Ntsethe Aviwe, Mkhwanazi Zekhethelo Alondwe, Dludla Phiwayinkosi Vusi, Nkambule Bongani Brian
School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences (SLMMS), University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4000, South Africa.
Cochrane South Africa, South African Medical Research Council, Tygerberg 7505, South Africa.
Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2024 Feb 23;46(3):1731-1740. doi: 10.3390/cimb46030112.
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is characterized by dysfunctional B cells. Immune checkpoint molecules such as cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) and programmed death-1 (PD-1) are upregulated in patients with CLL and may correlate with prognostic markers such as beta-2 microglobulin (B2M). The aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of immune checkpoints on B cell subsets and to further correlate them with B2M levels in patients with CLL. We recruited 21 patients with CLL and 12 controls. B cell subsets and the levels of immune checkpoint expression were determined using conventional multi-color flow cytometry. Basal levels of B2M in patients with CLL were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Patients with CLL had increased levels of activated B cells when compared to the control group, < 0.001. The expression of PD-1 and CTLA-4 were increased on activated B cells and memory B cells, < 0.05. There were no associations between B2M levels and the measured immune checkpoints on B cell subsets, after adjusting for sex and age. In our cohort, the patients with CLL expressed elevated levels of PD-1 and CTLA-4 immune checkpoints on activated and memory B cell subsets. However, there was no correlation between these immune checkpoint expressions and B2M levels.
慢性淋巴细胞白血病（CLL）的特征是B细胞功能失调。免疫检查点分子，如细胞毒性T淋巴细胞相关蛋白4（CTLA-4）和程序性死亡蛋白1（PD-1），在CLL患者中上调，并且可能与β2微球蛋白（B2M）等预后标志物相关。本研究的目的是评估B细胞亚群上免疫检查点的水平，并进一步将它们与CLL患者的B2M水平相关联。我们招募了21例CLL患者和12名对照。使用传统的多色流式细胞术确定B细胞亚群和免疫检查点表达水平。使用酶联免疫吸附测定法测量CLL患者的B2M基础水平。与对照组相比，CLL患者的活化B细胞水平升高，<0.001。活化B细胞和记忆B细胞上PD-1和CTLA-4的表达增加，<0.05。在调整性别和年龄后，B2M水平与B细胞亚群上测量的免疫检查点之间没有关联。在我们的队列中，CLL患者在活化和记忆B细胞亚群上表达升高水平的PD-1和CTLA-4免疫检查点。然而，这些免疫检查点表达与B2M水平之间没有相关性。
