title: Placental immune editing switch (PIES): learning about immunomodulatory pathways from a unique case report.
abstract: The hypothesis of this work is that, in order to escape the natural immune surveillance mechanisms, cancer cells and the surrounding microenvironment might express ectopically genes that are physiologically present in the placenta to mediate fetal immune-tolerance. These natural "placental immune-editing switch" mechanisms (PIES) may represent the result of millions of years of mammalian evolution developed to allow materno-fetal tolerance. Here, we introduce genes of the immune regulatory pathways that are either similarly over- or under-expressed in tumor vs normal tissue. Our analysis was carried out in primary breast cancer with metastatic homolateral axillary lymph nodes as well as placenta tissue (both uterine decidual tissue and term placenta tissue) from a pregnant woman. Gene expression profiling of paired non-self and self tissues (i.e. placenta/uterus; breast cancer/normal breast tissue; metastatic lymphnode/normal lymphnode tissue) was performed using the PanCancer Immune gene panel, a 770 Nanostring gene expression panel. Our findings reveal overlapping in specific immune gene expression in placenta and cancer tissue, suggesting that these genes might play an important role in maintaining immune tolerance both physiologically (in the placenta) and pathologically (in the cancer setting).
authors.affiliation: Institut Bellmunt Oncologia, Hospital Universitario Dexeus. Grupo Quirón Salud, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Miguel H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Bronchud
authors.affiliation: Servei Anatomia Patològica, Hospital Universitario Dexeus. Grupo Quirón Salud, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tresserra
authors.affiliation: Nanostring Technologies, Immune Oncology, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Wenjie
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Nanostring Technologies, Immune Oncology, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Warren
authors.affiliation: Ginecologia Oncològica, Hospital Universitario Dexeus. Grupo Quirón Salud, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Maite
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cusido
authors.affiliation: Servei Obstetricia i Neonatologia, Hospital Universitario Dexeus. Grupo Quirón Salud, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Bernat
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zantop
authors.affiliation: Experimental Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical Faculty, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Ana Claudia
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Zenclussen
authors.affiliation: Nanostring Technologies, Immune Oncology, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cesano
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D018275:Carcinoma, Lobular / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000379:methods; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000235:genetics; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D010920:Placenta / Q000276:immunology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D019139:Tumor Escape / Q000235:genetics; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor
keywords: cancer microenvironment; carcinogenesis; immune vigilance; materno-fetal tolerance; placental microenvironment