Checkpoint Inhibitors Modulate Plasticity of Innate Lymphoid Cells in Peripheral Blood of Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

ABSTRACT: Innate lymphoid cells (ILC) are a heterogeneous and plastic population of cells of the innate immune system. Their role in cancer and specifically in hepatocellular carcinoma is unraveling. The presence of ILCs in peripheral blood of HCC patients has not been explored yet. Their role and function in response to checkpoint inhibitor therapy have also not been explored. Here, we characterized ILCs in PBMC of HCC patients at baseline and after treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) by flow cytometry and single-cell sequencing. Characterization of ILC subsets in PBMCs of HCC patients showed a significant increase in ILC1 and a decrease in ILC3 frequencies. Single-cell RNA-sequencing identified a subgroup of NK-like ILCs which expressed cytotoxicity markers as well as NKp80/KLRF1<

SUBMITTER: Heinrich B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9271772 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature