Single-cell RNA sequencing of immune cells in gastric cancer patients

Abstract

Cancer immunotherapy has achieved positive clinical responses in the treatment of various cancers, including gastric cancer (GC). In this study, we characterized the heterogeneity of T cells isolated from GC patients at the single-cell level using single-cell RNA sequencing. We identified different immune cell subtypes and their heterogeneous transcription factors and depicted their developmental trajectories. In particular, we focused on exhausted CD8+ cells and Tregs and discovered that, as compared to control, the IRF8 transcription factor was downregulated in CD8+ tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) from GC tissues, and that GC patients with lower IRF8 levels in blood CD8+ T cells tended to be a at a more advanced disease stage. These findings provide a theoretical basis for targeted immune therapy in GC.