The alveolar immune cell landscape is dysregulated in checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis
Karthik Suresh, … , Sonye K. Danoff, Franco D’Alessio
Karthik Suresh, … , Sonye K. Danoff, Franco D’Alessio
Published October 1, 2019; First published July 16, 2019
Citation Information: J Clin Invest. 2019;129(10):4305-4315. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI128654.
View: Text | PDF
Categories: Clinical Medicine Immunology Pulmonology

The alveolar immune cell landscape is dysregulated in checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis

Abstract

BACKGROUND Checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis (CIP) is a highly morbid complication of immune checkpoint immunotherapy (ICI), one which precludes the continuation of ICI. Yet, the mechanistic underpinnings of CIP are unknown.METHODS To better understand the mechanism of lung injury in CIP, we prospectively collected bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples in ICI-treated patients with (n = 12) and without CIP (n = 6), prior to initiating first-line therapy for CIP (high-dose corticosteroids). We analyzed BAL immune cell populations using a combination of traditional multicolor flow cytometry gating, unsupervised clustering analysis, and BAL supernatant cytokine measurements.RESULTS We found increased BAL lymphocytosis, predominantly CD4+ T cells, in patients with CIP. Specifically, we observed increased numbers of BAL central memory T cells, evidence of type I polarization, and decreased expression of cytotoxic T lymphocyte–associated protein 4 and programmed cell death protein 1 in BAL Tregs, suggesting both activation of proinflammatory subsets and an attenuated suppressive phenotype. CIP BAL myeloid immune populations displayed enhanced expression of IL-1β and decreased expression of counterregulatory interleukin-1 receptor antagonist. We observed increased levels of T-cell chemoattractants in the BAL supernatant, consistent with our proinflammatory, lymphocytic cellular landscape.CONCLUSION We observe several immune cell subpopulations that are dysregulated in CIP, which may represent possible targets that could lead to therapeutics for this morbid immune-related adverse event.FUNDING NIH, Department of Defense, and the Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Authors

Karthik Suresh, Jarushka Naidoo, Qiong Zhong, Ye Xiong, Jennifer Mammen, Marcia Villegas de Flores, Laura Cappelli, Aanika Balaji, Tsvi Palmer, Patrick M. Forde, Valsamo Anagnostou, David S. Ettinger, Kristen A. Marrone, Ronan J. Kelly, Christine L. Hann, Benjamin Levy, Josephine L. Feliciano, Cheng-Ting Lin, David Feller-Kopman, Andrew D. Lerner, Hans Lee, Majid Shafiq, Lonny Yarmus, Evan J. Lipson, Mark Soloski, Julie R. Brahmer, Sonye K. Danoff, Franco D’Alessio

×
Problems with a PDF?

This file is in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format. If you have not installed and configured the Adobe Acrobat Reader on your system.

Having trouble reading a PDF?

PDFs are designed to be printed out and read, but if you prefer to read them online, you may find it easier if you increase the view size to 125%.

Having trouble saving a PDF?

Many versions of the free Acrobat Reader do not allow Save. You must instead save the PDF from the JCI Online page you downloaded it from. PC users: Right-click on the Download link and choose the option that says something like "Save Link As...". Mac users should hold the mouse button down on the link to get these same options.

Having trouble printing a PDF?

  1. Try printing one page at a time or to a newer printer.
  2. Try saving the file to disk before printing rather than opening it "on the fly." This requires that you configure your browser to "Save" rather than "Launch Application" for the file type "application/pdf", and can usually be done in the "Helper Applications" options.
  3. Make sure you are using the latest version of Adobe's Acrobat Reader.

Supplemental data - Download (4.53 MB)

Advertisement