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Understanding the functional relevance of oral neutrophils, phenotype and properties in OSCC

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Abstract

Neutrophils are the predominant white blood cells (WBC) that are recruited to the sites of inflammation and infection. They are acknowledged to perform dual roles by promoting (pro-tumor) or by exhibiting anti-cancer properties (anti-tumor). Neutrophils are characterized based on the changes in phenotype and functional properties. To this context, circulating polymorphonuclear neutrophils (cPMN) and tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs) in cancer biology has been well explored but limited to oral polymorphonuclear neutrophils (oPMNs) in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). However, oPMNs are eminent in maintaining the healthy oral ecosystem by neutralizing microorganisms. Neutralization process enhances the expression of cell surface markers (CD11b, CD63, CD66, CD66b, CD66c, and CD66e) and inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IFN-γ, GM-CSF, and IL-8) and increases the recruitment of neutrophils. Along with the inflammation, it has been reported that CEACAM1 and chemerin also favors the infiltration of neutrophils to the cancer site. This indicates that oPMN might contribute to the aetiology of OSCC. The main objective of this review is to explore, the production and migration of oPMNs to the oral cavity, their phenotypes and possible role in OSCC.

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Abbreviations

cPMN:

Circulating polymorphonuclear neutrophils

oPMN:

Oral polymorphonuclear neutrophils

IL:

Interleukin

MMP:

Matrix metallopeptidase

CXCL:

C-X-C Motif chemokine ligand

RNS:

Reactive nitrogen species

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

TNF:

Tumor Necrosis Factor

fMLP:

N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine

GM-CSF:

Granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor

TIMP:

Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude to the president of Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (deemed to be university), India for giving the required facilities to carry out the aforementioned study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Research, IMS and SUM Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

    Sudhansubala Lenka, Pavankumar R. Varanasi & Ruchi Bhuyan

  2. Department of Pathology, IMS and SUM Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

    Rajesh Kumar Bhola

  3. Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

    Sanat Kumar Bhuyan

  4. Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology, IMS and SUM Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (Deemed to be) University, Bhubaneswar, 751003, India

    Ruchi Bhuyan

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  1. Sudhansubala Lenka
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  3. Pavankumar R. Varanasi
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SL performed literature searches and wrote the manuscript. RB and RKB contributed to the concept and reviewed the manuscript. PRV and SB edited and designed the manuscript. All authors contributed to manuscript revision, and approved the submitted version.

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Correspondence to Ruchi Bhuyan.

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Lenka, S., Bhola, R.K., Varanasi, P.R. et al. Understanding the functional relevance of oral neutrophils, phenotype and properties in OSCC. Med Oncol 40, 134 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-023-02010-z

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