2. Academic Validation
  3. Ionizing Radiation Triggers the Antitumor Immunity by Inducing Gasdermin E-Mediated Pyroptosis in Tumor Cells

Ionizing Radiation Triggers the Antitumor Immunity by Inducing Gasdermin E-Mediated Pyroptosis in Tumor Cells

  • Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2022 Jul 30;S0360-3016(22)02596-2. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2022.07.1841.
Wei Cao 1,  Guodong Chen 2,  Lijun Wu 3,  K N Yu 4,  Mingyu Sun 5,  Miaomiao Yang 6,  Yanyi Jiang 6,  Yuan Jiang 6,  Yuan Xu 1,  Shengjie Peng 1,  Wei Han 7
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China; University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, P. R. China.
  • 2 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China; Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China.
  • 3 Institute of Physical Science and Information Technology, Anhui University.
  • 4 Department of Physics, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, P.R. China; State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, P.R. China.
  • 5 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China; School of Basic Medical Science, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, P. R. China.
  • 6 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China.
  • 7 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Medical Physics and Technology, Institute of Health and Medical Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China; Hefei Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, P. R. China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Radiation Medicine of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions and School for Radiological and Interdisciplinary Sciences (RAD-X), Soochow University, Suzhou, P. R. China. Electronic address: hanw@hfcas.ac.cn.
PMID: 35918054 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2022.07.1841
Abstract

Purpose: To understand Pyroptosis induced by ionizing radiation and its implications for radiation therapy, we explored the involved factors, possible mechanisms of radiation-induced Pyroptosis and consequent antitumor immunity.

Methods and materials: The occurrence of Pyroptosis was assessed by cell morphology, Lactate Dehydrogenase release, Annexin V/PI staining and the cleavage of Gasdermin E (GSDME). Cell radiosensitivity was tested with MTT and colony survival assays. Xenograft tumor volume, Ki-67, CD8+ lymphocytes, and ELISA were used to evaluate the effect of GSDME on tumor suppression after irradiation.

Results: Irradiation induced Pyroptosis in GSDME high-expressing tumor cell lines covering lung, liver, breast, and glioma cancers. Cleavage of GSDME occurred in a dose- and time-dependent manner after irradiation, and Pyroptosis could be induced by various kinds of irradiation. The combination of chemotherapy drugs for DNA damage (cisplatin or etoposide) or demethylation (decitabine or azacytidine) and irradiation significantly enhanced the occurrence of Pyroptosis. Moreover, we revealed that the Caspase 9/Caspase 3/GSDME pathway was involved in irradiation-induced Pyroptosis. Notably, enhanced tumor suppression was observed in Balb/c mice bearing GSDME-overexpressing 4T1 tumors compared with those bearing vector tumors for the promotion of antitumor immunity, which was manifested as distinctly elevated levels of cytotoxic T lymphocytes and release of the related cytokines rather than the direct effect of Pyroptosis on tumor cell radiosensitivity.

Conclusions: As an immunogenic cell death caused by radiation, Pyroptosis promotes antitumor immunity after irradiation. Our findings may provide new insights to improve the efficacy of tumor radiation therapy.

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