The effect of CD4~+C25~+Foxp3~+ iTreg on the pathogenesis of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma

To evaluate the correlation between regulatory T cells and laryngeal squamous cells carcinoma(LSCC),peripheral blood samples were collected from 50 patients to determine the percentage of CD4+C25+Foxp3+Treg cells by flow cytometry and the cytokine levels by real-time PCR.It was observed that not only the percentage of CD4+C25+Foxp3+ Treg in peripheral CD4+T cells of LSCC patients but also the positive ratio of Foxp3 in CD4+CD25+CCR6+Tregs were much higher than those in healthy persons.By using real-time PCR,it was showed that the expression level of Foxp3 mRNA correlated well with clinical stages of LSCC and that the detectable levels of TGF-β and IL-10 mRNA were higher,and those of IL-2,IL-12 and IFN-γ mRNA were lower,in the patients when compared with those in healthy control.This suggests an involvement of the inducible regulatory T subset(Foxp3+iTreg) in the pathogenesis of LSCC.The increased percentage of the Foxp3+Tregs and the up-regulation of Foxp3 expression on CCR6+Treg in LSCC patients,therefore,may account for the down-regulation of anti-tumor immunity in the patients,which may be valuable for assessment of prognosis in LSCC treatment.