Evolution of neoantigen landscape during immune checkpoint blockade in non-small cell lung cancer

Valsamo Anagnostou, Kellie N. Smith, Patrick M. Forde, Noushin Niknafs, Rohit Bhattacharya, James White, Theresa Zhang, Vilmos Adleff, Jillian Phallen, Neha Wali, Carolyn Hruban, Violeta B. Guthrie, Kristen Rodgers, Jarushka Naidoo, Hyunseok Kang, William Sharfman, Christos Georgiades, Franco Verde, Peter Illei, Qing Kay LiEdward Gabrielson, Malcolm V. Brock, Cynthia A. Zahnow, Stephen B. Baylin, Robert B. Scharpf, Julie R. Brahmer, Rachel Karchin, Drew M. Pardoll, Victor E. Velculescu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

391 Scopus citations

Abstract

Immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown significant therapeutic responses against tumors containing increased mutation-associated neoantigen load. We have examined the evolving landscape of tumor neoantigens during the emergence of acquired resistance in patients with non-small cell lung cancer after initial response to immune checkpoint blockade with anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-1/anti-CTLA-4 antibodies. Analyses of matched pretreatment and resistant tumors identified genomic changes resulting in loss of 7 to 18 putative mutation-associated neoantigens in resistant clones. Peptides generated from the eliminated neoantigens elicited clonal T-cell expansion in autologous T-cell cultures, suggesting that they generated functional immune responses. Neoantigen loss occurred through elimination of tumor subclones or through deletion of chromosomal regions containing truncal alterations, and was associated with changes in T-cell receptor clonality. These analyses provide insight into the dynamics of mutational landscapes during immune checkpoint blockade and have implications for the development of immune therapies that target tumor neoantigens. SIGNIFICANCE: Acquired resistance to immune checkpoint therapy is being recognized more commonly. This work demonstrates for the fi rst time that acquired resistance to immune checkpoint blockade can arise in association with the evolving landscape of mutations, some of which encode tumor neoantigens recognizable by T cells. These observations imply that widening the breadth of neoantigen reactivity may mitigate the development of acquired resistance.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)264-276
Number of pages13
JournalCancer discovery
Volume7
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Oncology

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