Anti-PD-L1 mediating tumor-targeted codelivery of liposomal irinotecan/JQ1 for chemo-immunotherapy

Immune checkpoint blockade therapy has become a first-line treatment in various cancers. But there are only a small percent of colorectal patients responding to PD-1/PD-L1 blockage immunotherapy. How to increase their treatment efficacy is an urgent and clinically unmet need. It is acknowledged that immunogenic cell death (ICD) induced by some specific chemotherapy can enhance antitumor immunity. Chemo-based combination therapy can yield improved outcomes by activating the immune system to eliminate the tumor, compared with monotherapy. Here, we develop a PD-L1-targeting immune liposome (P-Lipo) for co-delivering irinotecan (IRI) and JQ1, and this system can successfully elicit antitumor immunity in colorectal cancer through inducing ICD by IRI and interfering in the immunosuppressive PD-1/PD-L1 pathway by JQ1. P-Lipo increases intratumoral drug accumulation and promotes DC maturation, and thereby facilitates adaptive immune responses against tumor growth. The remodeling tumor immune microenvironment was reflected by the increased amount of CD8⁺ T cells and the release of IFN-γ, and the reduced CD4⁺Foxp3⁺ regulatory T cells (Tregs). Collectively, the P-Lipo codelivery system provides a chemo-immunotherapy strategy that can effectively remodel the tumor immune microenvironment and activate the host immune system and arrest tumor growth.