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BMC Oral Health
Published in: BMC Oral Health 1/2021

Open Access 01-12-2021 | Checkpoint Inhibitors | Research

Potential for treatment benefit of STING agonists plus immune checkpoint inhibitors in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Authors: Chao Zhu, Jiang Li, Mianfeng Yao, Changyun Fang

Published in: BMC Oral Health | Issue 1/2021

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Abstract

Background

DNA-sensing receptor cyclic GMP–AMP synthase (cGAS) and its downstream signaling effector stimulator of interferon genes (STING) present a novel role in anti-tumor immunity. Recently, the combination of cGAS-STING agonists and immunotherapy achieved promising results in some tumor types. The correlation between cGAS-STING signaling pathway and the tumor immune microenvironment in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is unclear.

Methods

We utilized RNA sequencing and clinical data of OSCC patients from the TCGA database to investigate the correlation between cGAS-STING signaling pathway and the tumor immune microenvironment. Six cGAS-STING related genes were obtained from previous studies to establish the enrichment score of cGAS-STING pathway. The differences in survival rate, immune cell infiltration, immune-related genes expression and immune-related biological pathways were studied in the cGAS-STING clusters.

Results

We observed a better prognosis of OSCC patients in the cGAS-STING high cluster. The infiltration ratio of immune cells and the expression profiles of immune-related genes were elevated when the cGAS-STING pathway is activated. The differentially expressed genes between high and low cGAS-STING clusters were enriched in immune-related biological pathways.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest the potential benefit of combining STING agonists and immune checkpoint inhibitors in OSCC patients.
Appendix
Available only for authorised users
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Metadata
Title
Potential for treatment benefit of STING agonists plus immune checkpoint inhibitors in oral squamous cell carcinoma
Authors
Chao Zhu
Jiang Li
Mianfeng Yao
Changyun Fang
Publication date
01-12-2021
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Oral Health / Issue 1/2021
Electronic ISSN: 1472-6831
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-021-01813-8

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