Investigating the regulation and synthesis of glyco-immune checkpoints in prostate cancer

Refreshments will be served in the Biology Atrium after the talk.

Immune checkpoint blockade trials have yet to produce a robust anti-cancer response in prostate cancer patients due to the immunosuppressed prostate tumour immune microenvironment.

ST3Gal1 and other sialyltransferases have been implicated in cancer immune suppression by synthesizing sialoglycans, which act as ligands for Siglec receptors. These checkpoints are important for the immune response. It is unclear how the synthesis of Siglec ligands is regulated, and little is known about the role of glyco-immune checkpoints in prostate cancer.

We have shown that ST3Gal1 levels negatively correlate with androgen signalling in prostate tumours and plays an important role in modulating tumour immune evasion. This has important clinical implications, as we show that these interactions can be modulated by enzalutamide and may maintain immune suppression in enzalutamide treated tumours.

Read more about Dr Scott's research