Immune checkpoint therapy for prostate cancer (PCa), a classic 'immune-cold' tumor characterized by an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, failed previously in clinical trials, but the underlying causes remain elusive. Here we find that YY1+, immunosuppressive macrophages aggregate in the hypoxic areas of PCa. Mechanistically, hypoxia promotes the phase separation of YY1 in the nucleus, where YY1 binds to NUSAP1 and promotes the SUMOylation, phase separation and stabilization of HIF-1α. Either myeloid-specific conditional knockout of YY1 or a treatment with tenapanor for decreasing the YY1-NUSAP1-HIF-1α interaction impairs subcutaneous PCa tumor formation in mouse prostate tumor models. Lastly, a first-generation tetrahedral DNA nanostructure based on the proteolysis targeting chimera technique, termed YY1-DcTAC, allows targeting and degrading YY1 in tumor-associated macrophages for inducing antitumor effects and CD8+ T cell tumor infiltration in mouse tumor models. In summary, our findings underscore the pivotal role of YY1 in the hypoxia/HIF-1α pathway in tumor-associated macrophages and support the targeting of YY1 for treating PCa.
© 2025. The Author(s).

The purpose of this study was to understand how the gut microbial system responds to retinal injury.
Adult C57BL/6J mice were subjected to retinal laser burns or hypotony-induced retinal detachment (RD). One, 4, and 24 hours later, gut permeability (8 male mice and 8 female mice) was assessed using Evan's blue assay and the expression of ZO-1 in intestinal epithelial cells was examined by immunofluorescence. Circulating immune cells were evaluated by flow cytometry. The feces from control and lasered mice (n = 8) were collected under strict sterile conditions and processed for 16S DNA paired-end sequencing using the Illumina platform. The impact of gut dysbiosis on retinal wound healing was evaluated following treatment with Peros antibiotics (n = 8). Retinal pathologies were examined by immunohistochemistry.
Retinal laser injury significantly altered gut microbial profiles within 1 hour (β-diversity, multi-response permutation procedure [MRPP], P = 0.05). The abundance of Lignipirellula and Faecalibacterium was 100- and 6.67-fold lower, and the abundance of Akkermansia and Colidextribacter was 3.65- and 17.72-fold higher than non-lasered controls, respectively. Retinal laser burns and RD, not sham surgery, increased gut permeability at 1 hour and 4 hours by 3.82- and 24.76-fold, respectively, disrupted intestinal epithelial ZO-1 expression, accompanied by an increased population of circulating neutrophils and monocytes (P < 0.01) at 1 hour and 4 hours. Antibiotic treatment attenuated laser-/RD-induced gut permeability and the increased neutrophils and monocytes (in RD, P < 0.05). Antibiotic treatment also significantly reduced the severity of laser-induced choroidal neovascularization (CNV; P < 0.001) and RD-mediated photoreceptor apoptosis (P < 0.01), and suppressed Gr-1+ neutrophils (CNV, P < 0.001) and Iba-1+ cell infiltration (P < 0.001).
A retina-gut axis exists. Retinal injury induces rapid gut microbial alteration, which in turn modulates innate immune cell activation and regulates the wound healing response.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a common and aggressive cancer with limited responses to immunotherapy. High mobility group A1 (HMGA1), a chromatin remodeling protein, plays a key role in tumor progression, but its impact on anti-tumor immunity in ESCC remains unclear. Here we show that HMGA1 suppresses the stimulator of interferon genes (STING), inhibiting type I interferon secretion, downregulating interferon-stimulated genes, and impairing tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) recruitment. HMGA1 inhibits STING transcription by competing with the coactivator CBP/p300 for binding to CREB. ESCCs from genetically modified mouse models with altered HMGA1 and STING expression exhibit varying TIL levels and sensitivity to STING agonists. Additionally, we design and synthesize a series of HMGA1 inhibitors, including a perylene-based nanoparticle, PDIC-DPC, which effectively inhibits HMGA1 and enhances TIL infiltration. Our findings identify HMGA1 as a critical immune checkpoint in ESCC and suggest that targeting HMGA1 could improve immunotherapy outcomes.
© 2025. The Author(s).

Dynamic protein distribution within and across the plasma membrane is pivotal in regulating cell communication. However, rapid, high-density labeling methods for multiplexed live imaging across diverse cell types remain scarce. Here, we demonstrate N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS)-ester-based amine crosslinking of fluorescent dyes to uniformly label live mammalian cell surface proteins. Using model cell systems, we capture previously elusive membrane topology and cell-cell interactions. Live imaging shows transient membrane protein accumulation at cell-cell contacts and bidirectional migration patterns guided by membrane fibers in DC2.4 dendritic cells. Multiplexed superresolution imaging reveals the biogenesis of membrane tunneling nanotubes that facilitate intercellular transfer in DC2.4 cells, and caveolin 1-dependent endocytosis of insulin receptors in HEK293T cells. 3D superresolution imaging reveals membrane topology remodeling in response to stimulation, generation of microvesicles, and phagocytic activities in Jurkat T cells. Furthermore, NHS-labeling remains stable in vivo, enabling visualization of intercellular transfer among splenocytes using a T cell lymphoma mouse model.
© 2025. The Author(s).

Transmembrane 4 L six family member 1 (TM4SF1) is highly expressed and contributes to the progression of various malignancies. However, how it modulates hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression and senescence remains to be elucidated.
TM4SF1 expression in HCC samples was evaluated using immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry. Cellular senescence was assessed through SA-β-gal activity assays and Western blot analysis. TM4SF1-related protein interactions were investigated using immunoprecipitation-mass spectrometry, co-immunoprecipitation, bimolecular fluorescence complementation, and immunofluorescence. Tumor-infiltrating immune cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. The HCC mouse model was established via hydrodynamic tail vein injection.
TM4SF1 was highly expressed in human HCC samples and murine models. Knockdown of TM4SF1 suppressed HCC proliferation both in vitro and in vivo, inducing non-secretory senescence through upregulation of p16 and p21. TM4SF1 enhanced the interaction between AKT1 and PDPK1, thereby promoting AKT phosphorylation, which subsequently downregulated p16 and p21. Meanwhile, TM4SF1-mediated AKT phosphorylation enhanced PD-L1 expression while reducing major histocompatibility complex class I level on tumor cells, leading to impaired cytotoxic function of CD8+ T cells and an increased proportion of exhausted CD8+ T cells. In clinical HCC samples, elevated TM4SF1 expression was associated with resistance to anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. Targeting TM4SF1 via adeno-associated virus induced tumor senescence, reduced tumor burden and synergistically enhanced the efficacy of anti-PD-1 therapy.
Our results revealed that TM4SF1 regulated tumor cell senescence and immune evasion through the AKT pathway, highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target in HCC, particularly in combination with first-line immunotherapy.