Abstract C103: The combination of PI3kδ-selective inhibition and immunomodulation shows efficacy in solid tumor models
Authors: Koblish Holly K. , Wang Liang-Chuan , Hansbury Michael , Zhang Yue , Yang Gengjie , Burn Timothy , Waeltz Paul , Rupar Mark , Yue Eddy , Douty Brent , Maduskuie Thomas , Falahatpisheh Nikoo , Li Yun-long , Combs Andrew , Hollis Gregory , Huber Reid , Scherle Peggy 
Published: May 2016

Understanding the in vivo responses to immunoregulatory agents provides a basis for building more efficacious combination regimens. Pharmacologic inhibition of the oncogenic PI3Kδ pathway has been shown to be active in patients with hematopoietic malignancies. Recently, genetic inactivation of PI3Kδ in mice was shown to delay the growth of solid tumors, through the inactivation of Treg-mediated suppression of cytotoxic CD8+ T cell responses, suggesting that it may have additional utility in this patient population. We identified a similar immunomodulatory role for the PI3Kδ-selective inhibitor INCB050465 in a preclinical model of pancreatic cancer, where an increase in the number of CD8+ T cells, a decrease in the number of suppressor cells and efficacy were seen. Therefore we explored the potential of INCB050465 in additional preclinical solid tumor models, alone and in combination with other immunotherapeutic agents. INCB050465 inhibited tumor growth in multiple established tumor models which are not dependent upon oncogenic PI3K signaling. Tumor growth inhibition was not observed in these models in immunocompromised mice, demonstrating that the anti-tumor effects of these agents require an intact immune system. To further investigate immune-mediated mechanisms, tumors were analyzed for modulation of gene expression and immune phenotype after mice received short-term treatment. INCB050465 was shown to significantly downregulate the T cell gene signature in tumors, and this was primarily due to depletion of CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ regulatory T cells. As seen previously, the number of CD8+ T cells was shown to be higher in INCB050465-treated tumors. The combination of PI3Kδ and JAK inhibition resulted in enhanced activity in a T-cell-inflamed model by reducing both Treg and M2 macrophages, which promotes re-activation of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. In addition, PI3Kδ inhibition and PD-L1 blockade resulted in enhanced efficacy by depleting Treg and prolonging T cell response over time. In summary, pharmacological inhibition of PI3Kδ can enhance anti-tumor immunity by depleting Treg while increasing the numbers of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. These data support clinical evaluation of the mechanism, and further studies to understand the molecular basis of efficacy and complex cellular responses may provide rationale to identify individuals who may benefit from PI3Kδ inhibitor-based immunotherapy combinations in the clinic.

Citation Format: Holly K. Koblish, Liang-Chuan Wang, Michael Hansbury, Yue Zhang, Gengjie Yang, Timothy Burn, Paul Waeltz, Mark Rupar, Eddy Yue, Brent Douty, Thomas Maduskuie, Nikoo Falahatpisheh, Yun-long Li, Andrew Combs, Gregory Hollis, Reid Huber, Peggy Scherle. The combination of PI3kδ-selective inhibition and immunomodulation shows efficacy in solid tumor models. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2015 Nov 5-9; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2015;14(12 Suppl 2):Abstract nr C103.