Anti-alpha-enolase T cell response in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

Abstract In Taiwan, oral cancer ranks as the 6th highest incidence of cancer in general population. Characterized by high metastatic potency, oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common type of oral cancer. Alpha-enolase (α-enolase) is a glycolytic enzyme expressed in most tissues. Many researches have pointed out the over-expression of α-enolase in various cancer type. Its role as glycolytic enzyme and plasminogen receptor were reported to promote cancer invasion, proliferation, and metastasis. Our works focused on the relationship between α-enolase and OSCC. We found the increased α-enolase expression in OSCC and were able to detect anti-α-enolase antibodies in serum of some OSCC patients. These results revealed a non-negligible influence of α-enolase in OSCC. Next, we spliced α-enolase from whole protein into peptide pool and tested T cell response upon its stimulation. Both CD8+ T cells and CD4+ T cells from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) were able to detect the cytokine production, like interferon gamma (IFN-γ) or tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), and as well as the expression of activation marker like CD107a. Taken together, our works indicated that α-enolase is a potential antigen that may be involved in anti-tumor response in OSCC.