New Study Unveils Shared Immune Suppression Mechanism in Cancer and Pregnancy
Source-technologynetworks.com In a groundbreaking study recently published in Cell, a team of researchers has shed light on the shared immune tolerance mechanisms present in both cancer and pregnancy. The study zeroes in on the role of progestogen-induced B7 Homolog 4 (B7-H4), an immune checkpoint protein, highlighting it as a crucial onco-fetal immune tolerance checkpoint. This mechanism facilitates the immune system’s acceptance of both cancerous and fetal cells. Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies have shown promise in treating various cancers by eliciting durable responses. However, a significant challenge remains as most patients do not respond to these treatments due to the tumor microenvironment’s (TME) suppressive networks. These networks enable cancer cells to evade the immune system and develop resistance to ICB. Similarly, pregnancy, which is a natural model of immune tolerance, utilizes comparable immunosuppressive pathways, including Programmed Death-Lig...