Can restoring major histocompatibility complex class I expression overcome immune evasion in brain cancers?
- 1Research Center for Translational Medicine, Sirius University of Science and Technology, Sochi, Russia
- 2Altogen Labs, Austin, TX, USA
Abstract
Loss or downregulation of MHC-I is a frequent mechanism of immune evasion in central nervous system (CNS) cancers, partially driven by an immunologically cold microenvironment. In this short commentary, we issue a call to action for exploring therapeutic strategies of MHC-I expression restoration in brain cancers to improve patient outcomes. We discuss several potential strategies, including targeting the immunosuppressive microenvironment, epigenetic modulation, and gene therapy approaches. We argue that effective MHC-I restoration may require a combinatorial approach that simultaneously boosts both antigen processing and presentation and remodels the tumor microenvironment. Overcoming CNS-specific barriers, such as the blood-brain barrier, is critical for success. We propose that combining MHC-I re-expression with immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy could provide new therapeutic windows for CNS malignancies.
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BibTeX
@article{sahil2026restoring,
title = {{Can restoring major histocompatibility complex class I expression overcome immune evasion in brain cancers?}},
author = {Amikishiev Sahil V. and Kuzmin Dmitry A. and Ovcharenko Dmitriy and Yuzhalin Arseniy E.},
journal = {Oncologie},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1515/oncologie-2026-0225},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1515/oncologie-2026-0225},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Can restoring major histocompatibility complex class I expression overcome immune evasion in brain cancers?
AU - Amikishiev Sahil V.
AU - Kuzmin Dmitry A.
AU - Ovcharenko Dmitriy
AU - Yuzhalin Arseniy E.
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - Oncologie
DO - 10.1515/oncologie-2026-0225
UR - https://doi.org/10.1515/oncologie-2026-0225
AB - Loss or downregulation of MHC-I is a frequent mechanism of immune evasion in central nervous system (CNS) cancers, partially driven by an immunologically cold microenvironment. In this short commentary, we issue a call to action for exploring therapeutic strategies of MHC-I expression restoration in brain cancers to improve patient outcomes. We discuss several potential strategies, including targeting the immunosuppressive microenvironment, epigenetic modulation, and gene therapy approaches. We argue that effective MHC-I restoration may require a combinatorial approach that simultaneously boosts both antigen processing and presentation and remodels the tumor microenvironment. Overcoming CNS-specific barriers, such as the blood-brain barrier, is critical for success. We propose that combining MHC-I re-expression with immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy could provide new therapeutic windows for CNS malignancies.
SN - 1765-2839
SN - 1292-3818
ER -