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Updated: Mar 21, 2026
Lymphocyte Isolation from Human Skin for Phenotypic Analysis and Ex Vivo Cell Culture
Published on: April 8, 2016
CD47 expression in cryopreserved equine cutaneous masses and normal skin
Stephanie S Caston1, Elizabeth E Cooper2, Prashanth Chandramani-Shivalingappa2
1Departments of Veterinary Clinical Sciences (Caston, Cooper), Iowa State University, Ames, IAVeterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine (Chandramani-Shivalingappa, Sponseller), Iowa State University, Ames, IAVeterinary Pathology (Hostetter), Iowa State University, Ames, IACollege of Veterinary Medicine, and Department of Statistics (Sun), Iowa State University, Ames, IA scaston@iastate.edu.
CD47 protein is not found on normal horse skin but is present in over half of equine skin tumors. Targeting CD47 may offer a new immunotherapy approach for these tumors.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Pathology
- Immunology
- Oncology
Background:
- CD47 is a cell surface protein involved in immune regulation.
- The CD47-SIRPα interaction inhibits macrophage phagocytosis.
- CD47 is overexpressed in various human tumors, impacting immune evasion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate CD47 expression in equine cutaneous masses and normal skin.
- To determine the potential of CD47 as a therapeutic target for equine skin tumors.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemical analysis of CD47 expression on cryopreserved equine skin tissues.
- Use of anti-CD47 antibodies and IgG control antibodies.
- Histologic diagnosis of formalin-fixed tissues.
Main Results:
- CD47 was not expressed in normal equine skin samples.
- Positivity for CD47 was observed in 13 out of 24 (54%) equine cutaneous masses.
- Differential CD47 expression between normal skin and tumors was noted.
Conclusions:
- CD47 is expressed in a significant proportion of equine cutaneous tumors.
- The findings suggest that CD47-targeted immunotherapy warrants further investigation for equine skin cancer.
