Targeting IGF2BP1 Enhances Immune Checkpoint Therapy in High-grade Serous Ovarian Cancer [mouse]

High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) accounts for the vast majority (>70%) of ovarian cancer-associated deaths with minor therapeutic improvements. Among four proposed molecular subtypes of HGSC, the C5 subtype is distinguished by high proliferative potential and elevated immune evasion which is indicated by an unfavorable MHCI/PD-L1 ratio. However, the underlying key drivers of the C5 subtype remained elusive. Here we identify oncofetal RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) promoting the immune evasion of C5-HGSC. The IGF2 mRNA binding protein 1 (IGF2BP1) enhances expression of the E3 ligase MDM2, which induces degradation of IRF1 resulting in reduced MHCI presentation. Concomitantly, IGF2BP1 elevates PD-L1 synthesis by impairing its microRNA-directed silencing. This shifts the intra-tumoral MHCI/PD-L1 ratio, limits immune cell infiltration, and promotes evasion of tumor cells from cytotoxic T cells (CTLs) in human and syngeneic mouse models of ovarian cancer. The small molecule inhibitor BTYNB impairs IGF2BP1-directed regulation of MHCI/PD-L1 ratios, promotes CTL-directed killing as well as activation, and strongly synergizes with immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) by Nivolumab in vitro and in vivo.