Deciphering the Adaptive Immune Response to Ovarian Cancer
Abstract
The presence of CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (CD8+ TIL) has been associated with increased patient survival in ovarian cancer. We discovered that this effect is even stronger when CD8+ TIL are found together with CD20+ B cells and CD4+FoxP3+ T cells. We hypothesized that CD20+ TIL contribute to tumor immunity by presenting antigens to CD4+ and CD8+ TIL. To test this, we are attempting to identify the tumor antigens recognized by CD20+ TIL. As a first step, this year we developed methods to clone immunoglobulin molecules from individual CD20+ TIL by single-cell reverse-transcriptase PCR. We also hypothesized that a subset of CD4+FoxP3+ TIL produces effector cytokines that enhance CD8+ TIL responses. This year, we developed methods to profile T cell receptors (TCR) from tumor-infiltrating T cells, which will facilitate future TCR cloning and antigen identification, as originally proposed. Overall, this project is progressing on schedule and is yielding innovative methods and publishable results that lead toward a better understanding of the mechanisms used by the immune system to control the progression of ovarian cancer.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA598245
Entities
People
- Brad H Nelson
Organizations
- BC Cancer Agency