Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered a new immunotherapy target, a cryptic antigen, may be key in helping the immune system fight tumors in ovarian cancer. The study, published in Science Advances, could improve treatment approaches for this type of cancer.
Because ovarian cancer has limited symptoms, it can go undetected until it has spread. At a later stage, it becomes challenging to treat and has had limited success from existing immunotherapies and checkpoint inhibitors.
Cryptic antigens are part of a protein — known as epitopes — that are usually hidden or inaccessible to the immune system and may be present in tumor cells. By targeting these antigens, the immune system can be effectively mobilized to attack the cancer.
“These findings underscore the need to look at alternate sources of target antigens for ovarian cancer,” says Marion R. Curtis, Ph.D., senior author of the study and immunologist at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center. “Discovering tumor-associated antigens that T cells recognize is crucial for the success of immunotherapeutic approaches in ovarian cancer, where the growth of cells that form in the ovaries multiply quickly and can invade and destroy healthy body tissue.”
T cells are a critical component of the adaptive immune system. Their ability to recognize and respond to specific targets is fundamental to their function. They play a significant role in developing and treating cancer and are vital in the immune system’s fight against infections.
In this study, the researchers characterized tumor antigens generated from ovarian cancer using multi-omics approaches to determine their ability to trigger an immune response. Multi-omics encompasses using multiple “omes” (i.e., genome, proteome, microbiome, epigenome) to better understand the mechanisms of disease processes, detection, potential prevention and more focused therapies.
Researchers have previously focused on discovering newly formed antigens (neoantigens). However, a previous study revealed that neoantigens are rarely found in ovarian cancer samples, making them unattractive targets.
The next steps involve preclinical testing and clinical trials to evaluate the safety and efficacy of new immunotherapies and vaccines that target these cryptic antigens. The researchers also plan larger-scale studies to determine the prevalence of cryptic antigen expression across various tumor types, potentially paving the way for broader applications of this immunotherapy approach.
Review the study for a complete list of authors, disclosures and funding.
