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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

PD-L1 protein and gene levels in dogs with lymphoma

By Ubiali, Alessandra et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2024·Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Italy·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: Exploring the dynamics of Programmed Death-Ligand 1 in canine lymphoma: unraveling mRNA amount, surface membrane expression and plasmatic levels.

Species:
dog
LymphomaBehaviour & energyDogs

Plain-English summary

A group of dogs with lymphoma were studied to understand the role of a protein called Programmed Death-Ligand 1 (PD-L1) in their cancer. Researchers found that most B-cell lymphomas had high levels of this protein, while aggressive T-cell lymphomas showed lower levels. They measured PD-L1 using different lab techniques, but there was no clear link between the results from these methods. The study suggests that PD-L1 plays a role in how lymphoma develops in dogs, especially noting that B-cell lymphomas express this protein more than T-cell lymphomas.

People also search for: dog lymphoma symptoms · canine lymphoma treatment options · PD-L1 in dog cancer

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Programmed Death-Ligand 1 is a well-known immune checkpoint molecule. Recent studies evaluated its expression in different canine cancer types through different laboratory techniques. The present study aims to evaluate the surface membrane protein expression (mPD-L1) by means of flow cytometry (FC) in different canine lymphoma immunophenotypes. Furthermore, in a subset of cases, mRNA and plasmatic soluble protein (sPD-L1) have been assessed in the same patient, and correlations among results from the three analyses investigated. METHODS: Samples obtained for diagnostic purpose from untreated dogs with a confirmed lymphoma immunophenotype were included: surface protein was assessed via FC and quantified with median fluorescence index ratio (MFI ratio), gene expression was evaluated by real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and plasmatic concentration of soluble protein (sPD-L1) measured with ELISA. Statistical analyses were performed to investigate any difference among FC immunophenotypes, updated Kiel cytological classes, and in the presence of blood infiltration. RESULTS: Considering FC, most B-cell lymphomas (BCL) were positive, with higher MFI ratios than other subtypes (81%, median MFI ratio among positive samples = 1.50, IQR 1.21-2.03, range 1.01-3.47). Aggressive T-cell lymphomas had a lower percentage of positive samples (56%) and showed low expression (median MFI ratio in positive samples = 1.14, IQR 1.07-1.32, range 1.02-2.19), while T-zone lymphomas (TZL) were frequently positive (80%) but with low expression (median MFI ratio in positive samples = 1.19, IQR 1.03-1.46, range 1.02-6.03). Cellular transcript and sPD-L1 were detected in all samples, without differences among immunophenotypes. No correlation between results from different techniques was detected, but sPD-L1 resulted significantly increased in FC-negative lymphomas ( = 0.023). DISCUSSION: PD-L1 molecule is involved in canine lymphoma pathogenesis, with differences among immunophenotypes detected by FC. Specifically, BCL have the highest expression and aggressive T-cell lymphomas the lowest, whereas TZL need further investigations.

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39132435/