Abstract
Complement aids in the construction of an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Tumor cell-derived C3 has been previously reported, but whether and how it acts on antitumor immunity remains to be elucidated. Here, we describe a mechanism for tumor cell-derived C3 in suppressing antitumor immunity. Tumor cell-derived C3 was activated intracellularly, which results in generation of C3a. C3a modulated tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) via C3a-C3aR-PI3Kγ signaling, thereby repressing antitumor immunity. Deletion of C3 in tumor cells that had high C3 expression enhanced efficacy of anti-PD-L1 treatment. Collectively, our results suggest tumor cell derived C3 may be a useful target for cancer immunotherapy and that targeting C3 in tumor cells may enhance antitumor immunity.
- Received April 23, 2018.
- Revision received August 27, 2018.
- Accepted November 29, 2018.
- Copyright ©2018, American Association for Cancer Research.
Log in using your username and password
Purchase Short Term Access
Pay Per Article - You may access this article (from the computer you are currently using) for 1 day for US$35.00
Regain Access - You can regain access to a recent Pay per Article purchase if your access period has not yet expired.