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William J. Gradishar, MD, FACP, FASCO
William J. Gradishar, MD, FACP, FASCO
Posted: Monday, September 9, 2024
A recent study conducted by Anupam Basu, PhD, of the University of Burdwan, Purba Barddhaman, India, and colleagues evaluated the mechanism by which macrophages may influence breast cancer cells to progress as different subtypes. The results of this trial, reportedly the first of their kind to identify the role of macrophages in breast tumors, were presented during the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Breakthrough conference (Abstract 10).
“In triple-negative breast cancer, infiltrating macrophages induce an immunosuppressive effect, altering cytokine expression and fostering the expression of tumor-promoting factors in epithelial cells, thereby facilitating cellular proliferation and metastasis,” the authors mentioned. “Conversely, in luminal breast cancer, infiltrating macrophages exhibit a predominantly proinflammatory profile, resulting in minimal tumor-promoting effects.”
Conditioned media from different subtypes of breast cancer cells was used to cultivate human monocyte cell-derived macrophages. Additionally, the basal cell line MDA MB 231 and the human luminal breast cancer cell line T47D were cultured using conditioned media from macrophages.
Flow-cytometry analysis demonstrated that conditioned media from T47D cells appeared to induce the production of CD80-positive cells; media from the basal cell line increased both CD206-positive and CD80-positive cells. Conditioned media from both cell lines also promoted the creation of multiple cytokines, specifically interleukin-6, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, and tumor necrosis factor-α, among macrophages treated with basal cell media.
A notable proliferation of MDA MB 231 cells was observed after the cultivation of cancer cells treated with macrophage-conditioned media. In contrast, T47D cells experienced an increase in apoptosis with a concurrent significant decrease in proliferation. Moreover, there appeared to be an increase in MDA MB 231 cell migration, whereas T47D cell migration remained relatively unchanged. Of particular interest, proteins MDHM, M1.5, and LEG8, which are associated with tumor growth, were found to be plentiful in MDA MB 231 cells and seen rarely in T47D cells.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit coi.asco.org.
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