Circulating Tfh cells and Tfr cells in papillary thyroid carcinoma and their diagnostic potential

IF 2.5 4区医学 Q3 IMMUNOLOGY

Immunobiology Pub Date : 2025-04-04 DOI:10.1016/j.imbio.2025.152899

Heng Zhang , Yiwen Yu , Minglei Jiang , Renquan Lu , Lin Guo

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

This study aim to explore the alterations of circulating T follicular helper (Tfh) and T follicular regulatory (Tfr) cells in the peripheral blood of patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), assess their association with PTC and the influence on B cells, and evaluate their diagnostic potential.

Methods

Peripheral blood samples were collected from 76 newly diagnosed PTC patients and 21 matched healthy controls between June 2023 and June 2024. Flow cytometry was used to determine the proportions of circulating Tfh and Tfr cells. The relationships between these cell populations and variables such as sex, age, and disease stage were analyzed. The diagnostic performance of circulating Tfh and Tfr cells, individually and in combination, was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves.

Results

Compared to healthy controls, PTC patients exhibited an increased proportion of circulating Tfh cells and a decrease proportion of Tfr cells. While the increase in Tfh cells was not subtype-specific, the proportions of Th1-like and Th17-like Tfr subtypes were significantly altered in the PTC group. The proportion of Tfr cells remained unaffected by sex or age, whereas the increase in Tfh cells was more pronounced in male and elderly patients. Although no significant differences were observed across disease stages, changes in Tfh and Tfr cell proportions correlated with B cell subtypes and certain thyroid-related indicators. ROC plots showed circulating Tfr cells had higher sensitivity and specificity for distinguishing PTC compared to Tfh cells or their combination.

Conclusion

PTC patients showed changed circulating Tfh cells and Tfr cells, presenting diagnostic potential.

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循环Tfh细胞和Tfr细胞在甲状腺乳头状癌中的诊断价值

本研究旨在探讨甲状腺乳头状癌（PTC）患者外周血中循环T滤泡辅助细胞（Tfh）和T滤泡调节细胞（Tfr）的变化，评估它们与PTC的关联以及对B细胞的影响，并评估其诊断潜力。采用流式细胞术确定循环中 Tfh 和 Tfr 细胞的比例。分析了这些细胞群与性别、年龄和疾病分期等变量之间的关系。结果与健康对照组相比，PTC 患者的循环 Tfh 细胞比例增加，Tfr 细胞比例减少。虽然 Tfh 细胞的增加没有亚型特异性，但在 PTC 组中，Th1 样和 Th17 样 Tfr 亚型的比例发生了显著变化。Tfr细胞的比例不受性别或年龄的影响，而Tfh细胞的增加在男性和老年患者中更为明显。虽然在不同疾病阶段没有观察到明显差异，但Tfh和Tfr细胞比例的变化与B细胞亚型和某些甲状腺相关指标有关。ROC图显示，与Tfh细胞或它们的组合相比，循环中的Tfr细胞在鉴别PTC方面具有更高的敏感性和特异性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Immunobiology 医学-免疫学

CiteScore

5.00

自引率

3.60%

发文量

108

审稿时长

55 days

期刊介绍： Immunobiology is a peer-reviewed journal that publishes highly innovative research approaches for a wide range of immunological subjects, including • Innate Immunity, • Adaptive Immunity, • Complement Biology, • Macrophage and Dendritic Cell Biology, • Parasite Immunology, • Tumour Immunology, • Clinical Immunology, • Immunogenetics, • Immunotherapy and • Immunopathology of infectious, allergic and autoimmune disease.