THE ROLE OF INTERFERON GAMMA AND CTLA4 IN MELANOCYTE AND MELANOMA BIOLOGY

Abstract

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) stimulates melanogenesis in melanocytes, primarily via release of alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone from keratinocytes. UVR also induced an inflammatory response in the skin in which Interferon-gamma (IFNγ) cytokine plays an important orchestrating role. Here we report that recombinant IFNγ induces a temporal increase of melanogenesis in mouse melanoma cells. IFNγ elevates expression of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (Mitf), which is the master regulator of melanogenesis by initiating transcription of melanogenic enzymes, tyrosinase (Tyr), tyrosinese-related protein 1 (Tyrp1) and dopachrome tautomerase (Dct). Interestingly, tyrosinase protein, but not mRNA expression, accumulated in response to IFNγ treatment and was consistent with tyrosinase activity. In addition, glycosidase digestion showed that IFNγ induced ER-resistant, fully mature tyrosinase via post-transcriptional mechanisms, rather than increased de novo synthesis or early processing in the ER. Most strikingly, IFNγ mediated alkalization of melanosomes by elevating Oca2 expression, which leads to facilitate melanosome maturation and sequential accumulation of mature tyrosianse. Both Jak1/Jak2 inhibitor Ruxolitinib and knockout of Stat1 mediated by CRISPR-CAS9 blocked the IFNγ-induced Mitf, tyrosinase, Oca2 expressions and melanin biosynthesis. Our data reveals that IFNγ-Jak1/2-Stat1 axis regulates melanogenesis by inducing maturation of melanosomes and accumulation of mature tyrosinase via post-translational mechanisms. CTLA4 is a cell surface receptor on T cells that functions as an immune checkpoint molecule to enforce tolerance to cognate antigens. Anti-CTLA4 immunotherapy is highly effective at reactivating T cell responses against melanoma, which is postulated to be due to targeting CTLA4 on T cells. Here we report that CTLA4 is also highly expressed by most human melanoma cell lines, as well as in normal human melanocytes. Interferon-gamma (IFNγ) signaling activated the expression of the human CTLA4 gene in a melanocyte and melanoma cell-specific manner. Mechanistically, IFNγ activated CTLA4 expression through JAK1/2-dependent phosphorylation of STAT1, which bound a specific gamma-activated sequence (GAS) site on the CTLA4 promoter, thereby licensing CBP/p300-mediated histone acetylation and local chromatin opening. In melanoma cell lines, elevated baseline expression relied upon constitutive activation of the MAPK pathway. Notably, RNA-seq analyses of melanoma specimens obtained from patients who had received anti-CTLA4 immunotherapy (ipilimumab) showed upregulation of an IFNγ -response gene expression signature, including CTLA4 itself, which correlated significantly with durable response. We also show that ectopic expression of Ctla4 in mouse melanoma cells promotes tumor growth in immunocompetent mice. Ctla4-enhanced melanomagenesis is blocked in immunodeficient NSG mice. In addition, ligation of CD86 (one of Ctla4 ligands) in T cells inhibits CD8 T cells proliferation in vitro. Expression of Ctla4 in melanoma cells are resistant to CD8 T cell cytoxicity in vitro. Our data demonstrates and highlights the novel and unrecognized functions of CTLA4 in melanoma cells that aids their survival, immunoevasion and tumorigenic capabilities. Taken together, these findings have potential implications for the conventional and prototypical roles of the IFNγ signaling pathway and CTLA4 in tumor immunosurveillance and tumor immunoevasion. More importantly, our results raise the possibility that CTLA4 targeting on melanoma cells may contribute to the clinical immunobiology of anti-CTLA4 responses.