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Immune suppressive landscape in a human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma microenvironment

ABSTRACT: Properly applying current immunotherapies or developing novel therapeutic strategies relies on a comprehensive understanding of the immune elements of the tumor microenvironment (TME). In this study, we aim to map at single-cell resolution the immune landscape of esophagus squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), a common, aggressive, but understudied cancer of the gastrointestinal tract. We obtained a detailed immune cell atlas of the ESCC-associated transcriptome from a total of 80,787 tumor-infiltrating immune cells. Significant intertumoral heterogeneity was found among individual ESSC tumors. Exhausted T cells, exhausted NK cells, regulatory T cells, alternatively activated macrophages, and tolerogenic dendritic cells were discovered as the dominant portions of the immune cells in the TME. Dysfunctional T cells were the major proliferative cell compartment among tumor-infiltrating immune cells. In addition, strong potential interactions of immune cells in tumors may contribute to the immunosuppressive status and the progress of tumor development; a six-gene signature, comprising IFNGR1, IFNGR2, IDO1, IL10, CD163, and CD274, were associated with ESCC survival. Our results provided a comprehensive characterization of tumor-infiltrating immune cells in ESCC, indicating that immunosuppression of various kinds was synchronously responsible for the failure of immunosurveillance in ESCC. Specifically targeting the immunosuppressive pathways could reverse the immune-suppressive status and reactivate anti-tumor immune responses in ESCC.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

PROVIDER: GSE145370 | GEO | 2020/10/19

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Cervical cancer (CC) is one of the most common malignancy in women worldwide. It is characterized by a natural continuous phenomenon, that is, it is in the initial stage of HPV infection, progresses to intraepithelial neoplasia, and then develops into invasion and metastasis. Determining the complexity of tumor microenvironment (TME) can deepen our understanding of lesion progression and provide novel therapeutic strategies for CC. We performed the single-cell RNA sequencing on the normal cervix, intraepithelial neoplasia, primary tumor and metastatic lymph node tissues to describe the composition, lineage, and functional status of immune cells and mesenchymal cells at different stages of CC progression. A total of 59913 single cells were obtained and divided into 9 cellular clusters, including immune cells (T/NK cells, macrophages, B cells, plasma cells, mast cells and neutrophils) and mesenchymal cells (endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and fibroblasts). Our results showed that there were distinct cell subpopulations in different stages of CC. High-stage intraepithelial neoplasia (HSIL) tissue exhibited a low, recently activated TME, and it was characterized by high infiltration of tissue-resident CD8 T cell, effector NK cells, Treg, DC1, pDC, and M1-like macrophages. Tumor tissue displayed high enrichment of exhausted CD8 T cells, resident NK cells and M2-like macrophages, suggesting immunosuppressive TME. Metastatic lymph node consisted of naive T cell, central memory T cell, circling NK cells, cytotoxic CD8+ T cells and effector memory CD8 T cells, suggesting an early activated phase of immune response. This study is the first to delineate the transcriptome profile of immune cells during CC progression using single-cell RNA sequencing. Our results indicated that HSIL exhibited a low, recently activated TME, tumor displayed immunosuppressive statue, and metastatic lymph node showed early activated phase of immune response. Our study enhanced the understanding of dynamic change of TME during CC progression and has implications for the development of novel treatments to inhibit the initiation and progression of CC.

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Immune suppressive landscape in a human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma microenvironment

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