Researchers at Clínic-IDIBAPS have coordinated a study published in Blood Cancer Journal in which a new 3D system has been developed from patient samples, allowing the recreation of both the biology of the tumor cell and the immune microenvironment of follicular lymphoma, a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Its ability to replicate the human tumor microenvironment makes it a valuable tool for further exploring follicular lymphoma and other related diseases.
The study, coordinated by Patricia Pérez-Galán, head of the Microenvironment in Lymphoma Pathogenesis and Therapy group at IDIBAPS and researcher at the Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), is the result of an international collaboration framed within the European IMLINFO project (INTERREG-POCTEFA), with the participation of researchers from the Centre de Recherches en Cancérologie de Toulouse (France).
Follicular lymphoma is a hematologic cancer that develops in lymphoid organs. This type of cancer accounts for 15-20% of non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases and is the most common indolent type. However, it has the potential to transform into more aggressive and incurable forms. Current research seeks to better understand the behavior of the lymphoma and find more effective strategies to treat it, especially in cases with early relapses and transformation to aggressive lymphoma.
Replicating the human tumor microenvironment
The study in Blood Cancer Journal focused on the development of a new model known as FL-PDLS (Follicular Lymphoma Patient-Derived Lymph Node Spheroids). This model is capable of replicating the disease, as it simulates the interaction between the patient’s tumor cells and their immune microenvironment. This capability is crucial because the tumor microenvironment is one of the main factors contributing to treatment failure and relapse, which has so far been difficult to replicate in in vitro models.
“The FL-PDLS model is a new 3D system where tumor cells proliferate and interact with their immune microenvironment over a long time window, allowing functional studies and identifying new vulnerabilities in a robust system,” says Patricia Pérez-Galán. “Moreover, it has proven to be a valuable tool for testing chemotherapy and immunotherapy treatments, given the presence of autologous T lymphocytes, as well as for screening new drugs and therapies in a personalized manner due to its multiplexed format,” she adds.
Improving the treatment of follicular lymphoma
The FL-PDLS model has proven useful not only for better understanding follicular lymphoma but also for validating the efficacy of current treatments and proposing new therapeutic approaches.
In particular, the study found that an immunoregulatory protein, galectin-9, limits the anti-CD20 efficacy of rituximab, the standard treatment for this type of lymphoma. Blocking galectin-9 significantly enhances the drug’s effectiveness, suggesting that this protein could be a new target in follicular lymphoma immunotherapy.
The publication of this study represents a significant step towards better understanding and treatment of follicular lymphoma. The development of the FL-PDLS model and the discovery of the role of galectin-9 in treatment resistance offer new perspectives in the treatment of the disease.
Article reference: https://www.clinicbarcelona.org/noticias/desarrollan-un-nuevo-modelo-en-3d-para-simular-el-microambiente-tumoral-de-un-tipo-de-linfoma?from=research