PANoramic View: The Photography of Pancreatic Cancer and Immune Cells Through the IL-40 Lens
Description
Background: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the most deadly cancer in the US. Despite advances of treatments, its prognosis remains extremely poor. New effective methods are urgently needed. Immunotherapy is one of the hottest spots of modern cancer therapy. IL-40 is a newly found cytokine with complex roles in immune response. Co-stimulatory and adhesion pathways regulate T-cell activation and tumor engagement. 4-1BBL costimulates through CD137, while ICAM-1/2 bind LFA-1 to stabilize immune synapses. Their expression on tumor cells is heterogeneous and cytokine-responsive. In this study, we investigated if IL-40 has any effect on the growth of PC and on the expression of 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2.
Methods: Pan-48 PC cells were treated with IL-40 or medium alone. Cell proliferation and survival were measured using clonogenic assays and cell proliferation assays. RT-PCR and/or IHC were used to evaluate the expression levels of 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2 in cancer cells treated with IL-40 or medium alone.
Results: The percentage of colonies of Pan-48 cells decreased significantly in the presence of IL-40, which is paralleled by a decrease in the OD value of cancer cells. The expression levels of 4-1BBL and ICAM-2 were much higher in Pan-48 cells, whereas that of ICAM-1 was much lower in Pan-48 cells in the presence of IL-40.
Conclusion: The newly found cytokine IL=40 contrains the growth of PC and shows differential immunomodulatory function to 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2. These findings position IL-40 as a promising immunotherapeutic cytokine for PC.
Citation Information
Sheng, Yuting; Mayberry, Trenton; Cowan, Braydon; Marrah, Austin; Wakefield, Mark R.; and Fang, Yujiang, "PANoramic View: The Photography of Pancreatic Cancer and Immune Cells Through the IL-40 Lens" (2026). Office of Research DMU Research Symposium. 57.
https://digitalcommons.dmu.edu/researchsymposium/2025rs/2025abstracts/57
PANoramic View: The Photography of Pancreatic Cancer and Immune Cells Through the IL-40 Lens
Background: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the most deadly cancer in the US. Despite advances of treatments, its prognosis remains extremely poor. New effective methods are urgently needed. Immunotherapy is one of the hottest spots of modern cancer therapy. IL-40 is a newly found cytokine with complex roles in immune response. Co-stimulatory and adhesion pathways regulate T-cell activation and tumor engagement. 4-1BBL costimulates through CD137, while ICAM-1/2 bind LFA-1 to stabilize immune synapses. Their expression on tumor cells is heterogeneous and cytokine-responsive. In this study, we investigated if IL-40 has any effect on the growth of PC and on the expression of 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2.
Methods: Pan-48 PC cells were treated with IL-40 or medium alone. Cell proliferation and survival were measured using clonogenic assays and cell proliferation assays. RT-PCR and/or IHC were used to evaluate the expression levels of 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2 in cancer cells treated with IL-40 or medium alone.
Results: The percentage of colonies of Pan-48 cells decreased significantly in the presence of IL-40, which is paralleled by a decrease in the OD value of cancer cells. The expression levels of 4-1BBL and ICAM-2 were much higher in Pan-48 cells, whereas that of ICAM-1 was much lower in Pan-48 cells in the presence of IL-40.
Conclusion: The newly found cytokine IL=40 contrains the growth of PC and shows differential immunomodulatory function to 4-1BBL, ICAM-1, and ICAM-2. These findings position IL-40 as a promising immunotherapeutic cytokine for PC.
