Tumour heterogeneity and intercellular networks of nasopharyngeal carcinoma at single cell resolution

Nat Commun. 2021 Feb 2;12(1):741. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-21043-4.

Abstract

The heterogeneous nature of tumour microenvironment (TME) underlying diverse treatment responses remains unclear in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Here, we profile 176,447 cells from 10 NPC tumour-blood pairs, using single-cell transcriptome coupled with T cell receptor sequencing. Our analyses reveal 53 cell subtypes, including tumour-infiltrating CD8+ T, regulatory T (Treg), and dendritic cells (DCs), as well as malignant cells with different Epstein-Barr virus infection status. Trajectory analyses reveal exhausted CD8+ T and immune-suppressive TNFRSF4+ Treg cells in tumours might derive from peripheral CX3CR1+CD8+ T and naïve Treg cells, respectively. Moreover, we identify immune-regulatory and tolerogenic LAMP3+ DCs. Noteworthily, we observe intensive inter-cell interactions among LAMP3+ DCs, Treg, exhausted CD8+ T, and malignant cells, suggesting potential cross-talks to foster an immune-suppressive niche for the TME. Collectively, our study uncovers the heterogeneity and interacting molecules of the TME in NPC at single-cell resolution, which provide insights into the mechanisms underlying NPC progression and the development of precise therapies for NPC.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / enzymology
  • CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / metabolism
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Dendritic Cells / immunology
  • Dendritic Cells / metabolism
  • Head and Neck Neoplasms / immunology*
  • Head and Neck Neoplasms / metabolism*
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma / immunology*
  • Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma / metabolism*
  • T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / immunology
  • T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / metabolism
  • Tumor Microenvironment / immunology
  • Tumor Microenvironment / physiology*