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Berberine protects against hepatocellular carcinoma progression by regulating intrahepatic T cell heterogeneity

ABSTRACT: Accumulating evidence suggests that berberine (BBR) exhibits anti-cancer effects in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the mechanisms by which BBR regulates the immunological microenvironment in HCC has not been fully elucidated. In this study, we established a mouse model of orthotopic HCC and treated with varying doses of BBR. BBR showed effectiveness in reducing tumor burden in mice with HCC. Cytometry by time-of-flight depicted the alterations in the tumor immune landscape following BBR treatment, revealing the enhancement in the T lymphocytes effector function. In particular, BBR decreased the proportion of TCRbhiPD-1hiCD69+CD27+CD8a+ effector CD8+ T lymphocytes and increased the proportion of Ly6ChiTCRb+CD69+CD27+CD62L+ central memory CD8+ T lymphocytes. Single-cell RNA sequencing further elucidate the effects of BBR on transcriptional profiles of liver immune cell and confirmed the phenotypical heterogeneity of T lymphocytes in HCC immune microenvironment. Additionally, we found that BBR potentially regulated the antitumor immunity in HCC by modulating the receptor-ligand interaction among immune cells mediated by cytokines. In summary, our findings improve the understanding of BBR's impact on protecting against HCC, emphasizing BBR's role in regulating intrahepatic T cell heterogeneity. BBR has the potential to be a promising therapeutic strategy to hinder the advancement of HCC.

ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus

PROVIDER: GSE271243 | GEO | 2025/05/21

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Background: IL-33, a cytokine with pleiotropic functions, is elevated in serum of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study investigated effects of local IL-33 expression in resected HCC on patient survival and on immunological and molecular tumor microenvironment. Methods: Tissue of resected HCCs was stained for H&E, masson trichrome, alpha smooth muscle actin, IL-33, CD8 and IL-13 and analysed by flow cytometry. Besides histomorphologic evaluation, the immunohistochemical stainings were analysed for the respective cell numbers separately for tumor area, infiltrative margin and distant liver stroma. These findings were correlated with clinical data and patient outcome. Further, gene expression of different HCC risk groups was compared using Micro Arrays. Results: In multivariable analysis, infiltration of HCCs by IL-33+ cells (P=0.032) and CD8+ cells (P=0.014) both independently were associated with prolonged patient survival. Flow cytometry demonstrated that cytotoxically active CD8+CD62L-KLRG1+CD107a+ effectory-memory cells are the main producers of IL-33 in these HCC patients. Using infiltration by IL-33+ and CD8+ cells as two separate factors, a HCC immune score (HCCIS) was designed and evaluated that stratified patient survival (P=0.0004). This HCCIS identified high and low risk patients who differ in gene expression profiles (P<0.001). Conclusion: Infiltration of HCCs by IL-33+ and CD8+ cells is independently associated with prolonged patient survival. We suggest that this is due to an induction of highly effective cytotoxically active CD8+CD62L-KLRG1+CD107a+ effector-memory cells producing IL-33. Based on these two independent factors we established a HCC immune score that provides risk stratification for HCC patients and can be used in the clinical setting. To investigate if HCCIS 0 high risk and HCCIS 2 low risk tumors exhibit a distinct molecular environment and gene expression pattern, RNA from fresh tumor tissue was isolated and analyzed by whole genome Microarray 4 patients with low risk tumors (HCCIS 2) were compared to 4 patients with high risk tumors (HCCIS 0).

Project description:Introduction Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) is a systemic therapeutic option for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, low patient response rates necessitate the development of robust predictive biomarkers that identify individuals who will benefit from ICB. A 4-gene inflammatory signature, comprising CD8, PD-L1, LAG-3, and STAT1, was recently shown to be associated with a better overall response to ICB in various cancer types. Here, we examined whether tissue protein expression of CD8, PD-L1, LAG-3, and STAT1 predicts response to ICB in HCC. Methods HCC samples from 191 Asian patients, comprising resection specimens from 124 patients (ICB-naïve) and pre-treatment specimens from 67 advanced HCC patients treated with ICB (ICB-treated), were analyzed for CD8, PD-L1, LAG-3, and STAT1 tissue expression using multiplex immunohistochemistry followed by statistical and survival analyses. Results Immunohistochemical and survival analyses of ICB-naïve samples showed that high LAG-3 expression was associated with shorter median progression-free survival (mPFS) and overall survival (mOS). Analysis of ICB-treated samples revealed that high proportions of LAG-3+ and LAG-3+CD8+ cells pre-treatment were most closely associated with longer mPFS and mOS. Using a log-likelihood model, adding the total LAG-3+ cell proportion to the total CD8+ cell proportion significantly increased the predictive values for mPFS and mOS, compared with the total CD8+ cell proportion alone. Moreover, levels of CD8 and STAT1, but not PD-L1, were significantly correlated with better responses to ICB. After analyzing viral-related and non-viral HCC samples separately, only the LAG3+CD8+ cell proportion was significantly associated with responses to ICB regardless of viral status. Conclusion Immunohistochemical scoring of pre-treatment levels of LAG-3 and CD8 in the tumor microenvironment may help predict ICB benefits in HCC patients. Furthermore, immunohistochemistry-based techniques offer the advantage of being readily translatable in the clinical setting.

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Berberine protects against hepatocellular carcinoma progression by regulating intrahepatic T cell heterogeneity

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