1. Academic Validation
  2. Aerobic glycolysis promotes tumor immune evasion by hexokinase2-mediated phosphorylation of IκBα

Aerobic glycolysis promotes tumor immune evasion by hexokinase2-mediated phosphorylation of IκBα

  • Cell Metab. 2022 Sep 6;34(9):1312-1324.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2022.08.002.
Dong Guo 1 Yingying Tong 2 Xiaoming Jiang 1 Ying Meng 1 Hongfei Jiang 3 Linyong Du 4 Qingang Wu 1 Shan Li 1 Shudi Luo 1 Min Li 1 Liwei Xiao 1 Haiyan He 1 Xuxiao He 1 Qiujing Yu 5 Jing Fang 3 Zhimin Lu 6
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital, Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310029, China; Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310029, China.
  • 2 Cancer Center, Beijing Luhe Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 101149, China.
  • 3 The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao Cancer Institute, Qingdao, Shandong 266071, China.
  • 4 Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medicine, Ministry of Education of China, School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China.
  • 5 Key Laboratory of Immune Microenvironment and Disease (Ministry of Education), Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China.
  • 6 Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital, Institute of Translational Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310029, China; Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310029, China. Electronic address: zhiminlu@zju.edu.cn.
Abstract

High expression of PD-L1 in tumor cells contributes to tumor immune evasion. However, whether PD-L1 expression in tumor cells is regulated by the availability of nutrients is unknown. Here, we show that in human glioblastoma cells, high glucose promotes Hexokinase (HK) 2 dissociation from mitochondria and its subsequent binding and phosphorylation of IκBα at T291. This leads to increased interaction between IκBα and μ-calpain Protease and subsequent μ-calpain-mediated IκBα degradation and NF-κB activation-dependent transcriptional upregulation of PD-L1 expression. Expression of IκBα T291A in glioblastoma cells blocked high glucose-induced PD-L1 expression and promoted CD8+ T cell activation and infiltration into the tumor tissue, reducing brain tumor growth. Combined treatment with an HK inhibitor and an anti-PD-1 antibody eliminates tumor immune evasion and remarkably enhances the anti-tumor effect of immune checkpoint blockade. These findings elucidate a novel mechanism underlying the upregulation of PD-L1 expression mediated by aerobic glycolysis and underscore the roles of HK2 as a glucose sensor and a protein kinase in regulation of tumor immune evasion.

Keywords

HK2; IκBα; NF-κB; PD-L1; glycolysis; immune evasion; phosphorylation; protein kinase.

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