Stromal ETS2 Regulates Chemokine Production and Immune Cell Recruitment during Acinar-to-Ductal Metaplasia

Preclinical studies have suggested that the pancreatic tumor microenvironment both inhibits and promotes tumor development and growth. Here we establish the role of stromal fibroblasts during acinar-to-ductal metaplasia (ADM), an initiating event in pancreatic cancer formation. The transcription factor V-Ets avian erythroblastosis virus E26 oncogene homolog 2 (ETS2) was elevated in smooth muscle actin–positive fibroblasts in the stroma of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patient tissue samples relative to normal pancreatic controls. LSL-Kras^G12D/+; LSL-Trp53^R172H/+; Pdx-1-Cre (KPC) mice showed that ETS2 expression initially increased in fibroblasts during ADM and remained elevated through progression to PDAC. Conditional ablation of Ets-2 in pancreatic fibroblasts in a Kras^G12D-driven mouse ADM model decreased the amount of ADM events. ADMs from fibroblast Ets-2–deleted animals had reduced epithelial cell proliferation and increased apoptosis. Surprisingly, fibroblast Ets-2 deletion significantly altered immune cell infiltration into the stroma, with an increased CD8+ T-cell population, and decreased presence of regulatory T cells (Tregs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells, and mature macrophages. The mechanism involved ETS2-dependent chemokine ligand production in fibroblasts. ETS2 directly bound to regulatory sequences for Ccl3, Ccl4, Cxcl4, Cxcl5, and Cxcl10, a group of chemokines that act as potent mediators of immune cell recruitment. These results suggest an unappreciated role for ETS2 in fibroblasts in establishing an immune-suppressive microenvironment in response to oncogenic Kras^G12D signaling during the initial stages of tumor development.