UC Davis

Identifying tumor-mediated mechanisms that impair immunity is instrumental for the design of new cancer therapies. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a key component of cancer-derived immune suppression; however, these lymphocytes are necessary to prevent systemic autoimmunity in mice and humans, and thus, direct targeting of Tregs is not a clinical option for cancer patients. We have previously demonstrated that excising transcription factor Kruppel-like factor 2 (Klf2) within the T cell lineage blocks the generation of peripheral-derived Tregs (pTregs) without impairing production of thymic-derived Tregs. Using this mouse model, we have now demonstrated that eliminating pTregs is sufficient to delay/prevent tumor malignancy without causing autoimmunity. Cancer-bearing mice that expressed KLF2 converted tumor-specific CD4+ T cells into pTregs, which accumulated in secondary lymphoid organs and impaired further T cell effector activity. In contrast, pTreg-deficient mice retained cancer-specific immunity, including improved T cell infiltration into cold tumors, reduced T cell exhaustion in tumor beds, restricted generation of tumor-associated myeloid-derived suppressor cells, and the continued production of circulating effector T cells that arose in a cancer-dependent manner. Results indicate that tumor-specific pTregs are critical for early stages of cancer progression and blocking the generation of these inhibitory lymphocytes safely delays/prevents malignancy in preclinical models of melanoma and prostate cancer.