Abstract

Background/Objectives: Recent advances in immunotherapy have revolutionized cancer treatment, as exemplified by multiple monoclonal antibodies against programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1). Nevertheless, immunotherapeutic antibodies exhibit certain limitations, which drives the development of alternative approaches, such as small interfering RNA (siRNA)-based therapeutics. The aim of this study was to design and produce new biological PD-L1 siRNA (BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNA) molecules and further define their immunotherapeutic efficacy against non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in vitro. Methods: A novel RNA molecular bioengineering platform was employed to produce new BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNA agents. The functions of BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNAs were determined by quantitative PCR, Western blot, immunofluorescence confocal imaging, flow cytometry, and PD-1/PD-L1 blockade assays in human NSCLC cells, alone and co-cultured with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Results: After heterologous overexpression and purification of five BioRNA molecules, one siRNA named BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNA-1 was identified as the most effective to selectively suppress human PD-L1 mRNA and protein levels in H460 and H1975 cells. Disruption of PD-1/PD-L1 interactions by BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNA-1 was further demonstrated via a PD-1/PD-L1 blockade bioassay. In addition, the immunomodulatory effectiveness of BioRNA/PD-L1-siRNA-1 was established in co-culture models, as indicated by the induction of T-cell and natural killer cell populations and an increase in specific cytokines and cytotoxic granules, and subsequent enhancement of apoptosis and greater inhibition of NSCLC cell viability. Conclusions: Overall, these findings demonstrate the potential of bioengineered PD-L1 siRNA entities for NSCLC immunotherapy.

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