Longitudinal multi-omic profiling uncovers immune escape and predictors of response in multiple myeloma
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Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable malignancy of clonally expanded plasma cells shaped by complex interactions with the immune microenvironment. To investigate immune factors driving treatment response and resistance, we conducted multi-omics profiling including CD138 neg single-cell RNA sequencing of 243 bone marrow samples from 102 patients (631,226 cells) and CD138 pos bulk RNA and whole-genome sequencing from 209 samples. Longitudinal analyses revealed that interferon gamma signaling impairs T cell memory after autologous stem cell transplant, while naïve B cell abundance and immunoglobulin diversity correlated with improved progression-free survival (HR = 0.48, p = 2.3e -4 ). At disease progression, MM cells upregulated cancer-testis antigens and immune effector genes, with concurrent B cell depletion, enrichment of myeloid-derived suppressor cell genes in monocytes, and T cell exhaustion. These findings highlight dynamic immune-tumor interactions, identifying naïve B cell reconstitution as a biomarker of durable response, and cancer-testis antigens as potential targets for high-risk disease at progression.
Statement of Significance
Longitudinal profiling of multiple myeloma and the immune microenvironment revealed dynamic immune-tumor interactions across the disease course. Dysfunctional CD8⁺ T cells limited memory formation post-transplant, while naïve B recovery associated with sustained treatment response. At progression, cancer-testis antigen expression associated with immunosuppression, revealing novel mechanisms of immune escape.
