Characterization of dendritic cell subsets in lung cancers microenvironment

¹ Université Paris 13, UPRES EA-3406; Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Hôpital Avicenne, Laboratoire d'hématologie biologique, Bobigny, France; and Université Paris 7, UFR Denis Diderot; Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Service de Pneumologie HôpitalSaint-Louis, Paris, France
² Université Paris 13, UPRES EA-3406; Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Hôpital Avicenne, Laboratoire d'hématologie biologique, Bobigny, France
³ INSERM, U-552; Université Paris 7, UFR Denis Diderot, Paris, France.

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: abdellatif.tazi{at}sls.ap-hop-paris.fr.

	Abstract

The aim of this study was to seek evidence for a correlation between mediators present in lung cancers microenvironment and subsets of dendritic cells (DCs) infiltrating these tumours.

We used immunohistochemistry and recently available antibodies to define the phenotype of DCs present in surgical biopsies from 12 patients with lung carcinomas and evaluated both at mRNA and protein levels the local expression of chemokines potentially involved in the recruitment of these cells. We also used real time PCR to analyze the expression of mRNA coding for cytokines known to influence DCs maturation in vitro.

Different subsets of myeloid DCs were present in lung cancers, but no plasmocytoid DCs were identified. Both Langerhans cells and CD1a⁺/Langerin^- cells were interspersed among tumour cells, in numbers that were correlated to the amounts of CCL20 produced in these tumours. In most specimens, DC-SIGN⁺ DCs were also present at the periphery of the tumour beds. No DC-LAMP ⁺ DCs were identified and CD83⁺ DCs were rarely present in the tumour stroma. All tumours expressed IL-10, TGF- and VEGF, whereas IL-12 was virtually absent.

Thus, various types of DCs infiltrate lung carcinomas and display an immature phenotype, presumably because of the inhibitory cytokine microenvironment.

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