Vascular endothelial growth factor

The effect of blocking VEGF activity in solid tumors extends beyond inhibition of angiogenesis. However, no studies have compared the effectiveness of mechanistically different anti-VEGF inhibitors with respect to changes in tumor growth and alterations in the tumor microenvironment. In this study we use three distinct breast cancer models, a MDA-MB-231 xenograft model, a 4T1 syngenic model, and a transgenic model using MMTV-PyMT mice, to explore the effects of various anti-VEGF therapies on tumor vasculature, immune cell infiltration, and cytokine levels. Tumor vasculature and immune cell infiltration were evaluated using immunohistochemistry. Cytokine levels were evaluated using ELISA and electrochemiluminescence. We found that blocking the activation of VEGF receptor resulted in changes in intra-tumoral cytokine levels, specifically IL-1β, IL-6 and CXCL1. Modulation of the level these cytokines is important for controlling immune cell infiltration and ultimately tumor growth. Furthermore, we demonstrate that selective inhibition of VEGF binding to VEGFR2 with r84 is more effective at controlling tumor growth and inhibiting the infiltration of suppressive immune cells (MDSC, Treg, macrophages) while increasing the mature dendritic cell fraction than other anti-VEGF strategies. In addition, we found that changes in serum IL-1β and IL-6 levels correlated with response to therapy, identifying two possible biomarkers for assessing the effectiveness of anti-VEGF therapy in breast cancer patients.

Macrophages are an abundant inflammatory cell type in the tumor microenvironment that can contribute to tumor growth and metastasis. Macrophage recruitment into tumors is mediated by multiple cytokines, including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which is thought to function primarily through VEGF receptor (VEGFR) 1 expressed on macrophages. Macrophage infiltration is affected by VEGF inhibition. We show that selective inhibition of VEGFR2 reduced macrophage infiltration into orthotopic pancreatic tumors. Our studies show that tumor-associated macrophages express VEGFR2. Furthermore, peritoneal macrophages from tumor-bearing animals express VEGFR2, whereas peritoneal macrophages from non-tumor-bearing animals do not. To our knowledge, this is the first time that tumor-associated macrophages have been shown to express VEGFR2. Additionally, we found that the cytokine pleiotrophin is sufficient to induce VEGFR2 expression on macrophages. Pleiotrophin has previously been shown to induce expression of endothelial cell markers on macrophages and was present in the microenvironment of orthotopic pancreatic tumors. Finally, we show that VEGFR2, when expressed by macrophages, is essential for VEGF-stimulated migration of tumor-associated macrophages. In summary, tumor-associated macrophages express VEGFR2, and selective inhibition of VEGFR2 reduces recruitment of macrophages into orthotopic pancreatic tumors. Our results show an underappreciated mechanism of action that may directly contribute to the antitumor activity of angiogenesis inhibitors that block the VEGFR2 pathway. [Cancer Res 2008;68(11):4340-6]

Multiple tumor-derived factors are responsible for the accumulation and expansion of immune-suppressing myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) and M2-like tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) in tumors. Here, we show that treatment of tumor-bearing mice with docetaxel in combination with the phosphatidylserine-targeting antibody 2aG4 potently suppressed the growth and progression of prostate tumors, depleted M2-like TAMs, and MDSCs, and increased the presence of M1-like TAMs and mature dendritic cells in the tumors. In addition, the antibody markedly altered the cytokine balance in the tumor microenvironment from immunosuppressive to immunostimulatory. In vitro studies confirmed that 2aG4 repolarized TAMs from an M2-to an M1-like phenotype and drove the differentiation of MDSCs into M1-like TAMs and functional dendritic cells. These data suggest that phosphatidylserine is responsible for the expansion of MDSCs and M2-like TAMs in tumors, and that bavituximab, a phosphatidylserine-targeting antibody currently in clinical trials for cancer, could reverse this process and reactivate antitumor immunity. Cancer Immunol Res; 1(4); 256-68. Ó2013 AACR.

The last decade has seen an exponential growth in the number of exosome-related publications. Although many of these studies have used exosomes from biological fluids (blood, and ascites or pleural effusions) the vast majority employed vesicles isolated from large volumes of tissue culture supernatants. While several techniques are available for their isolation, all require a significant reduction in volume to obtain sufficient concentrations for study. One approach is to concentrate the medium before proceeding with their isolation, however, these procedures are very time consuming and require specialized laboratory equipment. Here we provide a new and effective method for the isolation of tumor-derived exosomes based on “charge neutralization” with acetate. We show that titration of tissue culture supernatants with 0.1M acetate to pH 4.75 results in immediate precipitation of virtually all the exosomes. The precipitated exosomes can be washed to remove residual media and are readily “resolubilized” upon resuspension in acetate-free buffer at neutral pH. This simple cost effective method significantly increases the yield of exosomes from an unlimited quantity of culture supernatants. Exosomes isolated by this technique are indistinguishable from exosomes recovered by direct ultracentrifugation.

BackgroundVascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a primary stimulant of angiogenesis under physiological and pathological conditions. Anti-VEGF therapy is a clinically proven strategy for the treatment of a variety of cancers including colon, breast, lung, and renal cell carcinoma. Since VEGFR2 is the dominant angiogenic signaling receptor, it has become an important target in the development of novel anti-angiogenic therapies. We have reported previously the development of an antagonistic VEGFR2 peptoid (GU40C4) that has promising anti-angiogenic activity in vitro and in vivo.MethodsIn the current study, we utilize a derivative of GU40C4, termed GU81 in therapy studies. GU81 was tested alone or in combination with doxorubicin for in vivo efficacy in the MMTV-PyMT transgenic model of breast cancer.ResultsThe derivative GU81 has increased in vitro efficacy compared to GU40C4. Single agent therapy (doxorubicin or GU81 alone) had no effect on tumor weight, histology, tumor fat content, or tumor growth index. However, GU81 is able to significantly to reduce total vascular area as a single agent. GU81 used in combination with doxorubicin significantly reduced tumor weight and growth index compared to all other treatment groups. Furthermore, treatment with combination therapy significantly arrested tumor progression at the premalignant stage, resulting in increased tumor fat content. Interestingly, treatment with GU81 alone increased tumor-VEGF levels and macrophage infiltration, an effect that was abrogated when used in combination with doxorubicin.ConclusionThis study demonstrates the VEGFR2 antagonist peptoid, GU81, enhances the anti-tumor activity of doxorubicin in spontaneous murine MMTV-PyMT breast tumors.

Angiogenesis, the sprouting of the existing vascular network to form new vessels, is required for the growth of solid tumors. For this reason, the primary stimulant of angiogenesis, vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF), is an attractive target for tumor therapy. In fact, there are currently numerous anti-VEGF therapies in clinical development for the treatment of various cancers, including breast cancer. VEGF signals through two primary VEGF receptors, VEGFR1 and VEGFR2. VEGFR2 is the primary angiogenic receptor, and VEGFR1 has been implicated in macrophage chemotaxis and tumor cell survival and invasion. It has only been appreciated recently that the VEGFRs are expressed not only on endothelial cells and tumor cells but also on many host immune cells. Therefore, to better understand the effects of anti-VEGF therapy it is important to consider the effects of VEGF on all cells in the tumor microenvironment, including immune cells. Bevacizumab (Avastin®, Genetech), which binds VEGF and inhibits interaction with VEGFR1 and VEGFR2, was approved for the treatment of metastatic HER2/NEU-negative breast cancer in 2008, however, the majority of human mammary tumors are either innately resistant or will acquire resistance to anti-VEGF therapy. This suggests that these tumors activate alternate angiogenesis pathways. Pleiotrophin (PTN) is an important angiogenic cytokine in breast cancer and is expressed at high levels in approximately 60% of human breast tumors. PTN functions as an angiogenic factor and promotes remodeling of the tumor microenvironment as well as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). In addition, PTN can have profound effects on macrophage phenotype. The present review focuses on the functions of VEGF and PTN on immune cell infiltration and function in breast cancer. Furthermore, we will discuss how anti-VEGF therapy modulates the immune cell profile.

Summary A new study by Sennino and colleagues demonstrates that selective VEGF inhibition via the use of an anti-VEGF antibody is sufficient to increase invasion and metastasis in a c-Met–dependent manner. Anti-VEGF therapy induced tumor hypoxia, hypoxia-inducible factor 1α, and c-Met activation in the RIP-Tag2 model of neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer. Selective c-Met inhibition was sufficient to block these effects, providing a potential mechanism for and solution to overcome increased invasion in the face of anti-VEGF therapy.