Spatial transcriptomics analysis identifies a unique tumor-promoting function of the meningeal stroma in melanoma leptomeningeal disease.

ABSTRACT: Leptomeningeal disease (LMD) remains a rapidly lethal complication for late-stage melanoma patients. The inaccessible nature of the disease site and lack of understanding of the biology of this unique metastatic site are major barriers to developing efficacious therapies for patients with melanoma LMD. Here, we characterize the tumor microenvironment of the leptomeningeal tissues and patient-matched extra-cranial metastatic sites using spatial transcriptomic analyses with in vitro and in vivo validation. We show the spatial landscape of melanoma LMD to be characterized by a lack of immune infiltration and instead exhibit a higher level of stromal involvement. We show that the tumor-stroma interactions at the leptomeninges activate pathways implicated in tumor-promoting signal

SUBMITTER: Alhaddad H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10769278 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature