Multi-modal analysis of pediatric pilocytic astrocytomas reveals tumor location-associated cellular and transcriptional heterogeneity.

Background: Pilocytic astrocytomas (PAs) are the most common pediatric central nervous system (CNS) tumors, which present with limited genetic but significant clinical heterogeneity. Current treatment strategies are partly effective, but tumors often progress, and patients experience long-term side effects, highlighting the need for additional novel therapeutic approaches. A promising alternative approach could be targeting the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME), however, a comprehensive overview of the TIME of PAs across different anatomical tumor locations is currently lacking.

A multidimensional analysis reveals distinct immune phenotypes and the composition of immune aggregates in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia.

Because of the low mutational burden and consequently, fewer potential neoantigens, children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are thought to have a T cell-depleted or 'cold' tumor microenvironment and may have a low likelihood of response to T cell-directed immunotherapies. Understanding the composition, phenotype, and spatial organization of T cells and other microenvironmental populations in the pediatric AML bone marrow (BM) is essential for informing future immunotherapeutic trials about targetable immune-evasion mechanisms specific to pediatric AML. Here, we conducted a multidimensional analysis of the tumor immune microenvironment in pediatric AML and non-leukemic controls.

A multidimensional analysis reveals distinct immune phenotypes and the composition of immune aggregates in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia.

Because of the low mutational burden and consequently, fewer potential neoantigens, children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are thought to have a T cell-depleted or 'cold' tumor microenvironment and may have a low likelihood of response to T cell-directed immunotherapies. Understanding the composition, phenotype, and spatial organization of T cells and other microenvironmental populations in the pediatric AML bone marrow (BM) is essential for informing future immunotherapeutic trials about targetable immune-evasion mechanisms specific to pediatric AML. Here, we conducted a multidimensional analysis of the tumor immune microenvironment in pediatric AML and non-leukemic controls.

A Toolkit for Profiling the Immune Landscape of Pediatric Central Nervous System Malignancies.

The prognosis of pediatric central nervous system (CNS) malignancies remains dismal due to limited treatment options, resulting in high mortality rates and long-term morbidities. Immunotherapies, including checkpoint inhibition, cancer vaccines, engineered T cell therapies, and oncolytic viruses, have promising results in some hematological and solid malignancies, and are being investigated in clinical trials for various high-grade CNS malignancies. However, the role of the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) in CNS malignancies is mostly unknown for pediatric cases.