Alteration of Natural Killer cell phenotype and function in obese individuals

Obesity is associated with increased cancer rates and higher susceptibility to infections. The adipose tissue of obese individuals is inflammatory and may negatively impact on innate and adaptive immunity in a systemic way. Here, we explored the phenotype and function of peripheral Natural Killer (NK) cells of patients in correlation with their body mass index (BMI). We found that high BMI was associated with an increased activation status of peripheral NK cells, as measured by surface levels of CD69 and levels of granzyme-B. However, these activated NK cells had an impaired capacity to degranulate or to produce cytokines/chemokines when exposed to tumor cell lines deficient in MHC-I expression or coated with antibodies. This suggests that chronic stimulation of NK cells during obesity may lead to their incapacity to respond normally and eliminate target cells, which could contribute to the greater susceptibility of obese individuals to develop cancers or infectious diseases.