TAT 2020: CAR-Targeting L1CAM in Neuroendocrine Prostate Cancer
Posted: Wednesday, March 18, 2020
Proceedings from the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Targeted Anticancer Therapies (TAT) Congress 2020 in Paris (Abstract 24P) provide evidence of increased expression of the L1CAM protein in small cell neuroendocrine prostate cancer. The study suggests that L1CAM may prove to be a candidate target for patients with this type of prostate cancer.
According to Alexandra N. Corella, a graduate student of the University of Washington, Seattle, and colleagues, “A [chimeric antigen receptor]-targeting L1CAM is currently under investigation for the treatment of another neuroendocrine tumor type, neuroblastoma.”
Using transcriptomic data, the investigators identified targets expressed in small cell tumors. They looked for targets that were similarly expressed in small cell neuroendocrine prostate cancer, small cell lung cancer, and Merkel cell carcinoma. Differential analysis revealed that L1CAM is highly expressed across all analyzed tumors. Further analysis found a 10-gene neuroendocrine signature that positively correlated with L1CAM expression. The study also used co-culture of prostate cell lines and chimeric antigen receptor T cells to demonstrate secretion of interferons in the presence of small cell neuroendocrine prostate cancer cells.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit esmo.org.
