Updates on immunological mechanistic insights and targeting of the oral lichen planus microenvironment

Xiaoting Deng; Ying Wang; Lu Jiang; Jing Li; Qianming Chen

doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.1023213

Updates on immunological mechanistic insights and targeting of the oral lichen planus microenvironment

Front Immunol. 2023 Jan 9:13:1023213. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1023213. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Xiaoting Deng¹, Ying Wang¹, Lu Jiang¹, Jing Li¹, Qianming Chen¹

Affiliation

¹ State Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Research Unit of Oral Carcinogenesis and Management, West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.

Abstract

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a chronic immune inflammatory disease that is an oral potentially malignant disorder (OPMD), occurs in the oral mucosa and affects approximately 0.5% to 4% of the general population. There are usually five types of OLP: reticular/papular, plaque-like, atrophic/erythematous, erosive/ulcerative, and bullous. Furthermore, the chance of causing oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is 1.4%. Although the etiology of OLP is still unknown, accumulating evidence supports that immune dysregulation may play a vital role in the pathogenesis of OLP, especially the massive production of various inflammatory cells and inflammatory mediators. In this review, we focus on the relationship between OLP and its immune microenvironment. We summarize current developments in the immunology of OLP, summarizing functional cell types and crucial cytokines in the OLP immune microenvironment and the underlying mechanisms of key signaling pathways in the OLP immune microenvironment. We highlight the application potential of targeted immune microenvironment therapy for OLP.

Keywords: chemokine; immune cells; immune microenvironment; immune therapy; oral lichen planus.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* / pathology
Head and Neck Neoplasms*
Humans
Lichen Planus, Oral*
Mouth Neoplasms* / pathology
Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck
Tumor Microenvironment

Grants and funding

This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81872211, 82072999 and 82171809), the “Zero to One” Innovation Research Project of Sichuan University (No. 2022SCUH0029), and The CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences (2019-I2 M-5-004).