Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 promotes tumor immune evasion by upregulating PD-L1 expression within TME (A–C) scRNA-seq analysis of two paired tumor and paratumor samples from LUAD patients showing cell clustering (A), WFDC2 /HE4-expressing cell populations (B), and quantification of WFDC2 /HE4 expression in epithelial/malignant clusters (C). (D) Online dataset analysis of WFDC2 mRNA expression in tumor versus normal LUAD tissues. (E and F) HE4 overexpression (E) or knockout (F) respectively promoted or suppressed the growth of subcutaneous LLC tumors in mice. (G) Survival of mice intraperitoneally inoculated with HE4-overexpressing or control ID8 cells. (H) HE4 knockout attenuated ID8 peritoneal tumor progression, shown by representative abdominal images and ascites volume. (I) SDS-PAGE with Coomassie blue staining showing the purity of Fc and mouse HE4-Fc (mHE4-Fc) recombinant proteins. (J) Administration of mHE4-Fc promoted MC38 subcutaneous tumor growth. (K) mHE4-Fc administration reversed the growth suppression of HE4-KO LLC subcutaneous tumors. (L) mHE4-Fc failed to reverse tumor growth suppression in HE4-KO LLC tumors implanted in Rag1 -deficient mice. (M) Extracellular HE4 did not promote LLC cell proliferation in vitro , as assessed by CCK8 assay. (N) mHE4-Fc administration suppressed CD8 + T cell activation in the TME of HE4-KO LLC tumors, assessed by IFN-γ + and granzyme B + CD8 + T cells. (O) HE4 upregulated PD-L1 expression on macrophages in the microenvironment of LLC, MC38, and HE4-KO LLC tumors. (P–R) mHE4-Fc administration failed to reverse tumor suppression of HE4-KO LLC subcutaneous tumors in Cd274 -deficient mice, with treatment scheme (P), tumor growth (Q), and tumor weight (R). Statistical analyses were performed using Wilcoxon rank-sum test (D), two-way ANOVA (E, F, J–L, and Q), log rank (Mantel-Cox) test (G), and two-tailed paired (C) or unpaired t tests (H, M, N, O, and R). Data represent two independent experiments (E and M).

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Expressing, Over Expression, Knock-Out, Control, SDS Page, Staining, Recombinant, In Vitro, CCK-8 Assay, Activation Assay, Two Tailed Test

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 competes with IFN-γ for IFN-γR binding and modulates downstream gene expression (A and B) Raw264.7 cells were stimulated with HE4-Fc (20 μg/mL) or IFN-γ (100 ng/mL) for 3 h, followed by RNA-seq; volcano plots of HE4- (A) or IFN-γ-regulated genes (B) are shown. (C) Genes commonly upregulated by HE4 and IFN-γ. (D) AlphaFold-3-predicted interfaces of HE4-IFNGR1/2 and IFN-γ-IFNGR1/2 complexes, with shared receptor-contact residues highlighted. (E) Competitive binding assay: His-tagged IFNGR1/2 was incubated with Flag-HE4 in the presence or absence of IFN-γ, followed by Ni-TED pull-down and immunoblotting. (F and G) SPR sensorgrams showing binding of mHE4-Fc (F) or mIFN-γ-Fc (G) to mIFNGR1-His. (H and I) ELISA quantification of HE4 and/or IFN-γ levels in ascites from ID8-tumor-bearing mice (H) and LLC-tumor-conditioned media (I). (J) High concentrations of HE4 reduced IFN-γ binding to IFNGR1/2 in competitive pull-down assays. (K) PCA of RNA-seq profiles from Raw264.7 cells treated with HE4-Fc, HE4-Fc plus IFN-γ, or IFN-γ for 12 h. (L) Expression (TPM) of representative STAT1- or STAT3-associated genes following the indicated treatments. Statistical analyses were performed using two-tailed paired Student’s t tests (H and I). Data in (E) and SPR sensorgrams (F and G) are representative of three independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Binding Assay, Gene Expression, RNA Sequencing, Competitive Binding Assay, Incubation, Western Blot, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Expressing, Two Tailed Test

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 blockade promotes antitumor immunity in the tumor microenvironment (A–C) scRNA-seq analysis of LLC tumors from mice treated with control IgG or anti-HE4 antibody ( n = 3 per group), showing UMAP clustering of 26 cell populations (A), relative abundance of each cluster (B), and aggregated cell types (C). ∗ p < 0.05 (D and E) HE4 neutralization reduced Cd274 (PD-L1) expression in myeloid compartments. UMAP feature plots show Cd274 expression in macrophage/monocyte and epithelial/malignant populations (D), with paired comparison across macrophage clusters (E). (F) UMAP visualization of nine intratumoral T cell subclusters in control IgG– and anti-HE4–treated tumors. (G) In the LLC subcutaneous model, intratumoral IFN-γ + and CD69 + CD8 + T cells were quantified by flow cytometry. (H) In the ID8 intraperitoneal model, IFN-γ + CD8 + T cells were quantified by flow cytometry. (I–K) HE4 neutralization failed to suppress LLC tumor growth in Rag1 −/− mice, shown by treatment scheme and tumor growth/endpoint analyses. (L–O) CD8 + T cell depletion abrogated the antitumor efficacy of HE4 blockade, with treatment scheme, tumor growth/endpoint measurements, and confirmation of depletion efficiency by flow cytometry. (P–S) Macrophage depletion using anti-CSF1R diminished the antitumor efficacy of HE4 neutralization, with tumor growth/endpoint measurements and confirmation of depletion efficiency by flow cytometry. Statistical analyses were performed using unpaired t tests (B, C, H, and K), paired t test (E), one-way ANOVA (G, N, O, R, and S), and two-way ANOVA (J, M, and Q). Data in (G, H, and L–S) are pooled from two independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Control, Neutralization, Expressing, Comparison, Flow Cytometry

Journal: Cell Reports Medicine

Article Title: HE4 drives PD-L1 expression in myeloid cells via IFN-γR-JAK-STAT3 signaling to promote tumor immune evasion

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2026.102691

Figure Lengend Snippet: HE4 neutralization exerts therapeutic activity in human cancer models (A–C) PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages were stimulated with Fc or hHE4-Fc, and PD-L1 expression was assessed by flow cytometry (A), immunoblotting (B), and RT-qPCR (C); a commercial hHE4-Fc was included as an independent control. (D) Binding of hHE4 to PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells assessed by flow cytometry. (E and F) PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells were pretreated with ruxolitinib, fludarabine, or Stattic, followed by hHE4-Fc stimulation; PD-L1 was quantified by RT-qPCR (E) and flow cytometry (F). (G and H) Anti-hHE4 monoclonal antibodies inhibited hHE4-induced PD-L1 upregulation in PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells, assessed by RT-qPCR (G) and flow cytometry (H). (I) Anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 blocked hHE4 binding to PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells. (J) Binding of wild-type or epitope-mutant hHE4-Fc to anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 was quantified by ELISA. (K) Pharmacokinetic analysis of anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10 in C57BL/6 mice following intravenous administration. (L–O) Fresh human LUAD tumor cell suspensions were treated with anti-hHE4 mAb clone #10, followed by flow cytometric analysis of PD-L1 and ELISA measurement of IFN-γ and granzyme B. (P) Recombinant HE4 suppressed IFN-γ production in human LUAD tumor cell suspensions. (Q–T) HE4 blockade enhanced PBMC-mediated antitumor activity in humanized C-NKG mice bearing OVCAR3 or NCI-H358 tumors, shown by treatment scheme, representative tumors, and tumor weights. Schematics (L and Q) were created using BioRender. Statistical analyses were performed using one-way ANOVA (C, E, and G), paired t tests (M–P), or unpaired t tests (S and T). Data in (A–J) are representative of three independent experiments; data in (Q–T) are pooled from two independent experiments.

Article Snippet: no-tagged mouse IFN-γ protein , MedChemExpress , Cat# HY- P70667.

Techniques: Neutralization, Activity Assay, Expressing, Flow Cytometry, Western Blot, Quantitative RT-PCR, Control, Binding Assay, Bioprocessing, Mutagenesis, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Recombinant

Journal: Science Advances

Article Title: Sympathetic nerve aggravates autoimmune skin disease via NE–adrenergic receptor axis: Neuroimmune cross-talk insights from vitiligo

doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aea7017

Figure Lengend Snippet: ( A and B ) Flow cytometry and statistical analysis of CD8 + CD45 + T cells in the mouse tail epidermis and dermis of vehicle, 6-OHDA, and 6-OHDA + NE groups ( n =3 per group). ( C and D ) Flow cytometry and statistical analysis of IFN-γ + CD8 + T cells in the mouse tail epidermis and dermis of vehicle, 6-OHDA, and 6-OHDA + NE groups ( n =3 per group). ( E and F ) Flow cytometry and statistical analysis of Granzyme B + CD8 + T cells in the mouse tail epidermis and dermis of vehicle, 6-OHDA, and 6-OHDA + NE groups ( n =3 per group). ( G ) The secretion levels of CXCL9, CXCL10, IL-6, and IL-15 in the tail skin of mice in the vehicle, 6-OHDA, and 6-OHDA + NE groups were detected by ELISA ( n =4 per group). All vehicle mice were only treated with 0.1% ascorbic acid in 0.9% sterile NaCl. Error bars represent mean ± SD from three independent experiments. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, and *** P < 0.001.

Article Snippet: ELISA analysis on serum samples, skin samples, and cell culture supernatants were performed using the NE ELISA Kit (E-EL-0047c, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Human CXCL9 ELISA Kit (EHC114.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human CXCL10 ELISA Kit (EHC157.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-6 ELISA Kit (EHC007.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-15 ELISA Kit (EHC013.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Mouse CXCL9 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M3077, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse CXCL10 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M0021, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse IL-6 ELISA Kit (EMC004.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), and Mouse IL-15 ELISA Kit (EMC126.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China) following the manufacturer’s instructions.

Techniques: Flow Cytometry, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Sterility

Journal: Science Advances

Article Title: Sympathetic nerve aggravates autoimmune skin disease via NE–adrenergic receptor axis: Neuroimmune cross-talk insights from vitiligo

doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aea7017

Figure Lengend Snippet: ( A ) Volcano plots illustrated the expression of adrenergic receptors on fibroblasts in human skin, including ADRA1A, ADRA1B, ADRA1D, ADRA2A, ADRA2B, ADRA2C, ADRB1, ADRB2, and ADRB3. ( B ) Bubble map illustrated the up-regulation of ADRA2A expression on fibroblasts in the lesional skin of patients with vitiligo and the normal skin of healthy controls. ( C ) Representative immunofluorescence images of fibroblasts, ADRA2A, CXCL9, CXCL10, and CD8 + T cells from the normal skin of the healthy control and the lesional skin of the patient with vitiligo ( n =3 per group). Nuclei were counterstained with DAPI (blue). Scale bars, 50 μm. ( D ) Immunofluorescence analysis of ADRA2A (red) expression in BJ cells after treatment with 5 μM NE for 48 hours. Cell nuclei were stained with DAPI (blue). Scale bar, 50 μm. ( E ) Secretion levels of CXCL9, CXCL10, IL-6, and IL-15 in BJ cells were detected by ELISA with treatment with aposcopolamine (Apos) or NE ( n =3 per group). ( F ) Secretion levels of CXCL9, CXCL10, IL-6, and IL-15 in BJ cells with ADRA2A siRNA or control siRNA were detected by ELISA ( n =3 per group). Error bars represent mean ± SD from three independent experiments. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, and *** P < 0.001; ns, not significant.

Article Snippet: ELISA analysis on serum samples, skin samples, and cell culture supernatants were performed using the NE ELISA Kit (E-EL-0047c, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Human CXCL9 ELISA Kit (EHC114.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human CXCL10 ELISA Kit (EHC157.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-6 ELISA Kit (EHC007.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-15 ELISA Kit (EHC013.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Mouse CXCL9 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M3077, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse CXCL10 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M0021, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse IL-6 ELISA Kit (EMC004.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), and Mouse IL-15 ELISA Kit (EMC126.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China) following the manufacturer’s instructions.

Techniques: Expressing, Immunofluorescence, Control, Staining, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay

Journal: Science Advances

Article Title: Sympathetic nerve aggravates autoimmune skin disease via NE–adrenergic receptor axis: Neuroimmune cross-talk insights from vitiligo

doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aea7017

Figure Lengend Snippet: ( A ) Volcano plots illustrated the expression of adrenergic receptors on keratinocytes in human skin, including ADRA1A, ADRA1B, ADRA1D, ADRA2A, ADRA2B, ADRA2C, ADRB1, ADRB2, and ADRB3. ( B ) Bubble map illustrated the up-regulation of ADRB2 expression on keratinocytes in the lesional skin of patients with vitiligo and the normal skin of healthy controls. ( C ) Representative immunofluorescence images of keratinocytes, ADRB2, CXCL9, CXCL10, and CD8 + T cells from the normal skin of the healthy control and the lesional skin of the patient with vitiligo ( n =3 per group). Nuclei were counterstained with DAPI (blue). Scale bars, 50 μm. ( D ) Immunofluorescence analysis of ADRB2 (red) expression in keratinocytes after treatment with 5 μM NE for 48 hours. Cell nuclei were stained with DAPI (blue). Scale bar, 50 μm. ( E ) Secretion levels of CXCL9, CXCL10, IL-6, and IL-15 in keratinocytes were detected by ELISA with treatment with NE or ICI ( n =3 per group). ( F ) Secretion levels of CXCL9, CXCL10, IL-6, and IL-15 in keratinocytes with ADRB2 siRNA or control siRNA were detected by ELISA ( n =3 per group). Error bars represent mean ± SD from three independent experiments. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, and *** P < 0.001; ns, not significant.

Article Snippet: ELISA analysis on serum samples, skin samples, and cell culture supernatants were performed using the NE ELISA Kit (E-EL-0047c, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Human CXCL9 ELISA Kit (EHC114.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human CXCL10 ELISA Kit (EHC157.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-6 ELISA Kit (EHC007.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Human IL-15 ELISA Kit (EHC013.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), Mouse CXCL9 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M3077, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse CXCL10 ELISA Kit (E-EL-M0021, Elabscience, Wuhan, China), Mouse IL-6 ELISA Kit (EMC004.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China), and Mouse IL-15 ELISA Kit (EMC126.96, Neobioscience Technology Co, Ltd., China) following the manufacturer’s instructions.

Techniques: Expressing, Immunofluorescence, Control, Staining, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay

Journal: Cell reports. Medicine

Article Title: Targeting neoadjuvant chemotherapy-induced metabolic reprogramming in pancreatic cancer promotes anti-tumor immunity and chemo-response.

doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2023.101234

Figure Lengend Snippet: Figure 6. Targeting CD36 synergistically promoted AG-mediated killing of PDAC in preclinical models (A) Visual presentation of subcutaneous xenograft murine PDAC tumor models (C57 mice) for each group. (B) Measurement of tumor volumes showed CD36 blockage synergistically promoted AG-mediated killing of PDAC in subcutaneous xenograft murine PDAC tumor models. (C) Measurement of tumor weights showed CD36 blockage synergistically promoted AG-mediated killing of PDAC in subcutaneous xenograft murine PDAC tumor models (n = 5). (D) Representative IHC staining showed Ki67 expression in subcutaneous xenografts treated with different regimens. (E) t-Distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (TSNE) analyses showed the clustering for CD36+ CD8+ T cells and GZMB+ CD8+ T cells. (F) Flow cytometry revealed that more CD8+ T cells infiltrated PDAC with NAC, while the percentage of CD36+ CD8+ T cells also increased (n = 5) (mean with standard deviation). (G) ELISA results showed the combination of AG and CD36 blockade significantly improved IFN-g and tumor necrosis factor a (TNF-a) levels intratumorally (n = 5). (H) Representative image of orthotopic murine models of PDAC. (I) Kaplan-Meier curve revealed the combination of CD36 blockade and AG significantly prolonged the survival interval of mice that received orthotopic PDAC cell transplantation (n = 10). Circle or square referred to a happened event (death or censored). Censored event means the mice is still alive at the time point that we ended follow-up. (J) CD36 blockade synergistically with AG regimens optimally narrowed the PDAC tumor size in a humanized PDX model (n = 10). (K) Representative IHC staining image of CD36-high and -low PDAC. (L) Kaplan-Meier curve showed increased CD36 expression predicted worse prognosis of PDAC patients with adjuvant AG chemotherapy. The statistical sig- nificance shown in this figure was detected using t test.

Article Snippet: The ELISA kits used in the present study were as follows: Human IFN-gamma ELISA Kit (absin, abs510007); Human IL-2 ELISA Kit (Boster, EK0397); Mouse TNF alpha ELISA Kit (absin, abs520010) and Mouse IFN- gamma ELISA Kit (absin, abs520007).

Techniques: Immunohistochemistry, Expressing, Flow Cytometry, Standard Deviation, Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay, Transplantation Assay, Adjuvant