Aberrant frequency of TNFR2-expressing CD4+ FoxP3+ regulatory T cells in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients

Engku Abd Rahman ENS 1 , Irekeola AA 2 , Shueb RH 1 , Mat Lazim N 3 , Mohamud R 4 , Chen X 5 Show all authors , Ghazali L 6 , Awang NMSH 6 , Haron A 7 , Chan YY 8

Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 2 Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia; Microbiology Unit, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, Summit University Offa, PMB 4412, Offa Kwara State, Nigeria
  • 3 Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia; Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 4 Department of Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia; Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 5 State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, 999078 Macau
  • 6 Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 7 Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Hospital Raja Perempuan Zainab II, Jalan Hospital, 15200 Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 8 Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia; Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia. Electronic address: yeancyn@yahoo.com
Cytokine, 2023 Oct;170:156341.
PMID: 37657236 DOI: 10.1016/j.cyto.2023.156341

Abstract

TNFR2 is a surface marker of highly suppressive subset of CD4+ FoxP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) in humans and mice. This study examined the TNFR2 expression by Tregs of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients and healthy controls. The proliferation, migration, survival of TNFR2+ Tregs, and association with clinicopathological characteristics were assessed. The expression levels of selected cytokines were also determined. The results demonstrated that in both peripheral blood (PB) (10.45 ± 5.71%) and tumour microenvironment (TME) (54.38 ± 16.15%) of NPC patients, Tregs expressed TNFR2 at noticeably greater levels than conventional T cells (Tconvs) (3.91 ± 2.62%, p  0.05), the proportions of PB and TME TNFR2+ Tregs in NPC patients showed more proliferative, higher migration capacity, and better survival ability, as compared to those in healthy controls. Furthermore, TNFR2+ Tregs from NPC patients expressed significantly higher amounts of IL-6 (p = 0.0077), IL-10 (p = 0.0001), IFN-γ (p = 0.0105) and TNF-α (p 

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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