Clinical and Prognostic Value of Antigen-Presenting Cells with PD-L1/PD-L2 Expression in Ovarian Cancer Patients

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 22; no. 21; p. 11563
• Main Authors: Pawłowska, Anna, Kwiatkowska, Agnieszka, Suszczyk, Dorota, Chudzik, Agata, Tarkowski, Rafał, Barczyński, Bartłomiej, Kotarski, Jan, Wertel, Iwona
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 26.10.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antigen-Presenting Cells - metabolism; Antigen-Presenting Cells - pathology; Antigens; Ascitic Fluid - metabolism; Ascitic Fluid - pathology; B7-H1 Antigen - metabolism; Blood & organ donations; Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial - metabolism; Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial - pathology; Dendritic cells; Dendritic Cells - metabolism; Dendritic Cells - pathology; Female; Humans; Ligands; Lymphocytes; Medical prognosis; Middle Aged; Ovarian cancer; Ovarian Neoplasms - metabolism; Ovarian Neoplasms - pathology; Prognosis; Programmed Cell Death 1 Ligand 2 Protein - metabolism; Tumor Microenvironment - physiology; Tumors; Young Adult; programmed cell death pathway; tumor microenvironment; immune suppression; ovarian cancer; immunotherapy
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms222111563

The latest literature demonstrates the predominant role of the programmed cell death axis (PD-1/PD-L1/PD-L2) in ovarian cancer (OC) pathogenesis. However, data concerning this issue is ambiguous. Our research aimed to evaluate the clinical importance of PD-L1/PD-L2 expression in OC environments. We evaluated the role of PD-L1/PD-L2 in OC patients (n = 53). The analysis was performed via flow cytometry on myeloid (mDCs) and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and monocytes/macrophages (MO/MA) in peripheral blood, peritoneal fluid (PF), and tumor tissue (TT). The data were correlated with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of OC patients. The concentration of soluble PD-L1 (sPD-L1) and PD-1 in the plasma and PF were determined by ELISA. We established an accumulation of PD-L1+/PD-L2+ mDCs, pDCs, and MA in the tumor microenvironment. We showed an elevated level of sPD-L1 in the PF of OC patients in comparison to plasma and healthy subjects. sPD-L1 levels in PF showed a positive relationship with Ca125 concentration. Moreover, we established an association between higher sPD-L1 levels in PF and shorter survival of OC patients. An accumulation of PD-L1+/PD-L2+ mDCs, pDCs, and MA in the TT and high sPD-L1 levels in PF could represent the hallmark of immune regulation in OC patients.