Data from Targeting DHX9 Triggers Tumor-Intrinsic Interferon Response and Replication Stress in Small Cell Lung Cancer

<div>Abstract<p>Activating innate immunity in cancer cells through cytoplasmic nucleic acid sensing pathways, a phenomenon known as “viral mimicry,” has emerged as an effective strategy to convert immunologically “cold” tumors into “hot.” Through a curated CRISPR-based screen of RNA helicases, we identified DExD/H-box helicase 9 (DHX9) as a potent repressor of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in small cell lung cancers (SCLC). Depletion of DHX9 induced accumulation of cytoplasmic dsRNA and triggered tumor-intrinsic innate immunity. Intriguingly, ablating DHX9 also induced aberrant accumulation of R-loops, which resulted in an increase of DNA damage–derived cytoplasmic DNA and replication stress in SCLCs. <i>In vivo</i>, DHX9 deletion promoted a decrease in tumor growth while inducing a more immunogenic tumor microenvironment, invigorating responsiveness to immune-checkpoint blockade. These findings suggest that DHX9 is a crucial repressor of tumor-intrinsic innate immunity and replication stress, representing a promising target for SCLC and other “cold” tumors in which genomic instability contributes to pathology.</p>Significance:<p>One promising strategy to trigger an immune response within tumors and enhance immunotherapy efficacy is by inducing endogenous “virus-mimetic” nucleic acid accumulation. Here, we identify DHX9 as a viral-mimicry-inducing factor involved in the suppression of double-stranded RNAs and R-loops and propose DHX9 as a novel target to enhance antitumor immunity.</p><p><i><a href="https://aacrjournals.org/cancerdiscovery/article/doi/10.1158/2159-8290.CD-23-1523" target="_blank">See related commentary by Chiappinelli, p. 389.</a></i></p><p><i><a href="https://aacrjournals.org/cancerdiscovery/article/doi/10.1158/2159-8290.CD-14-3-ITI" target="_blank">This article is featured in Selected Articles from This Issue, p. 384</a></i></p></div>