Targeting DHX9 triggers tumor-intrinsic interferon response and replication stress in Small Cell Lung Cancer

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 (SCLCs). 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. In vivo, DHX9 deletion promoted 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 where genomic instability contribute to pathology.