Single Cell Profiling of Primary and Paired Metastatic Lymph Node Tumors in Breast Cancer Patients

Overview

Journal Nat Commun

Specialty Biology

Date 2022 Nov 10

PMID 36357424

Authors

Tong Liu

Cheng Liu

Meisi Yan

Lei Zhang

Jing Zhang

Min Xiao

Zhigao Li

Xiaofan Wei

Hongquan Zhang

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The microenvironment of lymph node metastasized tumors (LNMT) determines tumor progression and response to therapy, but a systematic study of LNMT is lacking. Here, we generate single-cell maps of primary tumors (PTs) and paired LNMTs in 8 breast cancer patients. We demonstrate that the activation, cytotoxicity, and proliferation of T cells are suppressed in LNMT compared with PT. CD4CXCL13 T cells in LNMT are more likely to differentiate into an exhausted state. Interestingly, LAMP3 dendritic cells in LNMT display lower T cell priming and activating ability than in PT. Additionally, we identify a subtype of PLA2G2A cancer-associated fibroblasts enriched in HER2 breast cancer patients that promotes immune infiltration. We also show that the antigen-presentation pathway is downregulated in malignant cells of the metastatic lymph node. Altogether, we characterize the microenvironment of LNMT and PT, which may shed light on the individualized therapeutic strategies for breast cancer patients with lymph node metastasis.

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