Biography
Biography: Nashwa K Abousamra
Abstract
The net outcome of the battle between the anti-tumor and the tumor promoting immune cells and their associated cytokines within the tumor environment will determine the ultimate fate of the affected tumors. Th17 cells and their effector cytokines have emerged as important mediators in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases and serve as an ambitious field in current immunology research. Recent studies suggest a potential impact of Th17 cells on solid tumors but relatively little is known about their contribution in hematological malignancies. The current study was designed to investigate the possible involvement and clinical significance of circulating Th17 cells in acute leukemia patients. Compared with healthy controls, acute leukemia patients had a higher proportion of circulating Th17 cells accompanied with increased serum concentrations of IL-17 and IL-21. Circulating Th17 cells were reduced in patients achieved complete remission (CR) after chemotherapy, suggesting that circulating Th17 cells can be used to evaluate therapeutic efficacy in acute leukemia patients. Notably, the increased prevalence of initial Th17 cells was significantly associated with probability of achieving CR as well as with longer overall survival of acute leukemia patients. These results strongly suggest that Th17 cells may be a powerful new prognostic determinant which could serve as a potential therapeutic target to modulate anti-tumor response in acute leukemia patients. Mechanisms by which Th17 cells influence acute leukemia, and whether these mechanisms mediate direct or indirect effects need to be determined.