Tumor editing suppresses innate and adaptive antitumor immunity and is reversed by inhibiting DNA methylation

Abstract

Cancer cells edit gene expression to evade immunosurveillance. However, genome-wide studies of gene editing during early tumorigenesis are lacking. Here we used single-cell RNA sequencing in a breast cancer genetically engineered mouse model (GEMM) to identify edited genes without bias. Late tumors repressed antitumor immunity genes, reducing infiltrating immune cells and tumor–immune cell communications. Innate immune genes, especially interferon-stimulated genes, dominated the list of downregulated tumor genes, while genes that regulate cell-intrinsic malignancy were mostly unedited. Naive and activated CD8+ T cells in early tumors were replaced with exhausted or precursor-exhausted cells in late tumors. Repression of immune genes was reversed by inhibiting DNA methylation using low-dose decitabine, which suppressed tumor growth and restored immune control, increasing the number, functionality and memory of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and reducing the number of myeloid suppressor cells. Decitabine induced important interferon, pyroptosis and necroptosis genes, inflammatory cell death and immune control in GEMM and implanted breast and melanoma tumors. Tumor immunoediting occurs early during tumorigenesis and is thereby difficult to study. Here the authors overcome this issue using an aggressive breast cancer model that enables them to compare and contrast the trancriptomic state of early versus late tumors.