Department of Interventional Therapy, Tianjin Cancer Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300060, China.
Asian J Androl. 2013 Jul;15(4):461-5. doi: 10.1038/aja.2013.22. Epub 2013 Jun 3.
This study was performed to assess the response of regulatory T cells (Tregs) following cryosurgery in prostate cancer (PCa) patients by measuring their frequency and immune function. Blood was collected prior to and at 4 and 8 weeks after treatment in 30 patients with high-risk PCa who underwent cryosurgery and from 15 healthy volunteers. Circulating CD4(+)CD25(+)CD127(-) Tregs were isolated. Their frequency was detected by flow cytometry, and immune suppressive function was evaluated by measuring the proliferation of CD4(+)CD25(-) T cells cocultured with Tregs. The results showed that the percentage of circulating CD4(+)CD25(+)CD127(-) Tregs was increased in PCa patients compared to healthy volunteers (7.6% ± 0.73% vs. 5.8% ± 0.54%, P<0.001). The frequency of circulating CD4(+)CD25(+)CD127(-) Tregs was reduced 4 weeks after cryosurgery compared to before surgery (6.3% ± 0.58% vs. 7.6% ± 0.73%, P<0.001), and the decrease persisted for 8 weeks. However, the suppressive function of Tregs was increased in eight of 12 patients, which might contribute to cancer recurrence. Then the response of circulating Tregs is complicated after cryosurgery for PCa, and further studies are warranted.
本研究旨在通过测量调节性 T 细胞（Tregs）的频率和免疫功能，评估冷冻手术治疗前列腺癌（PCa）患者后 Tregs 的反应。30 例高危 PCa 患者在接受冷冻手术前、治疗后 4 周和 8 周采集血液，同时采集 15 名健康志愿者的血液。分离循环 CD4+CD25+CD127-Tregs。通过流式细胞术检测其频率，并通过测量与 Tregs 共培养的 CD4+CD25-T 细胞的增殖来评估其免疫抑制功能。结果表明，与健康志愿者相比，PCa 患者循环 CD4+CD25+CD127-Tregs 的百分比增加（7.6%±0.73%比 5.8%±0.54%，P<0.001）。与术前相比，冷冻手术后 4 周循环 CD4+CD25+CD127-Tregs 的频率降低（6.3%±0.58%比 7.6%±0.73%，P<0.001），且该降低持续 8 周。然而，在 12 例患者中有 8 例 Tregs 的抑制功能增加，这可能导致癌症复发。因此，冷冻手术治疗 PCa 后循环 Tregs 的反应较为复杂，需要进一步研究。
