Tumor-derived MDSCs inhibit airway remodeling in asthmatic mice through regulating IL-10 and IL-12

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), a group of newly discovered and heterogeneous myeloid-derived immunosuppressive cells, play an important role in the progress of asthma, however, the specific mechanism is still largely unclear. Our previous study has indicated that during the onset of asthma, the accumulation of MDSCs and the level of serum interleukin (IL)-10 increased, while the level of IL-12 decreased. The present study aimed to investigate whether tumor-derived MDSCs could inhibit airway remodeling in asthmatic mice through regulating IL-10 and IL-12 secretion. To perform our investigation, we established a mouse model of breast cancer, and the extracted MDSCs from breast caner mouse model were injected into a mouse model of asthma induced by ovalbumin (OVA). Then, asthmatic airway remodeling of mice was analyzed and the levels of IL-10 and IL-12 in the serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of mice were detected. In addition, the correlation of MDSCs with the levels of IL-10 and IL-12 in the transplantation group was analyzed. The transplantation of tumor-derived MDSCs into asthmatic mice significantly improved airway remodeling, decreased MDSCs and the expression of IL-10, and significantly increased the expression of IL-12. Besides, we confirmed that IL-10 was positively correlated with MDSCs, while IL-12 was negatively correlated with MDSCs. The results indicated that tumor-derived MDSCs could reduce IL-10 level, increase the level of IL-12, and thus correct the Th1/Th2 imbalance in asthmatic mice. In summary, our results revealed that tumor-derived MDSCs could serve as a potential novel target for asthma therapy.