Affiliation:
1. Fujian Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Fujian Normal University Qishan Campus, College Town, Fuzhou 350117, China
2. College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350117, China
Abstract
Despite the numerous treatments for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), chemotherapy is still one of the most effective methods. However, the impact of chemotherapy on immune cells is not yet clear. Therefore, this study aims to explore the different roles of immune cells and their relationship with treatment outcomes in the tumor and blood before and after paclitaxel therapy. We analyzed the single-cell sequencing data of immune cells in tumors and blood before and after paclitaxel treatment. We confirmed a high correlation between T cells, innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), and therapeutic efficacy. The differences in T cells were analyzed related to therapeutic outcomes before and after paclitaxel treatment. In the effective treatment group, post-treatment tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells were associated with elevated inflammation, cytokines, and Toll-like-receptor-related gene expression, which were expected to enhance anti-tumor capabilities in tumor immune cells. Moreover, we found that the expression of immune-checkpoint-related genes is also correlated with treatment outcomes. In addition, an ILC subgroup, b_ILC1-XCL1, in which the corresponding marker gene XCL1 was highly expressed, was mainly present in the effective treatment group and was also associated with higher patient survival rates. Overall, we found differences in gene expression in T cells across different groups and a correlation between the expression of immune checkpoint genes in T cells, the b_ILC1-XCL1 subgroup, and patient prognosis.
Funder
National Natural Science Foundation of China
university–industry cooperation project of Fujian Province of China
Subject
Inorganic Chemistry,Organic Chemistry,Physical and Theoretical Chemistry,Computer Science Applications,Spectroscopy,Molecular Biology,General Medicine,Catalysis