Exhaustion in tumor-infiltrating Mucosal-Associated Invariant T (MAIT) cells from colon cancer patients.

ABSTRACT: Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are unconventional T cells recognizing microbial metabolites, presented by the invariant MR1 protein. Upon activation, MAIT cells rapidly secrete cytokines and exert cytotoxic functions, and may thus be highly relevant also in tumor immunity. MAIT cells accumulate in colon tumors, but in contrast to other cytotoxic T cell subsets, their presence in tumors has been associated with worse patient outcome. Here we investigated if exhaustion may contribute to reduced anti-tumor immunity by MAIT cells. Freshly isolated lymphocytes from colon tumors, unaffected tissue and blood from the same patients were analyzed by flow cytometry to detect MAIT cells with effector functions that are relevant for tumor immunity, and their expression of inhibitory recep

SUBMITTER: Rodin W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8571139 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature