Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39841705›Full record

ArticlePloS one2025

Exploring Glypican-3 targeted CAR-NK treatment and potential therapy resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Lei Yang, Kien Pham, Yibo Xi, Qunfeng Wu, Dongfang Liu, Keith D Robertson, Chen Liu

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Review
  4. Navigating second-line therapy after immunotherapy in advanced HCC☆.JHEP reports : innovation in hepatology · 2026
    Review
  5. Review
  6. Review
  7. Rendering NK Cells Antigen-Specific for the Therapy of Solid Tumours.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025
    Review
  8. Review
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

7 authors.

Lei YangDepartment of Pathology, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America.
Kien PhamDepartment of Pathology, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America.
Yibo XiDepartment of Pathology, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America.
Qunfeng WuDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey, United States of America.
Dongfang LiuDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey, United States of America.ORCID 0000-0002-7295-8088
Keith D RobertsonDepartment of Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, United States of America.
Chen LiuDepartment of Pathology, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America.ORCID 0009-0003-0430-6146

Funding

Yale Clinical and Translational Science Award (U Component)UL1TR001863 · NCATS · YALE UNIVERSITY · PI John H. Krystal, LUCILA OHNO-MACHADO · 2016 to 2026
$102.9M
NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR001863
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most prevalent form of primary liver cancer and the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality globally. Despite advancements in current HCC treatment, it remains a malignancy with poor prognosis. Therefore, developing novel treatment options for patients with HCC is urgently needed. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified natural killer (NK) cells have demonstrated potent anti-tumor effects, making them as a promising immunotherapy strategy for cancer treatment. Glypican-3 (GPC3), a cell surface oncofetal glycoprotein, is highly expressed in most HCC tissues, but not in normal tissues, and functions as a key driver of carcinogenesis. Given its high expression level on the cell surface, GPC3 is considered as an attractive immunotherapy target for HCC. In this study, two GPC3-specific CAR-NK cells, NK92MI/HN3 and NK92MI/HS20, were established using NK92MI cells, a modified IL-2-independent NK cell line. These cell lines were engineered with third generation GPC3-specific CARs, and their activities were subsequently evaluated in the treatment of HCC. We found that NK92MI/HN3 cells, rather than NK92MI/HS20 cells, exhibited a significant cytotoxicity effect against GPC3+ HepG2 cells in vitro and efficiently suppressed tumor growth in a xenograft model using NSG mice. In addition, irradiated NK92MI/HN3 cells displayed similar anti-tumor efficacy to unirradiated NK92MI/HN3 cells. Furthermore, we observed that NK92MI/HN3 cells showed higher killing activity against the GPC3 isoform 2 overexpression cell line (Sk-Hep1-v2) than those with GPC3 isoform 1 overexpression cell line (Sk-Hep1-v1). This suggest that the presence of different GPC3 isoforms in HCC may impact the cytotoxicity activity of NK92MI/HN3 cells and potentially influence therapeutic outcomes. These findings highlight the effective anti-HCC effects of NK92MI/HN3 cells and reveal the role of GPC3 isoforms in influencing therapy outcomes, suggesting that isoform analysis should be considered to optimize CAR-NK therapies to improve patient outcomes.

Indexed as

Carcinoma, HepatocellularGlypicansImmunotherapy, AdoptiveKiller Cells, NaturalLiver NeoplasmsReceptors, Chimeric AntigenAnimalsCell Line, TumorHumansMiceXenograft Model Antitumor AssaysGlypicansGPC3 protein, humanReceptors, Chimeric Antigen

Identifiers

PMID39841705
PMCPMC11753693

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Registered trials

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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.