Unraveling Cathepsin S regulation in interleukin-7-mediated anti-tumor immunity reveals its targeting potential against oral cancer.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Immunomodulatory agents benefit a small percentage of patients with oral cancer (OC), a subset of head and neck cancer. Cathepsin S (CTSS), a lysosomal protease, has been frequently associated with tumor immunity. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism by which tumor CTSS affects anti-tumor immunity through the regulation of interleukin-7 (IL-7) to overcome this obstacle.

Methods

OC patients' samples were used to disclose the correlation among CTSS and CD8⁺ T cell infiltration levels. The cytokine array was used to investigate the effect of CTSS on the secretion of cytokine/chemokines. We utilized various cell biology experiments to investigate the molecular mechanism of CTSS that mediates IL-7 secretion in OC cell lines, including fluorescence r

SUBMITTER: Chang YC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12288273 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature