Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer

Abstract Prognosis for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the bladder is limited mostly because of lack of effective treatment regimens. Oncolytic virotherapy represents a promising option for bladder cancer and received in 2024 FDA therapy designation for the treatment of non-invasive high-grade blad...

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Main Authors: Julia Pannhausen, Julia Wirtz, Klaus Mantwill, Per-Sonne Holm, Kristina Schwamborn, Danny D. Jonigk, Jürgen E. Gschwend, Michael Rose, Nadine T. Gaisa, Roman Nawroth
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-04-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96419-3
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author Julia Pannhausen
Julia Wirtz
Klaus Mantwill
Per-Sonne Holm
Kristina Schwamborn
Danny D. Jonigk
Jürgen E. Gschwend
Michael Rose
Nadine T. Gaisa
Roman Nawroth
author_facet Julia Pannhausen
Julia Wirtz
Klaus Mantwill
Per-Sonne Holm
Kristina Schwamborn
Danny D. Jonigk
Jürgen E. Gschwend
Michael Rose
Nadine T. Gaisa
Roman Nawroth
author_sort Julia Pannhausen
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Prognosis for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the bladder is limited mostly because of lack of effective treatment regimens. Oncolytic virotherapy represents a promising option for bladder cancer and received in 2024 FDA therapy designation for the treatment of non-invasive high-grade bladder cancer (BLCA). For muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), preclinical studies demonstrated high efficacy of the oncolytic adenovirus XVir-N-31 in urothelial carcinoma (UC). We analyzed the potency of XVir-N-31 virotherapy as a novel treatment option in SCC. Replication of XVir-N-31 has been described to be facilitated by high expression level of Y-Box binding protein 1 (YB-1). Increased YB-1-mRNA expression was detected in basal/squamous subtype in TCGA BLCA cohort compared to urothelial and luminal BLCA and correlated with patient outcomes. Furthermore, immunohistochemical staining of 89 SCC on a tissue microarray confirmed strong YB-1 expression in squamous BLCA (sq-BLCA). In vitro, XVir-N-31 showed in subtype-specific cell cultures high rates of infection, replication and cell-killing capacity. In a novel in ovo xenograft model, XVir-N-31 impaired growth of xenografts of patient-derived ex vivo cell lines (p-SCC, p-UC) with growth suppression rates of 39–49%. We provide preclinical evidence ex vivo and in ovo for high efficacy of XVir-N-31 based oncolytic virotherapy as novel SCC therapy.
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spelling doaj-art-b968ec15e4da4beab6d6da19df35ca4a2025-08-20T03:18:34ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-04-0115111210.1038/s41598-025-96419-3Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancerJulia Pannhausen0Julia Wirtz1Klaus Mantwill2Per-Sonne Holm3Kristina Schwamborn4Danny D. Jonigk5Jürgen E. Gschwend6Michael Rose7Nadine T. Gaisa8Roman Nawroth9Institute of Pathology, Uniklinik RWTH AachenInstitute of Pathology, Uniklinik RWTH AachenDepartment of Urology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of MunichDepartment of Urology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of MunichInstitute of Pathology, School of Medicine, Technical University of MunichInstitute of Pathology, Uniklinik RWTH AachenDepartment of Urology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of MunichInstitute of Pathology, Uniklinik RWTH AachenInstitute of Pathology, Uniklinik RWTH AachenDepartment of Urology, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of MunichAbstract Prognosis for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the bladder is limited mostly because of lack of effective treatment regimens. Oncolytic virotherapy represents a promising option for bladder cancer and received in 2024 FDA therapy designation for the treatment of non-invasive high-grade bladder cancer (BLCA). For muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), preclinical studies demonstrated high efficacy of the oncolytic adenovirus XVir-N-31 in urothelial carcinoma (UC). We analyzed the potency of XVir-N-31 virotherapy as a novel treatment option in SCC. Replication of XVir-N-31 has been described to be facilitated by high expression level of Y-Box binding protein 1 (YB-1). Increased YB-1-mRNA expression was detected in basal/squamous subtype in TCGA BLCA cohort compared to urothelial and luminal BLCA and correlated with patient outcomes. Furthermore, immunohistochemical staining of 89 SCC on a tissue microarray confirmed strong YB-1 expression in squamous BLCA (sq-BLCA). In vitro, XVir-N-31 showed in subtype-specific cell cultures high rates of infection, replication and cell-killing capacity. In a novel in ovo xenograft model, XVir-N-31 impaired growth of xenografts of patient-derived ex vivo cell lines (p-SCC, p-UC) with growth suppression rates of 39–49%. We provide preclinical evidence ex vivo and in ovo for high efficacy of XVir-N-31 based oncolytic virotherapy as novel SCC therapy.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96419-3Bladder cancerOncolytic virusSquamous cell carcinomaVirotherapyXVir-N-31YB-1
spellingShingle Julia Pannhausen
Julia Wirtz
Klaus Mantwill
Per-Sonne Holm
Kristina Schwamborn
Danny D. Jonigk
Jürgen E. Gschwend
Michael Rose
Nadine T. Gaisa
Roman Nawroth
Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
Scientific Reports
Bladder cancer
Oncolytic virus
Squamous cell carcinoma
Virotherapy
XVir-N-31
YB-1
title Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
title_full Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
title_fullStr Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
title_full_unstemmed Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
title_short Oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
title_sort oncolytic virotherapy provides a potent therapy option for squamous bladder cancer
topic Bladder cancer
Oncolytic virus
Squamous cell carcinoma
Virotherapy
XVir-N-31
YB-1
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96419-3
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