Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34030676›Full record

ArticleBMC biology2021

Single-cell transcriptomics reveals the effect of PD-L1/TGF-β blockade on the tumor microenvironment.

Yoong Wearn Lim, Garry L Coles, Savreet K Sandhu, David S Johnson, Adam S Adler, Erica L Stone

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC biology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
23citing papers in PubMed
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

23 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.

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  7. The fibroinflammatory response in cancer.Nature reviews. Cancer · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Yoong Wearn LimGigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA.
Garry L ColesGigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA.
Savreet K SandhuGigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA.
David S JohnsonGigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA.
Adam S Adler *GigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA. aadler@gigagen.com.ORCID 0000-0001-9301-0037
Erica L Stone *GigaGen, Inc., One Tower Place, Suite 750, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, USA. estone@gigagen.com.
GigaGen (United States) · US

Funding

Tumor Microenvironment and MetastasisP30CA010815 · NCI · WISTAR INSTITUTE · PI Luis J Montaner · 1985 to 2026
$75.9M
Next-Generation Antibody Discovery and Development TechnologyR44CA187852 · NCI · GIGAGEN, INC. · PI JOHNSON, DAVID SCOTT · 2016 to 2018
$1.6M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA010815NCI NIH HHS R44 CA187852
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe anti-tumor activity of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapies correlates with T cell infiltration in tumors. Thus, a major goal in oncology is to find strategies that enhance T cell infiltration and efficacy of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy. TGF-β has been shown to contribute to T cell exclusion, and anti-TGF-β improves anti-PD-L1 efficacy in vivo. However, TGF-β inhibition has frequently been shown to induce toxicity in the clinic, and the clinical efficacy of combination PD-L1 and TGF-β blockade has not yet been proven. To identify strategies to overcome resistance to PD-L1 blockade, the transcriptional programs associated with PD-L1 and/or TGF-β blockade in the tumor microenvironment should be further elucidated.

resultsWe used single-cell RNA sequencing in a mouse model to characterize the transcriptomic effects of PD-L1 and/or TGF-β blockade on nearly 30,000 single cells in the tumor and surrounding microenvironment. Combination treatment led to upregulation of immune response genes, including multiple chemokine genes such as CCL5, in macrophages, and downregulation of extracellular matrix genes in fibroblasts. Analysis of publicly available tumor transcriptome profiles showed that the chemokine CCL5 was strongly associated with immune cell infiltration in various human cancers. Further investigation with in vivo models showed that intratumorally administered CCL5 enhanced cytotoxic lymphocytes and the anti-tumor activity of anti-PD-L1.

conclusionsTaken together, our data could be leveraged translationally to complement or find alternatives to anti-PD-L1 plus anti-TGF-β combination therapy, for example through companion biomarkers, and/or to identify novel targets that could be modulated to overcome resistance.

Indexed as

NeoplasmsAnimalsB7-H1 AntigenMiceTranscriptomeTransforming Growth Factor betaTumor MicroenvironmentB7-H1 AntigenTransforming Growth Factor betaImmuno-oncologyPD-L1scRNA-seqTGF-βTumor microenvironment

Identifiers

PMID34030676
PMCPMC8147417
OpenAlexW3164132377

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.