Response of lymphocyte subsets and cytokines to Shenyang prescription in Sprague-Dawley rats with tongue squamous cell carcinomas induced by 4NQO.
BACKGROUND
The study was designed to investigate immunocompetence in relation to cancer progression in rat and to assess the effect of the traditional Chinese anti-cancer medicine, "Shenyang" prescription, on immunity.


METHODS
4-Nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4NQO) was administered to 80 Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats via the drinking water for up to 36 weeks. Tongue squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was confirmed by pathological examination in 61 rats. "Shenyang" prescription was administered to subgroups of these rats, and blood samples were taken before and after treatment. Lymphocyte subsets were determined by flow cytometry. Serum Th1 and Th2-type cytokines were assessed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.


RESULTS
As the cancer progressed at the tongue root, the percentage of CD3+CD4+ T lymphocytes and NK cells and the levels of IFN-gamma and IL-2 decreased gradually, while the percentage of CD3+CD8+ T lymphocytes and the levels of IL-4 and IL-10 increased. The CD4+/CD8+ ratios were lower in the cancer groups than in the control group. However, after administering "Shenyang" prescription, the levels of CD3+CD4+ T lymphocytes, NK cells, IFN-gamma and IL-2 increased, while the CD3+CD8+ T lymphocyte counts and the levels of IL-4 and IL-10 decreased.


CONCLUSIONS
4NQO-induced lesions were good models for exploring oral cavity carcinogenesis. The rats with 4NQO-induced SCC demonstrated abnormalities in lymphocyte subsets and a shift from Th1-type to Th2-type, which were good models for assessing the effect of anticancer agent on immunity. Oral cancer progression was associated with an aggressive disturbance of immune function. "Shenyang" prescription has the ability to improve the disturbance of immune function.
Jiang
Canhua
C
Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Shanghai, China. canhua-j@sohu.com <canhua-j@sohu.com>
Ye
Dongxia
D
Qiu
Weiliu
W
Zhang
Xiuli
X
Zhang
Zhiyuan
Z
He
Di
D
Zhang
Ping
P
Chen
Wantao
W
D015112:4-Nitroquinoline-1-oxide; D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D002452:Cell Count; D016207:Cytokines / Q000187:drug effects*; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional / Q000379:methods; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D014062:Tongue Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D016207:Cytokines; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; C519459:Shenyang prescription; D015112:4-Nitroquinoline-1-oxide