Shared tumor-specific antigens presented on MHC molecules of High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer cells (HGSOC TSA-MHC)

Shared tumor-specific antigens (TSAs) presented on Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) molecules of High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer (HGSOC) cells are a critical class of targets for precision immunotherapy. These antigens consist of short peptide fragments derived from proteins uniquely expressed or mutated in tumor cells, such as TP53 hotspot mutations or cancer-testis antigens like NY-ESO-1 and MAGE-A4 (Schuster et al., 2017; Bobisse et al., 2020). In HGSOC, which is characterized by significant chromosomal instability and TP53 mutations in nearly 96% of cases, these shared antigens provide a mechanism for the immune system to distinguish malignant cells from healthy tissue (Denarda et al., 2021). Therapeutic strategies targeting these complexes include T-cell receptor (TCR) engineered T-cell therapies and cancer vaccines designed to elicit a robust cytotoxic T-cell response (Leko & Rosenberg, 2020). The clinical success of targeting these antigens is highly dependent on the patient's HLA genotype and the integrity of the tumor's antigen-processing machinery, as HGSOC often employs HLA downregulation as an immune escape mechanism (Garrido et al., 2016). These targets are particularly valuable because they are absent from normal tissues, potentially minimizing off-target toxicities compared to traditional chemotherapy.

Other names

HGSOC shared neoantigensHLA-presented tumor-specific peptides in ovarian cancerHGSOC immunopeptidome targetsShared HGSOC TSAs

T-cell receptor (TCR) mediated recognition of peptide-MHC complexes leading to cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) activation and tumor cell apoptosis.