Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 18, 2026

A Syngeneic Mouse Model of Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma for Quantitative and Longitudinal Assessment of Preclinical Therapies
06:38

A Syngeneic Mouse Model of Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma for Quantitative and Longitudinal Assessment of Preclinical Therapies

Published on: April 12, 2017

Influence of immunotherapy with interferon-alpha on regulatory T cells in renal cell carcinoma patients

Katsunori Tatsugami1, Masatoshi Eto, Seiji Naito

  • 1Department of Urology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. KTatsu@uro.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp

Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research : the Official Journal of the International Society for Interferon and Cytokine Research
|November 26, 2009
PubMed

Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) has extremely broad effects on the immune system, and the influence of IFN-alpha on regulatory T (Treg) cells is not fully known. In this report, Treg cells were analyzed in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) following IFN-alpha monotherapy or treatment with IFN-alpha and interleukin (IL)-2. CD4(+) and FoxP3(+) Treg cells were significantly decreased for 2 weeks after the initiation of IFN-alpha monotherapy, but recovered later as treatment proceeded. Patients treated with both IFN-alpha and IL-2 increased their Treg cell levels during the first 2 weeks after initiation of treatment. Patients who derived complete response (CR), partial response (PR), or stable disease (SD) from IFN-alpha monotherapy had lower Treg cell levels before treatment than did patients whose disease progressed. Low Treg cell levels before treatment may therefore be advantageous to subsequent immunotherapy with IFN-alpha, and predictive for treatment results in RCC patients.

Related Concept Videos

Tumor Immunotherapy01:27

Tumor Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a treatment that boosts or manipulates the immune system to fight diseases, including cancer. For instance, by stimulating an immune response through vaccinations against viruses that cause cancers, like hepatitis B virus and human papillomavirus, these diseases can be prevented. Nonetheless, some cancer cells can avoid the immune system due to their rapid mutation and division. The immune response to many cancers involves three phases: elimination, equilibrium, and escape.
T Cell Types and Functions01:24

T Cell Types and Functions

When T cells with CD4 markers are activated, they give rise to two types of effector cells: helper T cells and regulatory T cells. Meanwhile, T cells with CD8 markers differentiate into effector cytotoxic T cells. The differentiation of CD4 T cells into helper T cell subsets, such as Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells, is dependent on the antigen type, antigen-presenting cell, and regulatory cytokines.
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...
Inhibitors of Viral Protein Synthesis01:30

Inhibitors of Viral Protein Synthesis

Protein synthesis is indispensable for viral replication, as viruses lack the cellular machinery required for this process and must hijack the host's translational apparatus. In response, host cells deploy a critical innate immune defense involving interferons, specialized cytokines that play a central role in inhibiting viral propagation.Upon viral detection, infected cells release interferons that bind to receptors on adjacent uninfected cells, activating the JAK-STAT signaling pathway and...