A non-antibiotic-disrupted gut microbiome is associated with clinical responses to CD19-CAR-T cell cancer immunotherapy

Nat Med. 2023 Apr;29(4):906-916. doi: 10.1038/s41591-023-02234-6. Epub 2023 Mar 13.

Abstract

Increasing evidence suggests that the gut microbiome may modulate the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy. In a B cell lymphoma patient cohort from five centers in Germany and the United States (Germany, n = 66; United States, n = 106; total, n = 172), we demonstrate that wide-spectrum antibiotics treatment ('high-risk antibiotics') prior to CD19-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy is associated with adverse outcomes, but this effect is likely to be confounded by an increased pretreatment tumor burden and systemic inflammation in patients pretreated with high-risk antibiotics. To resolve this confounding effect and gain insights into antibiotics-masked microbiome signals impacting CAR-T efficacy, we focused on the high-risk antibiotics non-exposed patient population. Indeed, in these patients, significant correlations were noted between pre-CAR-T infusion Bifidobacterium longum and microbiome-encoded peptidoglycan biosynthesis, and CAR-T treatment-associated 6-month survival or lymphoma progression. Furthermore, predictive pre-CAR-T treatment microbiome-based machine learning algorithms trained on the high-risk antibiotics non-exposed German cohort and validated by the respective US cohort robustly segregated long-term responders from non-responders. Bacteroides, Ruminococcus, Eubacterium and Akkermansia were most important in determining CAR-T responsiveness, with Akkermansia also being associated with pre-infusion peripheral T cell levels in these patients. Collectively, we identify conserved microbiome features across clinical and geographical variations, which may enable cross-cohort microbiome-based predictions of outcomes in CAR-T cell immunotherapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Antigens, CD19
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome* / genetics
  • Humans
  • Immunotherapy
  • Immunotherapy, Adoptive / adverse effects
  • Lymphoma, B-Cell*
  • Receptors, Chimeric Antigen*
  • T-Lymphocytes

Substances

  • Receptors, Chimeric Antigen
  • Antigens, CD19