PHENOTYPING OF CIRCULATING EXTRACELLULAR VESICLES FROM MELANOMA PACIENTS IN RESPONSE TO TREATMENT WITH IMMUNE CHECKPOINT BLOCKADE

• Grant number: 23/16355-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: May 01, 2024
• End date: November 30, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Collective Health - Public Health
• Principal Investigator: Luciana Nogueira de Sousa Andrade
• Grantee: Raphaela Rebeca Silveira Assuncao
• Host Institution: Instituto do Câncer do Estado de São Paulo Octavio Frias de Oliveira (ICESP). Coordenadoria de Serviços de Saúde (CSS). Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Cancer is considered a worldwide health problem and causes many deaths, despite the advances in medicine, the rate is still growing. Furthermore, despite the introduction of targeted-therapies, there is still a high rate of non-response to treatment and relapses. Melanoma skin cancer, despite not being one of the most incidents, is characterized by its high malignancy and rapid progression, which makes treatment difficult, especially when diagnosed late. Among the studies aiming to reduce or eradicate tumor burden, extracellular vesicles (EVs) stand out, which act as a vehicle for cell communication and can be produced in response to different biological, chemical, physical and pathological stimuli. EVs can be present in all body fluids, therefore, they are potential prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers, as well as a therapeutic vehicle. However, the biologic function of EVs in tissue and cells is directly related to the composition of surface markers called tetraspanins. Therefore, this study aims to characterize EVs from plasma of melanoma patients before, during and after treatment with anti-PD-1 in order to observe the impact of treatment on the main vesicular markers CD9, CD63 and CD81, as well as their action on macrophage phenotype, evaluating the predictive potential of EVs in therapy response.