To expand applications for T-cell-based immunotherapy in cancer, we designed a receptor that binds the Fc portion of human immunoglobulins and delivers activation signals. The construct included the high-affinity CD16 (FCGR3A) V158 variant, CD8a hinge, and transmembrane domains, along with signaling domains from CD3z and 4-1BB (TNFRSF9), forming a chimeric receptor termed CD16V-BB-z. After retrovirus-mediated expression in human T cells, CD16V-BB-z bound humanized antibodies with higher affinity than a control receptor containing the more common F158 variant. Engagement of CD16V-BB-z provoked T-cell activation, exocytosis of lytic granules, and sustained proliferation, with a mean cell recovery after 4-week coculture with Daudi lymphoma cells and rituximab of nearly 70-fold relative to input cells. In contrast, unbound antibody alone produced no effect. CD16V-BB-z T cells specifically killed lymphoma cells and primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells in combination with rituximab at a low effector:target ratio, even when assayed on mesenchymal cells. Trastuzumab triggered CD16V-BB-z-mediated killing of HER2 (ERBB2) þ breast and gastric cancer cells; similar results were obtained with an anti-GD2 antibody in neuroblastoma and osteosarcoma cells. Furthermore, coadministration of CD16V-BB-z T cells with immunotherapeutic antibodies exerted considerable antitumor activity in vivo.Signaling mediated by 4-1BB-CD3z induced higher T-cell activation, proliferation, and cytotoxicity than CD3z or FceRIg, and the receptor was expressed effectively after mRNA electroporation without viral vectors, facilitating clinical translation. Our results offer preclinical proof of concept for CD16V-BB-z as a universal, next-generation chimeric receptor with the potential to augment the efficacy of antibody therapies for cancer. Cancer Res; 74(1); 93-103. Ó2013 AACR.

Somatic mutation of RUNX1 is implicated in various hematological malignancies, including myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and previous studies using mouse models disclosed its critical roles in hematopoiesis. However, the role of RUNX1 in human hematopoiesis has never been tested in experimental settings. Familial platelet disorder (FPD)/AML is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by germline mutation of RUNX1, marked by thrombocytopenia and propensity to acute leukemia. To investigate the physiological function of RUNX1 in human hematopoiesis and pathophysiology of FPD/AML, we derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from three distinct FPD/AML pedigrees (FPD-iPSCs) and examined their defects in hematopoietic differentiation. By in vitro differentiation assays, FPD-iPSCs were clearly defective in the emergence of hematopoietic progenitors and differentiation of megakaryocytes, and overexpression of wild-type (WT)-RUNX1 reversed most of these phenotypes. We further demonstrated that overexpression of mutant-RUNX1 in WT-iPSCs did not recapitulate the phenotype of FPD-iPSCs, showing that the mutations were of loss-of-function type. Taken together, this study demonstrated that haploinsufficient RUNX1 allele imposed cell-intrinsic defects on hematopoietic differentiation in human experimental settings and revealed differential impacts of RUNX1 dosage on human and murine megakaryopoiesis. FPD-iPSCs will be a useful tool to investigate mutant RUNX1-mediated molecular processes in hematopoiesis and leukemogenesis.

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In Western countries, gene alterations involving the CRLF2‐JAK signaling pathway are identified in approximately 50–60% of patients with Down syndrome‐associated acute lymphoblastic leukemia (DS‐ALL), and this pathway is considered a potential therapeutic target. The frequency of BTG1 deletions in DS‐ALL is controversial. IKZF1 deletions, found in 20–30% of DS‐ALL patients, are associated with a poor outcome and EBF1 deletions are very rare (∼2%). We analyzed 38 patients to determine the frequencies and clinical implications of CRLF2‐JAK pathway genetic alterations and recurrent gene deletions in Japanese DS‐ALL patients. We confirmed a high incidence of P2RY8‐CRLF2 (29%) and JAK2 mutations (16%), though the frequency of P2RY8‐CRLF2 was slightly lower than that in Western countries (∼50%). BTG1 deletions were common in our cohort (25%). IKZF1 deletions were detected in 25% of patients and associated with shorter overall survival (OS). EBF1 deletions were found at an unexpectedly high frequency (16%), and at a significantly higher level in P2RY8‐CRLF2‐positive patients than in P2RY8‐CRLF2‐negative patients (44% vs. 4%, P = 0.015). Deletions of CDKN2A/B and PAX5 were common in P2RY8‐CRLF2‐negative patients (48 and 39%, respectively) but not in P2RY8‐CRLF2‐positive patients (11% each). Associations between these genetic alterations and clinical characteristics were not observed except for inferior OS in patients with IKZF1 deletions. These results suggest that differences exist between the genetic profiles of DS‐ALL patients in Japan and in Western countries, and that P2RY8‐CRLF2 and EBF1 deletions may cooperate in leukemogenesis in a subset of Japanese DS‐ALL patients. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.