Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 promotes tumor immune evasion by upregulating PD-L1 expression within TME (A–C) scRNA-seq analysis of two paired tumor and paratumor samples from LUAD patients showing cell clustering (A), WFDC2 /HE4-expressing cell populations (B), and quantification of WFDC2 /HE4 expression in epithelial/malignant clusters (C). (D) Online dataset analysis of WFDC2 mRNA expression in tumor versus normal LUAD tissues. (E and F) HE4 overexpression (E) or knockout (F) respectively promoted or suppressed the growth of subcutaneous LLC tumors in mice. (G) Survival of mice intraperitoneally inoculated with HE4-overexpressing or control ID8 cells. (H) HE4 knockout attenuated ID8 peritoneal tumor progression, shown by representative abdominal images and ascites volume. (I) SDS-PAGE with Coomassie blue staining showing the purity of Fc and mouse HE4-Fc (mHE4-Fc) recombinant proteins. (J) Administration of mHE4-Fc promoted MC38 subcutaneous tumor growth. (K) mHE4-Fc administration reversed the growth suppression of HE4-KO LLC subcutaneous tumors. (L) mHE4-Fc failed to reverse tumor growth suppression in HE4-KO LLC tumors implanted in Rag1 -deficient mice. (M) Extracellular HE4 did not promote LLC cell proliferation in vitro , as assessed by CCK8 assay. (N) mHE4-Fc administration suppressed CD8 + T cell activation in the TME of HE4-KO LLC tumors, assessed by IFN-γ + and granzyme B + CD8 + T cells. (O) HE4 upregulated PD-L1 expression on macrophages in the microenvironment of LLC, MC38, and HE4-KO LLC tumors. (P–R) mHE4-Fc administration failed to reverse tumor suppression of HE4-KO LLC subcutaneous tumors in Cd274 -deficient mice, with treatment scheme (P), tumor growth (Q), and tumor weight (R). Statistical analyses were performed using Wilcoxon rank-sum test (D), two-way ANOVA (E, F, J–L, and Q), log rank (Mantel-Cox) test (G), and two-tailed paired (C) or unpaired t tests (H, M, N, O, and R). Data represent two independent experiments (E and M).

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Expressing, Over Expression, Knock-Out, Control, SDS Page, Staining, Recombinant, In Vitro, CCK-8 Assay, Activation Assay, Two Tailed Test

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 competes with IFN-γ for IFN-γR binding and modulates downstream gene expression (A and B) Raw264.7 cells were stimulated with HE4-Fc (20 μg/mL) or IFN-γ (100 ng/mL) for 3 h, followed by RNA-seq; volcano plots of HE4- (A) or IFN-γ-regulated genes (B) are shown. (C) Genes commonly upregulated by HE4 and IFN-γ. (D) AlphaFold-3-predicted interfaces of HE4-IFNGR1/2 and IFN-γ-IFNGR1/2 complexes, with shared receptor-contact residues highlighted. (E) Competitive binding assay: His-tagged IFNGR1/2 was incubated with Flag-HE4 in the presence or absence of IFN-γ, followed by Ni-TED pull-down and immunoblotting. (F and G) SPR sensorgrams showing binding of mHE4-Fc (F) or mIFN-γ-Fc (G) to mIFNGR1-His. (H and I) ELISA quantification of HE4 and/or IFN-γ levels in ascites from ID8-tumor-bearing mice (H) and LLC-tumor-conditioned media (I). (J) High concentrations of HE4 reduced IFN-γ binding to IFNGR1/2 in competitive pull-down assays. (K) PCA of RNA-seq profiles from Raw264.7 cells treated with HE4-Fc, HE4-Fc plus IFN-γ, or IFN-γ for 12 h. (L) Expression (TPM) of representative STAT1- or STAT3-associated genes following the indicated treatments. Statistical analyses were performed using two-tailed paired Student’s t tests (H and I). Data in (E) and SPR sensorgrams (F and G) are representative of three independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Binding Assay, Gene Expression, RNA Sequencing, Competitive Binding Assay, Incubation, Western Blot, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Expressing, Two Tailed Test

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 blockade promotes antitumor immunity in the tumor microenvironment (A–C) scRNA-seq analysis of LLC tumors from mice treated with control IgG or anti-HE4 antibody ( n = 3 per group), showing UMAP clustering of 26 cell populations (A), relative abundance of each cluster (B), and aggregated cell types (C). ∗ p < 0.05 (D and E) HE4 neutralization reduced Cd274 (PD-L1) expression in myeloid compartments. UMAP feature plots show Cd274 expression in macrophage/monocyte and epithelial/malignant populations (D), with paired comparison across macrophage clusters (E). (F) UMAP visualization of nine intratumoral T cell subclusters in control IgG– and anti-HE4–treated tumors. (G) In the LLC subcutaneous model, intratumoral IFN-γ + and CD69 + CD8 + T cells were quantified by flow cytometry. (H) In the ID8 intraperitoneal model, IFN-γ + CD8 + T cells were quantified by flow cytometry. (I–K) HE4 neutralization failed to suppress LLC tumor growth in Rag1 −/− mice, shown by treatment scheme and tumor growth/endpoint analyses. (L–O) CD8 + T cell depletion abrogated the antitumor efficacy of HE4 blockade, with treatment scheme, tumor growth/endpoint measurements, and confirmation of depletion efficiency by flow cytometry. (P–S) Macrophage depletion using anti-CSF1R diminished the antitumor efficacy of HE4 neutralization, with tumor growth/endpoint measurements and confirmation of depletion efficiency by flow cytometry. Statistical analyses were performed using unpaired t tests (B, C, H, and K), paired t test (E), one-way ANOVA (G, N, O, R, and S), and two-way ANOVA (J, M, and Q). Data in (G, H, and L–S) are pooled from two independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Control, Neutralization, Expressing, Comparison, Flow Cytometry

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 neutralization exerts therapeutic activity in human cancer models (A–C) PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages were stimulated with Fc or hHE4-Fc, and PD-L1 expression was assessed by flow cytometry (A), immunoblotting (B), and RT-qPCR (C); a commercial hHE4-Fc was included as an independent control. (D) Binding of hHE4 to PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells assessed by flow cytometry. (E and F) PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells were pretreated with ruxolitinib, fludarabine, or Stattic, followed by hHE4-Fc stimulation; PD-L1 was quantified by RT-qPCR (E) and flow cytometry (F). (G and H) Anti-hHE4 monoclonal antibodies inhibited hHE4-induced PD-L1 upregulation in PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells, assessed by RT-qPCR (G) and flow cytometry (H). (I) Anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 blocked hHE4 binding to PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells. (J) Binding of wild-type or epitope-mutant hHE4-Fc to anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 was quantified by ELISA. (K) Pharmacokinetic analysis of anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 in C57BL/6 mice following intravenous administration. (L–O) Fresh human LUAD tumor cell suspensions were treated with anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10, followed by flow cytometric analysis of PD-L1 and ELISA measurement of IFN-γ and granzyme B. (P) Recombinant HE4 suppressed IFN-γ production in human LUAD tumor cell suspensions. (Q–T) HE4 blockade enhanced PBMC-mediated antitumor activity in humanized C-NKG mice bearing OVCAR3 or NCI-H358 tumors, shown by treatment scheme, representative tumors, and tumor weights. Schematics (L and Q) were created using BioRender. Statistical analyses were performed using one-way ANOVA (C, E, and G), paired t tests (M–P), or unpaired t tests (S and T). Data in (A–J) are representative of three independent experiments; data in (Q–T) are pooled from two independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Neutralization, Activity Assay, Expressing, Flow Cytometry, Western Blot, Quantitative RT-PCR, Control, Binding Assay, Bioprocessing, Mutagenesis, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Recombinant

Journal: Cancer Discovery

Article Title: Activated T Cells Break Tumor Immunosuppression by Macrophage Reeducation

doi: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-24-0415

Figure Lengend Snippet: HPGDS expression in macrophages is sustained byprotumoral cytokines and is downmodulated by activated T cells. A, Violin plot comparing Hpgds expression between Ifn + and Mrc1 + macrophages, extracted from a publicly available scRNA-seq dataset. B, Hpgds expression assessed by qRT-PCR in monocytes (CD45 + , CD11b + , and CD115 + ) and TAMs (CD45 + , CD11b + , and F4/80 + ) from melanoma-bearing mice ( n = 3). C, qRT-PCR analysis of the expression of Hpgds in BMDMs Ctrl or stimulated with antitumoral stimuli (i.e., IFNγ with LPS), protumoral cytokines (i.e., IL-4, IL-6, and IL-10) or with IL-4 and after IL-4 washout, with antitumoral stimuli (e.g., TNFα, IFNγ, and LPS, alone or in combination; n = 3). D, Extracellular levels of PGD 2 measured by ELISA in BMDMs Ctrl or stimulated with IL-4 or first with IL-4 and then with TNFα ( n = 3). E, qRT-PCR analysis showing the regulation of Hpgds expression in IL-4–polarized BMDMs alone (Ctrl) or cocultured with preactivated CD8 + T cells or CD8 + T-cell CM with an isotype or an αTNFα blocking antibody ( n = 3–4). F and G, Tumor growth of resistant (YUMM 1.7; F ) vs. responsive (YUMMER 1.7; G ) melanoma tumors treated with IgG control, αCD8 antibody, αPD1, or the combination of αCD8 and αPD1 ( n = 3–4). H and I, Quantification ( H ) and representative images ( I ) of HPGDS + macrophages in resistant (YUMM 1.7) vs. responsive (YUMMER 1.7) melanoma tumors treated with IgG control, αCD8 antibody, αPD1, or the combination of αCD8 and αPD1 ( n = 3–4). J, Quantification of CD206 + immunosuppressive macrophages in resistant (YUMM 1.7) vs. responsive (YUMMER 1.7) melanoma tumors treated with IgG control, αCD8 antibody, αPD1 or the combination of αCD8 and αPD1 ( n = 3–4). K, Quantification of vessel density in resistant (YUMM 1.7) vs. responsive (YUMMER 1.7) melanoma tumors treated with IgG control, αCD8 antibody, αPD1, or the combination of αCD8 and αPD1 ( n = 3–4). L and M, Quantification ( L ) and representative images ( M ) of αSMA + pericyte blood vessel coverage of YUMM 1.7 or YUMMER 1.7 melanoma-bearing mice treated with IgG, αCD8, αPD1, or the combination of αCD8 and αPD1 ( n = 3–4). N, Tumor growth of YUMMER 1.7 melanoma-bearing mice treated with IgG, αPD1, or αPD1 combined with Enbrel ( n = 8–9). O, Quantification of F4/80 + macrophages in YUMMER 1.7 melanoma tumors treated with IgG, αPD1, or αPD1 in combination with Enbrel. In the group treated with αPD1, three out of nine tumors regressed completely; thus, the staining was not performed ( n = 6–9). P and Q, Quantification ( P ) and representative images ( Q ) of HPGDS + macrophages in YUMMER 1.7 melanoma tumors treated with IgG, αPD1, or αPD1 in combination with Enbrel. In the group treated with αPD1, three out of nine tumors regressed completely; thus, further analyses were not performed ( n = 6–9). P values are calculated by ( A) two-sided Wilcoxon test, ( B ) unpaired, two-tailed Student t test, ( C ) one-way ANOVA with Dunnett correction, and ( D , E , H , J , K , –L , O , and P ) one-way ANOVA with the Tukey multiple comparison test. F , G and N, two-way repeated measures ANOVA. Graphs show the mean ± SEM. I , L and Q, Scale bar: 20 μm.

Article Snippet: When indicated, 25 μg/mL αTNFα, 20 μg/mL αIFNγ (Miltenyi Biotech, 130-095-729), or isotype Ctrl were added to the medium.

Techniques: Expressing, Quantitative RT-PCR, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Blocking Assay, Control, Staining, Two Tailed Test, Comparison