Therapeutic Targeting of IL-17A-Driven PTGS2/NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation in Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia

Abstract

Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) is an aggressive pediatric myelodysplastic syndrome or myeloproliferative disorder for which hematopoietic stem cell transplantation remains the only curative option; however, outcomes are particularly poor in patients harboring PTPN11 (encodes SHP2 phosphatase) mutations. Using a Shp2E76K/+ JMML mouse model, we identify a pathogenic IL-17A/PTGS2/NLRP3 signaling axis that drives bone marrow inflammation, suppresses antitumor immunity, and promotes leukemic progression. Shp2E76K/+ mice exhibited profound immune dysregulation, characterized by expansion of regulatory T cells (Tregs), increased T-cell exhaustion, and impaired cytotoxic function with reduced CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T-cell frequencies. Mechanistically, mutant macrophages upregulated IL-17A, triggering NLRP3 inflammasome activation, PTGS2 induction, caspase-1 cleavage, and IL-1β maturation, thereby amplifying inflammatory signaling within the marrow niche. Therapeutically, IL-17A neutralization suppressed inflammasome activity, while combined inhibition of NLRP3 and PTGS2 restored cytotoxic T-cell function, reduced systemic and marrow inflammation, reversed myeloproliferation, and significantly prolonged survival in Shp2E76K/+ mice. Importantly, ex vivo treatment of primary JMML patient samples with dual NLRP3/PTGS2 inhibition combined with MEK blockade significantly reduced leukemic progenitor colony formation, supporting translational relevance. In patient-derived xenograft models of PTPN11-mutant JMML, dual NLRP3/PTGS2 inhibition combined with MEK blockade most effectively reduced leukemic burden, decreased human CD45⁺ engraftment, and depleted leukemic CD34⁺CD38⁺ progenitors and GMPs while restoring MEP populations, resulting in significantly improved overall survival. Together, these findings establish IL-17A/PTGS2/NLRP3 signaling as a central driver of immune suppression and myeloid expansion in PTPN11-mutant JMML and highlight combinatorial anti-inflammatory targeting as a promising therapeutic strategy for this high-risk disease.