Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) represents a common and heterogeneous malignancy of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx. Surgery and radio(chemo)therapy are the standard treatment options and also have great influence on the composition of the tumor microenvironment and immune cell functions. However, the impact of radio(chemo)therapy on the distribution and characteristics of circulating monocyte subsets in HNSCC are not fully understood. Expression patterns of adhesion molecules and chemokine receptors CD11a (integrin-α L; LFA-1), CD11b (integrin-α M; Mac-1), CD11c (integrin-α X), CX3CR1 (CX3CL1 receptor) and checkpoint molecule PD-L1 (programmed cell death ligand-1) were investigated upon radio(chemo)therapeutic treatment using flow cytometry. Furthermore, comprehensive analysis of plasma cytokines was performed before and after treatment using ELISA measurements. Our data reveal a partial recovery of circulating monocytes in HNSCC patients upon radio(chemo)therapeutic treatment, with differential effects of the individual therapy regimen. PD-L1 expression on non-classical monocytes significantly correlates with the individual plasma levels of chemokine CXCL11 (C-X-C motif chemokine 11). Further comprehensive investigations on larger patient cohorts are required to elucidate the meaningfulness of peripheral blood monocyte subsets and chemokine CXCL11 as potential bioliquid indicators in HNSCC with regard to therapy response and the individual immunological situation.

中文翻译：

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头颈鳞癌患者放（化疗）治疗后外周血单核细胞亚群部分恢复与血浆CXCL11下降相关

头颈鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）是口腔、咽和喉部常见的异质性恶性肿瘤。手术和放（化疗）治疗是标准的治疗选择，对肿瘤微环境的组成和免疫细胞功能也有很大影响。然而，放（化疗）治疗对 HNSCC 循环单核细胞亚群分布和特征的影响尚不完全清楚。粘附分子和趋化因子受体CD11a（整合素-α L；LFA-1）、CD11b（整合素-α M；Mac-1）、CD11c（整合素-α X）、CX3CR1（CX3CL1受体）和检查点分子PD-的表达模式使用流式细胞术对放射（化学）治疗中的 L1（程序性细胞死亡配体-1）进行研究。此外，使用 ELISA 测量对治疗前后的血浆细胞因子进行综合分析。我们的数据显示，HNSCC 患者的循环单核细胞在放（化疗）治疗后部分恢复，且个体治疗方案的效果不同。非经典单核细胞上的 PD-L1 表达与趋化因子 CXCL11（CXC 基序趋化因子 11）的个体血浆水平显着相关。需要对更大的患者队列进行进一步全面的研究，以阐明外周血单核细胞亚群和趋化因子 CXCL11 作为 HNSCC 治疗反应和个体免疫状况的潜在生物液体指标的意义。