HE4 suppresses the expression of osteopontin in mononuclear cells and compromises their cytotoxicity against ovarian cancer cells

Summary Ovarian cancers are known to evade immunosurveillance and to orchestrate a suppressive immune microenvironment. Here we examine the role of human epididymis protein 4 (HE4), an ovarian cancer biomarker, in immune evasion. Through modified subtractive hybridization analyses we have characterized the gene targets of HE4 in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and established a preliminary mechanism for HE4‐mediated immune failure in ovarian tumours. Upon exposure of purified PMBCs to HE4, osteopontin (OPN) and dual‐specificity phosphatase 6 (DUSP6) emerged as the most suppressed and up‐regulated genes, respectively. SKOV3 and OVCAR8, human ovarian carcinoma cell lines, exhibited enhanced proliferation in conditioned media from HE4‐exposed PBMCs, an effect that was attenuated by the addition of recombinant OPN or OPN‐inducible cytokines [interleukin (IL)‐12 and interferon (IFN)‐Ɣ]. Additionally, upon co‐culture with PBMCs, HE4‐silenced SKOV3 cells were found to be more susceptible to cytotoxic cell death. The relationship between HE4 and OPN was reinforced further through the analysis of serous ovarian cancer patient samples. In these biopsy specimens, the number of OPN+ T cells correlated positively with progression free survival (PFS) and inversely with serum HE4 level. Taken together, these findings show that HE4 enhances ovarian cancer tumorigenesis by compromising OPN‐mediated T cell activation. Human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) is highly overexpressed in ovarian and endometrial cancers, however, its exact role in malignant tissue is still unclear. The study demonstrates that HE4 can inhibit the antitumoral immune function of T cells via suppression of osteopontin production.