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Updated: May 15, 2026
Intramucosal Inoculation of Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells in Mice for Tumor Immune Profiling and Treatment Response Assessment
Published on: April 22, 2019
In vitro cytokine release profile: predictive value for metastatic potential in head and neck squamous cell
Omar Shkeir1, Maria Athanassiou-Papaefthymiou, Martian Lapadatescu
1Departments of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Background:
Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) have devastating morbidity rates with mortality mainly because of metastasis.
Methods:
Multiplex enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to assay a variety of cytokine levels secreted by a panel of stage-specific and anatomic site-specific primary, and recurrent and metastatic University of Michigan-HNSCC cell lines over a 72-hour time course.
Results:
Conditioned medium from metastatic or recurrent HNSCC showed significantly higher amounts of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-6 receptor, tumor growth factor-beta (TGF-β) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) than nonmetastatic cells or normal oral keratinocytes. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) was only secreted by stage IV, metastatic, or recurrence-derived cell lines.
Conclusion:
The cytokine profile of cultured HNSCC cells suggests that high levels of IL-6 and IL-6R, TGF-β, and VEGF are significantly related with their metastatogenic potential and provide rationale for determining if serum testing for a combination of these 4 soluble factors could be of predictive value for the HNSCC tumor progression and clinical outcome.
