Nucleotide metabolism in cancer cells fuels a UDP-driven macrophage cross-talk, promoting immunosuppression and immunotherapy resistance

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Tommaso Scolaro - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Marta Manco - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Mathieu Pecqueux - , Department of Visceral, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery, VIB-KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology (CCB), KU Leuven, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden (Author)
  • Ricardo Amorim - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven, University of Minho (Author)
  • Rosa Trotta - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Heleen H. Van Acker - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Matthias Van Haele - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Niranjan Shirgaonkar - , Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore (Author)
  • Stefan Naulaerts - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Jan Daniluk - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Fran Prenen - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Chiara Varamo - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Donatella Ponti - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven, University of Rome La Sapienza (Author)
  • Ginevra Doglioni - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Ana Margarida Ferreira Campos - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Juan Fernandez Garcia - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Silvia Radenkovic - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Pegah Rouhi - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Aleksandar Beatovic - , Unicle Biomedical Data Science B.V. (Author)
  • Liwei Wang - , Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Author)
  • Yu Wang - , Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Author)
  • Amalia Tzoumpa - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Asier Antoranz - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Ara Sargsian - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Mario Di Matteo - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Emanuele Berardi - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Jermaine Goveia - , Unicle Biomedical Data Science B.V., Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Bart Ghesquière - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Tania Roskams - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Stefaan Soenen - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Thomas Voets - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Bella Manshian - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Sarah Maria Fendt - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Peter Carmeliet - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)
  • Abhishek D. Garg - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Ramanuj DasGupta - , Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore (Author)
  • Baki Topal - , KU Leuven (Author)
  • Massimiliano Mazzone - , Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), KU Leuven (Author)

Abstract

Many individuals with cancer are resistant to immunotherapies. Here, we identify the gene encoding the pyrimidine salvage pathway enzyme cytidine deaminase (CDA) among the top upregulated metabolic genes in several immunotherapy-resistant tumors. We show that CDA in cancer cells contributes to the uridine diphosphate (UDP) pool. Extracellular UDP hijacks immunosuppressive tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) through its receptor P2Y6. Pharmacologic or genetic inhibition of CDA in cancer cells (or P2Y6 in TAMs) disrupts TAM-mediated immunosuppression, promoting cytotoxic T cell entry and susceptibility to anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (anti-PD-1) treatment in resistant pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and melanoma models. Conversely, CDA overexpression in CDA-depleted PDACs or anti-PD-1-responsive colorectal tumors or systemic UDP administration (re)establishes resistance. In individuals with PDAC, high CDA levels in cancer cells correlate with increased TAMs, lower cytotoxic T cells and possibly anti-PD-1 resistance. In a pan-cancer single-cell atlas, CDAhigh cancer cells match with T cell cytotoxicity dysfunction and P2RY6high TAMs. Overall, we suggest CDA and P2Y6 as potential targets for cancer immunotherapy.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1206-1226
Number of pages21
JournalNature cancer
Volume5
Issue number8
Publication statusPublished - Aug 2024
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMedCentral PMC11358017
Scopus 85195310685

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • Humans, Uridine Diphosphate/metabolism, Immunotherapy/methods, Drug Resistance, Neoplasm/immunology, Animals, Mice, Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal/immunology, Cytidine Deaminase/metabolism, Tumor-Associated Macrophages/immunology, Cell Line, Tumor, Receptors, Purinergic P2/metabolism, Macrophages/immunology, T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic/immunology, Tumor Microenvironment/immunology, Pancreatic Neoplasms/immunology, Nucleotides/metabolism, Immune Tolerance, Programmed Cell Death 1 Receptor