Name: testing cancer immunotherapeutics in a humanized mouse model bearing human tumors
Uploaded: 2022-12-16T13:50:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors at JoVE.com

We would like to thank both the Animal Research Facility (OLAR) for their care of our mice, and the Flow Cytometry Shared Resource supported by the Cancer Center Support Grant (P30CA046934) at our institute for their immense help in all our work. We also acknowledge both Gail Eckhardt and Anna Capasso for our inaugural collaborations studying immunotherapies to human PDXs in our HIS-BRGS model.&#160;This study was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health P30CA06934 Cancer Center Support Grant with use of the PHISM (Pre-clinical Human Immune System Mouse Models) Shared Resource, RRID: SCR_021990 and Flow Cytometry Shared Resource, RRID: SCR_022035.&#160;This research was supported in part by the NIAID of the National Institutes of Health under Contract Number 75N93020C00058.

All animal work was performed under animal protocols approved by the University of Colorado Denver Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC Protocols #00593 and #00021). All animal work was performed in accordance with the Office of Laboratory Animal Resources (OLAR), an accredited facility by the American Association for Laboratory Animal Care, at the University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus. All human cord blood samples were obtained as donations from de-identified donors and are thus not subject...

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Over the past 6 years, using our expertise in both immunology and humanized mice, our research team has developed a much needed preclinical model to test immunotherapies on a variety of human tumors3,7,30,31. This protocol emphasizes the consideration of the variability of the model, with special attention to the immunotherapy-centric human T cell populations. In this protocol, the generation o...

An erratum was issued for:&#160;<a href="https://www.jove.com/t/64606">Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors</a>. The Authors section was updated from:
Jordi M. Lanis1 
Matthew S. Lewis1 
Hannah Strassburger1 
Stacey M. Bagby2 
Adrian T. A. Dominguez2 
Juan A. Mar&#237;n-Jim&#233;nez3 
Roberta Pelanda1 
Todd M. Pitts2 
Julie Lang1 
1Department of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus 
2Division of Oncology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus 
3Department of Medical Oncology, Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO-L&#8217;Hospitalet)
to:
Jordi M. Lanis1 
Matthew S. Lewis1 
Hannah Strassburger1 
Kristina Larsen1 
Stacey M. Bagby2 
Adrian T. A. Dominguez2 
Juan A. Mar&#237;n-Jim&#233;nez3 
Roberta Pelanda1 
Todd M. Pitts2 
Julie Lang1 
1Department of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus 
2Division of Oncology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus 
3Department of Medical Oncology, Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO-L&#8217;Hospitalet)

An erratum was issued for:&#160;<a href="https://www.jove.com/t/64606">Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors</a>. The Authors section was updated.

Erratum: Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors

Mouse cancer models are important for establishing basic mechanisms of tumor growth and immune escape. However, cancer treatment studies in mouse models have yielded finite translation to the clinic due to limited syngeneic models and species-specific differences1,2. The emergence of immune therapies as a dominant approach to control tumors has reiterated the need for an in vivo model with a functional human immune system. Advancements in human immune system mice (HIS mice) over the past decade have made it possible to study immuno-oncology in vivo in a wide variety of cancer types and immunotherapeutic agents3,4,5,6. Human tumor models, including cell-line derived and patient-derived xenografts (CDX and PDX, respectively), grow well in HIS mice and in most cases are nearly identical to their growth in the immunodeficient host lacking human hematopoietic engraftment7,8. Based on this key finding, researchers have been using the HIS mouse model to study human immunotherapies, including combination therapies designed to alter the tumor microenvironment (TME) to decrease immunosuppression and thus enhance immune-directed tumor killing. These preclinical models help address the issues of heterogeneity of human cancers, and can also predict treatment success as well as monitor immune related drug toxicities9,10.
The production of a mouse model with a human immune system through the introduction of human hematopoietic stem cells requires a recipient immunodeficient mouse that will not reject the xenograft. Current HIS mouse models are derived from immunodeficient mouse strains that were reported over 30 years ago. The first immunodeficient mouse strain described was SCID mice that lacked T and B cells11, followed by a hybrid NOD-SCID with an SIRP&#945;&#160;polymorphism responsible for mouse macrophage tolerance to human cells, due to increased binding for the NOD SIRP&#945; allele to the human CD47 molecule12,13. In the early 2000s, the deletion of the common gamma chain of the IL-2 receptor (IL-2R&#947;c) on both BALB/c and NOD immunodeficient strains was a game changer for enhanced human engraftment, due to genetic deletions forbidding host NK cell development14,15,16,17. Alternative models, such as BRG and NRG mice, achieve T and B cell deficiency through deletion of the Rag1 or Rag2 gene, required for T and B cell receptor gene rearrangements and thus the maturation and survival of lymphocytes18,19. The BRGS (BALB/c -Rag2nullIl2R&#947;CnullSirp&#945;NOD) mouse used herein combines the IL-2R&#947; chain deficiency and the NOD SIRP&#945; allele on the Rag2-/- background, resulting in a highly immunodeficient mouse without T, B, or NK cells, yet with sufficient vigor and health to allow for long term engraftment of more than 30 weeks13.
HIS mice can be generated in multiple ways, with human PBMC injection being the most direct method15,18,20. However, these mice have a pronounced expansion of activated human T cells that results in graft versus host disease (GVHD) by 12 weeks of age, preventing long-term studies. Alternatively, human hematopoietic stem cells from umbilical cord blood (CB), bone marrow, and fetal liver can also be used for engraftment and production of the human immune system de novo. In this system, the hematopoietic stem cells produce a multi-lineage human immune system with the generation of T, B, and innate immune cells that are importantly tolerant of the mouse host, compared to the PBMC mice that develop mostly T cells. Therefore, GVHD is absent or greatly delayed, and studies can be extended to mice up to 10 months of age. CB provides an easy, accessible, and noninvasive source of CD34+ human hematopoietic stem cells that facilitates the engraftment of multiple HIS mice with genetically identical immune systems17,18,20,21. Over the past few years, HIS mouse models have been used extensively to study immunotherapy and the TME3,4,5,6. Despite the development of human derived immune systems in these mice, human xenograft tumors grow at similar rates compared to the control immunodeficient mice and allow for the complex interplay between the cancer cells and immune cells, which is important for maintaining the microenvironment of the engrafted PDX3,7,8. This protocol has been used to perform over 50 studies testing treatments in HIS-BRGS mice with PDXs and CDXs. An important conclusion is that human tumors in the HIS mice maintain their unique TME as defined by molecular evaluation of the tumor relative to the initial patient sample and immune infiltrate characteristics3,22,23. Our group focuses on in-depth evaluation of the HIS in both immune organs and the tumor using multi-parameter flow cytometry. Herein, we describe a protocol for the humanization of BRGS mice, evaluation of chimerism, implantation of human tumors, tumor growth measurements, cancer treatment administration, and analysis of the HIS cells by flow cytometry.

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		<tr>
			<td>1 mL syringe w/needles</td>
			<td>McKesson</td>
			<td>1031815</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>15 mL tubes</td>
			<td>Grenier Bio-One</td>
			<td>188271</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>2-mercaptoethanol</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>M6250</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>50 mL tubes</td>
			<td>Grenier Bio-One</td>
			<td>227261</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>AutoMACS Pro Separator</td>
			<td>Miltenyi</td>
			<td>130-092-545</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>BD Golgi Stop Protein Transport Inhibitor with monensin</td>
			<td>BD Bioscience</td>
			<td>BDB563792</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>BSA</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>BP1600100</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Cell Stim Cocktail</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td>509305</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Chill 15 Rack</td>
			<td>Miltenyi</td>
			<td>130-092-952</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Cotton-plugged glass pipettes</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>13-678-8B</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Cultrex Basement membrane extract</td>
			<td>R&#38;D Systems</td>
			<td>363200502</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Cytek Aurora</td>
			<td>Cytek</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>DNase</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>9003-98-9</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>eBioscience FoxP3/Transcription Factor Staining Buffer Set</td>
			<td>Invitrogen</td>
			<td>00-5523-00</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Embryonic Stemcell FCS</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>10439001</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Eppendorf Tubes; 1.5 mL volume</td>
			<td>Grenier Bio-One</td>
			<td>616201</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Excel</td>
			<td>Microsoft</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>FBS</td>
			<td>Benchmark</td>
			<td>100-106 500mL</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ficoll Hypaque</td>
			<td>GE Healthcare</td>
			<td>45001752</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>FlowJo Software</td>
			<td>BD Biosciences</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Forceps - fine</td>
			<td>Roboz Surgical&#160;</td>
			<td>RS5045</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Forceps normal</td>
			<td>Dumont</td>
			<td>RS4919</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Formaldehyde</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>F75P1GAL</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Frosted Glass Slides</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>1255310</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Gentlemacs C-Tubes</td>
			<td>Miltenyi&#160;&#160;&#160;</td>
			<td>130-096-334</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>GentleMACS Dissociator</td>
			<td>Miltenyi</td>
			<td>130-093-235</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>glass pipettes</td>
			<td>DWK Life Sciences</td>
			<td>63A53</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Glutamax</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>11140050</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>HBSS w/ Ca &#38; Mg</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>55037C</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>HEPES</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT25060CI</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IgG standard</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>I2511</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IgM standard</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>401108</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IMDM</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>12440053</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Liberase DL</td>
			<td>Roche</td>
			<td>5466202001</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>LIVE/DEAD Fixable Blue</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>L23105</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MDA-MB-231</td>
			<td>ATCC</td>
			<td>HTB-26</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MEM</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>1140050</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>mouse anti-human IgG-AP</td>
			<td>Southern Biotech</td>
			<td>JDC-10</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>mouse anti-human IgG-unabeled</td>
			<td>Southern Biotech</td>
			<td>H2</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>mouse anti-human IgM-AP</td>
			<td>Southern Biotech</td>
			<td>UHB</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>mouse anti-human IgM-unlabeled</td>
			<td>Southern Biotech</td>
			<td>SA-DA4</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MultiRad 350</td>
			<td>Precision X-Ray</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>PBS</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>45000-446</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Pen Strep</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>15140122</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Petri Dishes</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>FB0875713A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>p-nitrophenyl substrate</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>34045</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>PRISM</td>
			<td>Graphpad</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Rec Hu FLT3L</td>
			<td>R&#38;D systems</td>
			<td>308-FK-005/CF</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Rec Hu IL6</td>
			<td>R&#38;D systems</td>
			<td>206-IL-010/CF</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Rec Hu SCF</td>
			<td>R&#38;D systems</td>
			<td>255SC010</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>RPMI 1640</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>45000-39</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Saponin</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>8047-15-2</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Scissors</td>
			<td>McKesson</td>
			<td>862945</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Serological pipettes 25 mL</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>1367811</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sterile filter</td>
			<td>Nalgene</td>
			<td>567-0020</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sterile molecular water</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>7732-18-5</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Yeti Cell Analyzer</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>12004279</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Zombie Green</td>
			<td>biolegend</td>
			<td>423112</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

testing cancer immunotherapeutics in a humanized mouse model bearing human tumors

Reversing the immunosuppressive nature of the tumor microenvironment is critical for the successful treatment of cancers with immunotherapy drugs. Murine cancer models are extremely limited in their diversity and suffer from poor translation to the clinic. To serve as a more physiological preclinical model for immunotherapy studies, this protocol has been developed to evaluate the treatment of human tumors in a mouse reconstituted with a human immune system. This unique protocol demonstrates the development of human immune system (HIS, &#34;humanized&#34;) mice, followed by implantation of a human tumor, either a cell-line derived xenograft (CDX) or a patient derived xenograft (PDX). HIS mice are generated by injecting CD34+ human hematopoietic stem cells isolated from umbilical cord blood into neonatal BRGS (BALB/c Rag2-/- IL2R&#947;C-/- NODSIRP&#945;) highly immunodeficient mice that are also capable of accepting a xenogeneic tumor. The importance of the kinetics and characteristics of the human immune system development and tumor implantation is emphasized. Finally, an in-depth evaluation of the tumor microenvironment using flow cytometry is described. In numerous studies using this protocol, it was found that the tumor microenvironment of individual tumors is recapitulated in HIS-PDX mice; &#34;hot&#34; tumors exhibit large immune infiltration while &#34;cold&#34; tumors do not. This model serves as a testing ground for combination immunotherapies for a wide range of human tumors and represents an important tool in the quest for personalized medicine.

Following the flank tumor protocol and experimental timeline (Figure 1), the tumor growth and immune response to a targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy and nivolumab combination treatment was studied in two distinct human colorectal cancer (CRC) PDXs. The TKI drugs have been studied in immunodeficient hosts to evaluate tumor growth only29. This model enabled the study of changes in the immune response of the TKI alone, and more importantly, in combination ...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors at JoVE.com

Testing Cancer Immunotherapeutics in a Humanized Mouse Model Bearing Human Tumors

This protocol outlines the generation of human immune system (HIS) mice for immuno-oncology studies. Instructions and considerations in the use of this model for testing human immunotherapeutics on human tumors implanted in this model are presented with an emphasis on characterizing the response of the human immune system to the tumor.

Reversing the immunosuppressive nature of the tumor microenvironment is critical for the successful treatment of cancers with immunotherapy drugs. Murine ...

This protocol outlines the generation of Human Immune System, or HIS mice for preclinical immuno-oncology studies. Mouse cancer models are limited in their diversity and translate poorly to the clinic. This technique serves as a preclinical model for immunotherapy studies by evaluating the treatment of human tumors in a mouse with a human immune system.The humanized mouse model can be used to study multiple aspects of human immunology, including responses to many infections, or cancers of the human immune system. Acquiring a reliable and robust source of cord blood and maintaining the health of the immunodeficient mouse colony can be challenging. Expertise in flow cytometry and immunological analysis is essential.Demonstrating the procedure will be Kristina Larsen, a research services professional from my laboratory. To begin, resuspend the CD34-positive cell pellet isolated from cord blood in 300 microliters of magnetic cell separator buffer per one times 10 to the eighth cells. Add 100 microliters of FCR blocking reagent per one times 10 to the eighth cells, followed by 100 microliters of CD34-positive magnetic beads per one times 10 to the eighth cells, and incubate at four degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.Next, add five milliliters of magnetic cell separator buffer per one times 10 to the eighth cells, and spin at 360 g for 10 minutes at four degrees Celsius. Repeat the wash step and resuspend the pellet in 500 microliters per 100 million cells of magnetic cell separator buffer in a 15 milliliter conical tube labeled unfractionated. Label two more 15 milliliter tubes CD34-negative and CD34-positive Place the three tubes on a cooling rack.Separate the cells using the two column positive selection program on an automatic magnetic cell separator in a biosafety cabinet. Next, for expanding and freezing CD34-positive human stem cells, prepare cord blood, or CB medium as described in the manuscript, and pass through a 0.22 micron filter. Resuspend the CD34-positive cells at 100, 000 per milliliter of CB medium, and incubate at 37 degrees Celsius.On day three, add an equal volume of CB medium without cytokines to the flask. On day five, harvest the expanded CD34-positive cells. Pipette the cell suspension up and down, and collect in a 50 milliliter conical tube.Add enough CB medium to cover the bottom of the flask. Using a cell scraper, scrape the entire bottom of the flask. Collect all the media into the same 50 milliliter tube, and centrifuge.Resuspend the cells in two milliliters of CB medium, and centrifuge. Aspirate the medium down to the pellet, and resuspend the pellet in a freezing medium. Next, begin CD34-positive cell preparation three hours post-pup irradiation.Warm 10 milliliters of CB media in a 50 milliliter tube. Retrieve one vial of in vitro expanded and frozen CD34-positive cells for every four to six pups to inject. Rapidly thaw at 50 to 55 degrees Celsius until just a small amount of ice is visible, and add the cells to the warmed CB medium.Use one milliliter of medium to rinse each vial, and spin the cells at 360 g for 12 minutes at four degrees Celsius. Aspirate the medium carefully. Resuspend the pellet in two milliliters of CB media and count the cells.Again, centrifuge the cells, aspirate the medium, and resuspend the pellet in 100 microliters of sterile PBS per n plus one pups to inject, resulting in 250, 000 to 450, 000 CD34-positive cells per mouse. For PBMC isolation from mouse blood, mix the blood heparin by gently pipetting up and down, and slowly overlay on top of 500 microliters of 1.077 gram per milliliter density gradient being careful not to disturb the interface. Centrifuge the tube at 1, 220 g for 20 minutes at room temperature with no breaks.Remove as many cells as possible from the buffy coat with a 200 microliter pipette, and add to the new 1.5 milliliter tube containing 750 microliters of harvest medium. Centrifuge at 360 g for 11 minutes. Aspirate the medium to 50 microliters, and resuspend the pellet in 750 microliters of harvest medium.Acquire the data for 100 microliters of each sample on a flow cytometer. Then import the fcs file to the flow data editing software, and apply a polygon gate to an FSC-A versus SSC-A plot. Change the axes to FSC-A versus FSC-H, and gate the cells on the linear diagonal, excluding the doublets that protrude from the line.Select these cells and change the axes to hCD45 versus mCD45. Apply a polygon gate to the hCD45-positive population, and apply the name human. Apply a polygon gate to the mCD45-positive population, and apply the name mouse.Create a counting statistic for human and mouse populations. Next, select the human population, and change the axes to CD19 versus CD3. Apply a polygon gate to the CD19-positive cells, and name them B cells.Apply a polygon gate to the CD3-positive population, and name it T-cells. Then apply a polygon gate to the double negative population, and name it non-TB. Select the T-cell population and change the axes to CD4 versus CD3.Apply a polygon gate to the CD4-positive population, and name it CD4-positive. Apply a polygon gate to the CD4-negative population, and name it CD8. Select the non-TB population, and change the axes to CD56 versus myeloid.Apply a polygon gate to the total CD56-positive population, and name it NK cells. Then apply a polygon gate to the CD56-negative and myeloid-positive population, and name it myeloid. Create a table for the percentage and count statistics of all populations, and export it to a spreadsheet.Calculate percent hCD45 chimerism using the indicated formula. After growing tumor cells in the mouse and administering drug treatments, harvest the tissues. Place the mouse on a foam dissection board with pins to hold them in place and the arms and legs extended at 45 degrees.Make an incision up the middle of the torso starting near the pelvis and extending to the chin. Pull the skin to the edge, and hold it in place with pins. Extract the lymph nodes using fine forceps in the order axillary, cervical, mesenteric, inguinal, and hiatal.Place the lymph nodes on one side of the frosted glass slide in a Petri dish in eight milliliters of harvest medium. Holding the slides at perpendicular angles with the frosted edges inward, gently press the tissues until the cellular contents are released. Rinse the slide several times by pulling them apart and together to release the maximal number of cells.Collect the cells with a five inch glass pipette, and filter them through a nine inch cotton-plugged pipette into a labeled 15 milliliter conical tube. Next, extract the tumor from the open flank by holding the tumor with forceps while slowly snipping at the tumor margins with dissection scissors. Weigh the tumor and remove 1/4 of the tumor for RNA and immunohistochemistry processing.Place the remaining 3/4 of the tumor into a six centimeter dish, and mince it into one millimeter pieces using a scalpel blade. Transfer the tumor pieces into a dissociation tube. Then rinse the dish with incomplete TIL medium, and add it to the tube.Add collagenase preparation, and dissociate the tissue using mechanical dissociation at 37 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes to one hour. Pass the suspension over a 100 micron filter into a 50 milliliter conical tube and rinse the filter with 10 milliliters of TIL complete media. Centrifuge and resuspend the pellet in just enough harvest medium with DNase, so that the cells suspension can easily pass through a P1000 pipette tip and record the volume for downstream analysis.In PDX CRC 307P, the combination treatment slowed the growth of the tumor, as determined by tumor growth volumes over time, tumor weights, and the specific growth rate. PDX CRC 307M tested in a different cohort of mice was less affected by the same combination treatment in HIS BRGS mice. Based on overall human hCD45-positive and human T-cell hCD3-positive chimerism in the blood before tumor implantation, both parameters increased in the peripheral immune system and the TIL in combination with treated CRC 307P-bearing mice, but not the CRC 307M model.Investigation of the human T-cells revealed more activated T-cells in the CRC 307P tumors, but not the lymph from combination treated mice. Also, there were more effector memory CD8-positive T-cells and fewer TIM-3-positive T-cells in the combination treated CRC 307P tumors. In contrast, this difference was not noted in the CRC 307M model.Further, no changes in the frequencies of cytotoxic T-cell populations were observed among the combination treated mice, although higher cytotoxic T-cells were observed in untreated. Combination treatment did not affect the frequencies of Tregs in either CRC 307P lymph organs, or tumors, although the CRC 307M data showed a trend of reduced Tregs. Immune related changes in tumor cells were elevated using flow cytometry.Increased expression of MHC class I and class II was observed on the CRC 307P tumor cells excised from combination treated HIS BRGS mice. In the CRC 307M model, the same drug treatment induced HLA class II expression on the tumor cells. Similarly, the combination treatment resulted in increased PD-L1 expression on the EpCAM-positive CRC 307P tumor cells.Finally, correlations of immune responses with tumor growth were investigated. Increased CD4-positive T-cells showed a significant correlation with smaller tumor growth, and more specifically the HLA-DR-positive activated T-cells in the combination treated HIS mice. Sterile technique while isolating the CD34-positive cells, as the mice are extremely immunodeficient.The resulting chimerism is variable within and between cord blood donors, and T-cells have the largest variation. Unlimited immunotherapy combinations can be performed, as well as mechanistic and drug dosing kinetic studies, for example, deletion of CD8 T-cells to confirm their role. Importantly, drug related toxicities can also be studied.It provided a more relevant and accessible preclinical model to test human immunotherapies for translation into the clinic. Several clinical trials are in progress now based on these data.

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