Targeting the PSGL-1 Immune Checkpoint Promotes Immunity to PD-1–Resistant Melanoma

Abstract

Abstract Immune-checkpoint inhibitors have had impressive efficacy in some patients with cancer, reinvigorating long-term durable immune responses against tumors. Despite the clinical success of these therapies, most patients with cancer continue to be unresponsive to these treatments, highlighting the need for novel therapeutic options. Although P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) has been shown to inhibit immune responses in a variety of disease models, previous work has yet to address whether PSGL-1 can be targeted therapeutically to promote antitumor immunity. Using an aggressive melanoma tumor model, we targeted PSGL-1 in tumor-bearing mice and found increased effector CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses and decreased regulatory T cells (Treg) in tumors. T cells exhibited increased effector function, activation, and proliferation, which delayed tumor growth in mice after anti–PSGL-1 treatment. Targeting PD-1 in PSGL-1–deficient, tumor-bearing mice led to an increased frequency of mice with complete tumor eradication. Targeting both PSGL-1 and PD-1 in wild-type tumor-bearing mice also showed enhanced antitumor immunity and slowed melanoma tumor growth. Our findings showed that therapeutically targeting the PSGL-1 immune checkpoint can reinvigorate antitumor immunity and suggest that targeting PSGL-1 may represent a new therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment.