activated NK cells; and two BRAFi‐resistant lines (BRAFi‐R) became significantly more susceptible to NK‐cell lysis than their parental lines. This was associated with significant HLA class I antigen downregulation and PD‐L1 upregulation on the drug‐resistant lines. Although blocking HLA class I enhanced the extent of lysis of both BRAFi‐R and parental cells to NK‐cell‐mediated lysis, antibody‐mediated inhibition of PD1–PD‐L1 interactions had no detectable effect. HLA class I antigen expression on BRAFi‐R melanoma variants thus appears to play a major role in their susceptibility to NK‐cell cytotoxicity. These findings suggest that NK‐cell‐based immunotherapy may be a viable approach to treat melanoma patients with acquired resistance to BRAF inhibitors.