George Benu, Dahlquist Korbyn J V, Grant Marianne K O, Daniel Mary R, Smith Declan M, Ahlberg Ian, Sadak Karim T, Seelig Davis, Camell Christina D, Zordoky Beshay N
Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics, Medical School, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Sci Rep. 2025 May 3;15(1):15557. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-98617-5.
The long-term effects of doxorubicin (DOX) chemotherapy on thymic immune function in childhood cancer survivors remain inadequately understood. This study explores the immediate and delayed impacts of low-dose DOX on thymic immune populations using a juvenile mouse model. Male mice received intraperitoneal DOX injections (4 mg/kg/week) for three weeks, with evaluations performed at one- and five-weeks post treatment. Thymic samples were collected and analyzed using multi-parameter flow cytometry to assess changes in immune cell composition and phenotype. Additionally, real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was employed to measure gene expression of cytokines and senescence markers. One week after DOX administration, significant thymic atrophy was evident. While mature CD3CD4 T-cell frequency remained unchanged, CD3CD8 T-cells significantly increased, suggesting differential effects on T-cell subsets. PD1 expression increased across naïve and memory CD4 T-cell subsets, suggesting activation or exhaustion. Additionally, Ki67 expression was elevated in naïve and memory CD8 T-cells, indicating enhanced proliferation. Gene expression analysis revealed upregulation of Foxn1, Pax1, Ifnγ, and Il7 whereas Il6 and Il17 were downregulated. Furthermore, Cdkn1a (p21) expression was elevated, suggesting immune dysregulation and early immunosenescence. At five weeks, thymic weight rebounded; however, T-cell subsets displayed persistent perturbations. Central memory and effector memory CD4 T-cells were reduced, while naïve CD4 T-cells showed increased Ki67 expression. In contrast, CD8 T-cells subsets remained largely unchanged, except for a decrease in central memory cells. Although expression of thymus-related genes was normalized, p21 expression remained elevated, suggesting lingering immunosenescence. These findings highlight the complex effects of DOX, including acute thymic atrophy due to T-cell depletion, and a delayed recovery with persistent immunosenescence, underscoring the need for strategies to preserve immune function in childhood cancer survivors.
多柔比星(DOX)化疗对儿童癌症幸存者胸腺免疫功能的长期影响仍未得到充分了解。本研究使用幼年小鼠模型探讨低剂量DOX对胸腺免疫细胞群的即时和延迟影响。雄性小鼠接受腹腔注射DOX(4毫克/千克/周),持续三周,并在治疗后1周和5周进行评估。收集胸腺样本并使用多参数流式细胞术进行分析,以评估免疫细胞组成和表型的变化。此外,采用实时聚合酶链反应(RT-PCR)来测量细胞因子和衰老标志物的基因表达。DOX给药1周后,明显出现胸腺萎缩。虽然成熟的CD3CD4 T细胞频率保持不变,但CD3CD8 T细胞显著增加,表明对T细胞亚群有不同影响。幼稚和记忆CD4 T细胞亚群中的PD1表达增加,表明激活或耗竭。此外,幼稚和记忆CD8 T细胞中的Ki67表达升高,表明增殖增强。基因表达分析显示Foxn1、Pax1、Ifnγ和Il7上调,而Il6和Il17下调。此外,Cdkn1a(p21)表达升高,表明免疫失调和早期免疫衰老。在5周时,胸腺重量反弹;然而,T细胞亚群表现出持续的扰动。中枢记忆和效应记忆CD4 T细胞减少,而幼稚CD4 T细胞显示Ki67表达增加。相比之下,CD8 T细胞亚群基本保持不变,除了中枢记忆细胞减少。虽然胸腺相关基因的表达恢复正常,但p21表达仍然升高,表明存在持续的免疫衰老。这些发现突出了DOX的复杂影响,包括由于T细胞耗竭导致的急性胸腺萎缩,以及伴有持续免疫衰老的延迟恢复,强调了在儿童癌症幸存者中采取保护免疫功能策略的必要性。