In vivo therapeutic effects of affinity-improved-TCR engineered T-cells on HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma

Background In patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), virus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) fail to eliminate HCC cells expressing HBV antigens. As the expression of viral antigen in HBV-associated HCC may decrease to allow tumor to escape immune attacks, we hypothesized that an HBV surface antigen (HBsAg)-specific affinity-improved-T-cell receptor (TCR) will enable T cells to target HCC more effectively than corresponding wild-type-TCR. We also postulated that TCR promiscuity can be exploited to efficiently capture HBV variants that can hinder CTL-based therapeutics. Methods We applied flexi-panning to isolate affinity-improved TCRs binding to a variant antigen, the human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A*02:01-restricted nonapeptide HBs371-379-ILSPFLPLL, from libraries constructed with a TCR cloned using the decapeptide HBs370-379-SIVSPFIPLL. The potency and safety of the affinity-improved-TCR engineered T-cells (Ai-TCR-T) were verified with potentially cross-reactive human and HBV-variant peptides, tumor and normal cells, and xenograft mouse models. Results Ai-TCR-T cells retained cognate HBV antigen specificity and recognized a wide range of HBV genotypic variants with improved sensitivity and cytotoxicity. Cell infusions produced complete elimination of HCC without recurrence in the xenograft mouse models. Elevated accumulation of CD8+ Ai-TCR-T cells in tumors correlated with tumor shrinkage. Conclusion The in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrated that HBsAg-specific Ai-TCR-T cells had safety profiles similar to those of their wild-type counterparts and significantly enhanced potency. This study presents an approach to develop new therapeutic strategies for HBV-related HCC.