Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer

Abstract Breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related death, with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) accounting for 15–20% of cases. TNBC, characterized by the absence of ER, PR, and HER2 protein, is an aggressive form of breast cancer that is unresponsive to hormonal therapie...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jaimin R. Shah, Tao Dong, Abraham T. Phung, Sohini Khan, Omonigho Aisagbonhi, Sarah L. Blair, Michael Bouvet, William C. Trogler, Andrew C. Kummel
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-05-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00211-2
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850273454551465984
author Jaimin R. Shah
Tao Dong
Abraham T. Phung
Sohini Khan
Omonigho Aisagbonhi
Sarah L. Blair
Michael Bouvet
William C. Trogler
Andrew C. Kummel
author_facet Jaimin R. Shah
Tao Dong
Abraham T. Phung
Sohini Khan
Omonigho Aisagbonhi
Sarah L. Blair
Michael Bouvet
William C. Trogler
Andrew C. Kummel
author_sort Jaimin R. Shah
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related death, with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) accounting for 15–20% of cases. TNBC, characterized by the absence of ER, PR, and HER2 protein, is an aggressive form of breast cancer that is unresponsive to hormonal therapies and HER2-targeted treatments, with fewer treatment options and poorer prognosis. Oncolytic adenoviruses (Ad) are a potential treatment option for TNBC but require coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptors (CAR) to effectively enter and transduce cancer cells. This study investigates a novel neoadjuvant therapy to improve the efficacy of an oncolytic Ad with human telomerase reverse transcriptase (Ad-hTERT) in CAR-low TNBC tumors using folate surface-modified liposomes to enhance delivery. This therapy helps deescalate treatment by reducing or eliminating the need for checkpoint inhibitors or toxic chemotherapy combinations. In vitro studies using CAR-low TNBC murine 4T1-eGFP cells, CAR-high TNBC human MDA-MB-231-GFP cells and several other TNBC human cancer cell lines with varying CAR expression demonstrated significantly higher cytotoxicity with encapsulated Ad-hTERT compared to Ad-hTERT. Similar results were observed in patient-derived primary TNBC cells. In vivo studies in immunocompetent mice with CAR-low 4T1-eGFP tumors revealed that encapsulated Ad-hTERT, administered as neoadjuvant therapy, resulted in stable or reduced tumor sizes, improved survival rates, higher apoptosis of cancer cells, lower cancer cell proliferation, and increased T-cell infiltration in resected tumors. Furthermore, encapsulated Ad-hTERT prevented lung metastasis and tumor recurrence at the primary site, resulting in higher survival rates in mice. Thus, liposomal encapsulation of Ad may be a viable strategy for treating TNBC.
format Article
id doaj-art-d4030a2d09f64729b0885b4b54bc8a81
institution OA Journals
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-d4030a2d09f64729b0885b4b54bc8a812025-08-20T01:51:29ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-05-0115111810.1038/s41598-025-00211-2Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancerJaimin R. Shah0Tao Dong1Abraham T. Phung2Sohini Khan3Omonigho Aisagbonhi4Sarah L. Blair5Michael Bouvet6William C. Trogler7Andrew C. Kummel8Moores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoDepartment of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California San DiegoMoores Cancer Center, University of California San DiegoAbstract Breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related death, with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) accounting for 15–20% of cases. TNBC, characterized by the absence of ER, PR, and HER2 protein, is an aggressive form of breast cancer that is unresponsive to hormonal therapies and HER2-targeted treatments, with fewer treatment options and poorer prognosis. Oncolytic adenoviruses (Ad) are a potential treatment option for TNBC but require coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptors (CAR) to effectively enter and transduce cancer cells. This study investigates a novel neoadjuvant therapy to improve the efficacy of an oncolytic Ad with human telomerase reverse transcriptase (Ad-hTERT) in CAR-low TNBC tumors using folate surface-modified liposomes to enhance delivery. This therapy helps deescalate treatment by reducing or eliminating the need for checkpoint inhibitors or toxic chemotherapy combinations. In vitro studies using CAR-low TNBC murine 4T1-eGFP cells, CAR-high TNBC human MDA-MB-231-GFP cells and several other TNBC human cancer cell lines with varying CAR expression demonstrated significantly higher cytotoxicity with encapsulated Ad-hTERT compared to Ad-hTERT. Similar results were observed in patient-derived primary TNBC cells. In vivo studies in immunocompetent mice with CAR-low 4T1-eGFP tumors revealed that encapsulated Ad-hTERT, administered as neoadjuvant therapy, resulted in stable or reduced tumor sizes, improved survival rates, higher apoptosis of cancer cells, lower cancer cell proliferation, and increased T-cell infiltration in resected tumors. Furthermore, encapsulated Ad-hTERT prevented lung metastasis and tumor recurrence at the primary site, resulting in higher survival rates in mice. Thus, liposomal encapsulation of Ad may be a viable strategy for treating TNBC.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00211-2Triple-negative breast cancerNeoadjuvant therapyOncolytic adenovirusCoxsackievirus and adenovirus receptorLiposomesMetastasis
spellingShingle Jaimin R. Shah
Tao Dong
Abraham T. Phung
Sohini Khan
Omonigho Aisagbonhi
Sarah L. Blair
Michael Bouvet
William C. Trogler
Andrew C. Kummel
Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
Scientific Reports
Triple-negative breast cancer
Neoadjuvant therapy
Oncolytic adenovirus
Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor
Liposomes
Metastasis
title Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
title_full Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
title_fullStr Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
title_full_unstemmed Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
title_short Liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple-negative breast cancer
title_sort liposomal oncolytic adenovirus as a neoadjuvant therapy for triple negative breast cancer
topic Triple-negative breast cancer
Neoadjuvant therapy
Oncolytic adenovirus
Coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor
Liposomes
Metastasis
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-00211-2
work_keys_str_mv AT jaiminrshah liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT taodong liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT abrahamtphung liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT sohinikhan liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT omonighoaisagbonhi liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT sarahlblair liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT michaelbouvet liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT williamctrogler liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer
AT andrewckummel liposomaloncolyticadenovirusasaneoadjuvanttherapyfortriplenegativebreastcancer