Researchers have found evidence that B cells might play an important role in immunotherapy for melanoma. Currently, immunotherapy is primarily focused on T cells, but the results suggest that B cells could also provide an interesting research avenue.
Immunotherapy is a form of cancer treatment that uses the body's own immune system to recognize and fight the disease. It comes in a variety of forms, including cancer vaccines, targeted antibodies or tumor-infecting viruses. Only some cancer patients currently benefit from this kind of therapy.
In the case of melanoma, which is a particularly aggressive form of skin cancer, established immunotherapies focus on T cells. T cells play an important role in controlling and shaping the immune system and they are able to directly kill cancer cells, while also recruiting other cells into the process.
A recent study published in Nature Communications has shown that, alongside T cells, B cells play a critical role in triggering melanoma-associated inflammation. B cells are a type of white blood cell, which can produce antibodies along with several important messenger molecules. The researchers found that, in the case of melanoma, B cells act almost like a satnav, directing T cells to the tumor via the secretion of such distinct messenger molecules.
"Immunotherapy has transformed cancer treatment," explains the author. "It unleashes T cells so they can fight cancer in a more effective way. For the first time, we found that B cells also play an important part in the process and help T cells find the tumor. The role of B cells in immunotherapy is still largely unknown, but it seems they may have more impact than previously thought."
During the study, the researchers observed that when B cells were depleted from melanoma patients, the number of T cells and other immune cells dramatically decreased within the tumors as well. In subsequent experiments, the researchers showed that a special subtype of B cells seems to be responsible for guiding T cells and other immune cells to the tumor.
Interestingly, melanoma cells seem to force B cells to develop into this distinct B cell subtype. Most excitingly, this specific B cell subtype also increased the activating effect of current immune therapies on T cells, and higher numbers of this B cell subtype in tumors before therapy predicted that a patient would respond better to subsequent immunotherapy.
"Further research is required to answer questions such as how melanoma cells modify B cells, what mechanism B cells use to support the activation of T cells, and how we can help these B cells to support current immunotherapies in cancer patients," concludes the author.
https://www.ebi.ac.uk/about/news/press-releases/B-cells-immunotherapy
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-12160-2
B cells linked to immunotherapy for melanoma
- 1,416 views
- Added
Edited
Latest News
Protein that helps COVID-19…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SM…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Link between bowel movement…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Inhibition of IL-11 signall…
By newseditor
Posted 25 Jul
Brain changes linked to obe…
By newseditor
Posted 25 Jul
Other Top Stories
Dual sensor role for potassium channel in bacteria!
Read more
Faster detection of pathogens in the lungs
Read more
Antibodies that are effective against both dengue and Zika viruses
Read more
$2 portable Zika test
Read more
A new angle for countering severe bacterial infections and sepsis
Read more
Protocols
A systems biology approach…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Jul
quantms: a cloud-based pipe…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Jul
Emerging tools and best pra…
By newseditor
Posted 19 Jul
Directly selecting cell-typ…
By newseditor
Posted 17 Jul
PUFFFIN: an ultra-bright, c…
By newseditor
Posted 16 Jul
Publications
Hepatocyte-intrinsic SMN de…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Aberrant bowel movement fre…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
A pseudoautosomal glycosyla…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Microglia protect against a…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Rigor and reproducibility i…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Presentations
Myelin plasticity in the ve…
By newseditor
Posted 10 Jun
Hydrogels in Drug Delivery
By newseditor
Posted 12 Apr
Lipids
By newseditor
Posted 31 Dec
Cell biology of carbohydrat…
By newseditor
Posted 29 Nov
RNA interference (RNAi)
By newseditor
Posted 23 Oct
Posters
A chemical biology/modular…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Aug
Single-molecule covalent ma…
By newseditor
Posted 04 Jul
ASCO-2020-HEALTH SERVICES R…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-HEAD AND NECK CANCER
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-GENITOURINARY CAN…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar