Identification of characteristic TRB V usage in HBV-associated HCC by using differential expression profiling...

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Oncology
• Genomics

Background:

• Liver cancer is a major global health concern.
• T-cell receptor (TCR) CDR3 sequencing offers insights into immune responses and cancer prognosis.
• Understanding TCR-antigen interactions is crucial for developing cancer immunotherapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze and compare T-cell repertoires in liver cancer tissues and peripheral blood.
• To investigate differences in T-cell repertoires among various liver cancer subtypes (HCC, ICC, MHC).
• To evaluate the potential of T-cell repertoire analysis as a biomarker for liver cancer detection.

Main Methods:

• Multi-PCR amplification of rearranged TCRβ loci using Vβ- and Jβ-specific primers.
• High-throughput sequencing (HTS) of T-cell repertoires.
• Comparison of T-cell repertoires from liver tumors, adjacent tissues, and blood samples from healthy adults and hepatitis patients.

Main Results:

• T-cell repertoires within liver tumors were similar to each other but distinct from circulating T cells.
• Significant differences were observed in T-cell repertoires across HCC, ICC, and MHC subtypes.
• The highly expanded clone (HEC) ratio in blood samples significantly differed between liver cancer patients and healthy/hepatitis patients (p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• T-cell repertoire analysis of tissue and blood can distinguish liver cancer patients from healthy and hepatitis patients.
• CDR3 sequence diversity in liver cancer may serve as a novel biomarker for aggressive tumors.
• This approach holds promise for early detection and prognosis of liver cancer.