Modulation of EZH2 expression in T cells improves efficacy of anti-CTLA-4 therapy.
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| Abstract | :  Enhancer of zeste homolog 2-mediated (EZH2-mediated) epigenetic regulation of T cell differentiation and Treg function has been described previously; however, the role of EZH2 in T cell-mediated antitumor immunity, especially in the context of immune checkpoint therapy, is not understood. Here, we showed that genetic depletion of EZH2 in Tregs (FoxP3creEZH2fl/fl mice) leads to robust antitumor immunity. In addition, pharmacological inhibition of EZH2 in human T cells using CPI-1205 elicited phenotypic and functional alterations of the Tregs and enhanced cytotoxic activity of Teffs. We observed that ipilimumab (anti-CTLA-4) increased EZH2 expression in peripheral T cells from treated patients. We hypothesized that inhibition of EZH2 expression in T cells would increase the effectiveness of anti-CTLA-4 therapy, which we tested in murine models. Collectively, our data demonstrated that modulating EZH2 expression in T cells can improve antitumor responses elicited by anti-CTLA-4 therapy, which provides a strong rationale for a combination trial of CPI-1205 plus ipilimumab. | 
| Year of Publication | :  2018 | 
| Journal | :  The Journal of clinical investigation | 
| Date Published | :  2018 | 
| ISSN Number | :  0021-9738 | 
| URL | :  https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI99760 | 
| DOI | :  10.1172/JCI99760 | 
| Short Title | :  J Clin Invest | 
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