Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) is a clonal disorder of mature B cells. Most patients are characterised by an indolent disease course and an anergic phenotype of their leukaemia cells, which refers to a state of unresponsiveness to B cell receptor stimulation. Up to 10% of CLL patients transform from an indolent subtype to an aggressive form of B cell lymphoma over time (Richter´s syndrome) and show a significantly worse treatment outcome. Here we show that B cell-specific ablation of Nfat2 leads to the loss of the anergic phenotype culminating in a significantly compromised life expectancy and transformation to aggressive disease. We further define a gene expression signature of anergic CLL cells consisting of several NFAT2-dependent genes including Cbl-b, Grail, Egr2 and Lck. In summary, this study identifies NFAT2 as a crucial regulator of the anergic phenotype in CLL.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) can be defined as a clonal expansion of B cells with stereotypic BCRs. Somatic hypermutation of the BCR heavy chains (IGVH) defines a subgroup of patients with a better prognosis. In up to 10% of CLL cases, a transformation to an aggressive B cell lymphoma (Richter's syndrome) with a dismal prognosis can be observed over time. NFAT proteins are transcription factors originally identified in T cells, which also play an important role in B cells. The TCL1 transgenic mouse is a well‐accepted model of CLL. Upon B cell‐specific deletion of NFAT2, TCL1 transgenic mice develop a disease resembling human Richter's syndrome. Whereas TCL1 B cells exhibit tonic anergic BCR signaling characteristic of human CLL, loss of NFAT2 expression leads to readily activated BCRs indicating different BCR usage with altered downstream signaling. Here, we analyzed BCR usage in wild‐type and TCL1 transgenic mice with and without NFAT2 deletion employing conventional molecular biology techniques and next‐generation sequencing (NGS). We demonstrate that the loss of NFAT2 in CLL precipitates the selection of unmutated BCRs and the preferential usage of certain VDJ recombinations, which subsequently results in the accelerated development of oligoclonal disease.

Most patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) exhibit an indolent disease course and unresponsive B cell receptors (BCRs) exemplified by an anergic phenotype of their leukemic cells. In up to 5% of patients, CLL transforms from an indolent subtype to an aggressive form of B cell lymphoma (Richter's syndrome), which is associated with worse disease outcome and severe downregulation of NFAT2. Here we show that ablation of the tyrosine kinase LCK, which has previously been characterized as a main NFAT2 target gene in CLL, leads to loss of the anergic phenotype, thereby restoring BCR signaling, which results in an acceleration of CLL. Our study identifies LCK as a main player in mediating BCR unresponsiveness and its role as a crucial regulator of anergy in CLL.

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Summary Dendritic cells (DCs) are sentinels of the immune system that bridge innate and adaptive immunity. By capturing antigens in peripheral tissue, processing and presenting them with concurrent expression of co‐stimulatory molecules and cytokine secretion they control and modulate immune reactions. Through pattern recognition receptors, DCs sense molecules that are associated with infection or tissue damage, frequently resulting in the formation of inflammasomes upon intracellular stimulation. The inherited autoinflammatory familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is associated with deregulated activity of the pyrin inflammasome leading to acute inflammatory episodes. However, differentiation and function of DCs in this disease are as yet unclear. Therefore, we first determined DC subpopulation frequency in peripheral blood of a cohort of FMF patients. Joint evaluation without classification according to specific patient characteristics, such as mutational status, did not disclose significant differences compared to healthy controls. For the further examination of phenotype and function, we used immature and mature monocyte‐derived DCs (imMo‐DCs, mMo‐DCs) that were generated in vitro from FMF patients. Immunophenotypical analysis of imMo‐DCs revealed a significantly elevated expression of CD83, CD86 and human leukocyte antigen D‐related (HLA‐DR) as well as a significant down‐regulation of CD206, CD209 and glycoprotein NMB (GPNMB) in our FMF patient group. Furthermore, FMF imMo‐DCs presented a significantly higher capacity to migrate and to stimulate the proliferation of unmatched allogeneic T cells. Finally, the transition towards a more mature, and therefore activated, phenotype was additionally reinforced by the fact that peripheral blood DC populations in FMF patients exhibited significantly increased expression of the co‐stimulatory molecule CD86.

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The ubiquitin-proteasome system is elementary for cellular protein degradation and gained rising attention as a new target for cancer therapy due to promising clinical trials with bortezomib, the first-in class proteasome inhibitor meanwhile approved for multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma. Both bortezomib and next-generation proteasome inhibitors mediate their effects by targeting the 20S core particle of the 26S proteasome. The novel small molecule inhibitor b-AP15 affects upstream elements of the ubiquitin-proteasome cascade by suppressing the deubiquitinase activity of both proteasomal regulatory 19S subunits and showed promising anticancer activity in preclinical models. Nonetheless, effects of inhibitors on the ubiquitin-proteasome system are not exclusively restricted to malignant cells: alteration of natural killer cell-mediated immune responses had already been described for drugs targeting either 19S or 20S proteasomal subunits. Moreover, it has been shown that bortezomib impairs dendritic cell (DC) phenotype and function at different levels. In the present study, we comparatively analyzed effects of bortezomib and b-AP15 on monocyte-derived DCs. In line with previous results, bortezomib exposure impaired maturation, antigen uptake, migration, cytokine secretion and immunostimulation, whereas treatment with b-AP15 had no compromising effects on these DC features. Our findings warrant the further investigation of b-AP15 as an alternative to clinically approved proteasome inhibitors in the therapy of malignancies, especially in the context of combinatorial treatment with DC-based immunotherapies.

Background:Psoriasis is a frequent skin disease that can appear with an arthritic manifestation in approximately 30% of the cases [1]. The underlying excessive immune reaction caused by pro-inflammatory cytokines can be triggered by several risk factors [2]. Various subgroups of Dendritic cells (DCs) in the skin play a crucial role in the induction of the dermal inflammatory response [3].Objectives:As the role of peripheral blood DCs remains unknown and the cause of an arthritic manifestation is still not completely understood [4], this project aimed to detect differences in phenotype or function of peripheral blood DCs in psoriatic patients with or without arthritis.Methods:We analyzed peripheral blood cells of 60 psoriasis patients with and without arthritis. Different DC subpopulations were detected by flow cytometry. Monocyte-derived DCs were cultured with or without Lipopolysaccharides to gain immature (iDC) and mature (mDC) cells. The DC phenotype was determined by staining with CD80, CD83, CD86, CD206, CCR7, CD1a, HLA-DR, CD40, GPN-MB, DC209 and CD14. Their T-cell stimulatory capability was analyzed by co-incubation with Carboxyfluorescein succinimidyl ester stained lymphocytes and the quantification of CD4+ T-lymphocytes afterwards. To measure the migration capacity DCs were seated into transwell chambers with a semipermeable membrane and partly supplemented with Macrophage Inflammatory Protein 3 Beta (Mip3b). Migrated cells were detected by flow cytometry. Measured cell counts were normalized to cell counts without Mip3b stimulation.Results:Comparing the factor of increase of migrated mDC counts due to mip3b stimulation, we detected a significant lower rate in samples of patients with arthritis (PsA) compared to those of patients without (Ps). Assays of mDCs without mip3b stimulation showed a significant higher count of migrated cells in the samples of the arthritic group [Figure 1]. Cell counts with Mip3b stimulation did vary slightly in the groups. The DC subpopulations and the expression of analyzed cell surface proteins did not show significant differences. The amounts of stimulated T-Lymphocytes did not differ significantly.Figure 1.Migration essay showing mDCs following Mip3b (+miß3b) as multiples of mDCs without stimulation (-mip3b). The factor of increase is significantly lower in patients with arthritis (PsA) compared to patients without (Ps). Absolute counts of migrated mDCs without Mip3b are significantly higher in the arthritic group. Cell counts with stimulation do not differ significantly (data not shown). N=24, p<0.05Conclusion:CCL19 (Mip3b) is a potent ligand to the CCR7 receptor inducing migration of DCs towards the lymphatic node [5]. The CCR7 amounts on the DC surface did not differ significantly in the groups. The mDCs without CCL19 stimulation migrated in higher amounts in samples of arthritic patients. Cell counts of stimulated DCs showed only slight differences. These results could be generated by a different appearance of the DCs of arthritic patients that might facilitate migration. Further experiments focusing on this aspect should be performed. A possible effect of disruptive factors (age, sex, medication…) needs to be clarified.References:[1]Henes, J.C., et al.,High prevalence of psoriatic arthritis in dermatological patients with psoriasis: a cross-sectional study.Rheumatol Int, 2014.34(2): p. 227-34.[2]Lee, E.B., et al.,Psoriasis risk factors and triggers.Cutis, 2018.102(5s): p. 18-20.[3]Kim, T.G., S.H. Kim, and M.G. Lee,The Origin of Skin Dendritic Cell Network and Its Role in Psoriasis.Int J Mol Sci, 2017.19(1).[4]Veale, D.J. and U. Fearon,The pathogenesis of psoriatic arthritis.Lancet, 2018.391(10136): p. 2273-2284.[5]Ricart, B.G., et al.,Dendritic cells distinguish individual chemokine signals through CCR7 and CXCR4.J Immunol, 2011.186(1): p. 53-61.Acknowledgments:This project was financially supported by Novartis Pharma GmbH.Disclosure of Interests:Sarah Schnitte Grant/research support from: Reaserch grant by Novartis, Alexander Fuchs: None declared, Tanja Funk: None declared, Ann-Christin Pecher: None declared, Daniela Dörfel: None declared, Jörg Henes Grant/research support from: Novartis, Roche-Chugai, Consultant of: Novartis, Roche, Celgene, Pfizer, Abbvie, Sanofi, Boehringer-Ingelheim,