Tumor associated macrophage expressing CD204 is associated with tumor aggressiveness of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) are the most abundant cancer stromal cells educated by tumor microenvironment to acquire trophic functions facilitating angiogenesis, matrix breakdown and cancer cell motility. Tumor associated macrophages have anti-inflammatory properties or "alternatively" activated (M2) phenotype expressing CD204 and/or CD163. To know the role of TAMs in the growth and progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs), we calculated intratumoral CD204, CD163 or CD68 expressing macrophage count (MϕC) and CD34-positive microvessel density (MVD) by immunohistochemistry in 70 cases of surgically resected ESCCs and compared them with the clinicopathological factors and prognosis of patients. MϕC had positive linear association with MVD. High CD204(+) MϕC were significantly correlated with more malignant phenotypes including depth of tumor invasion, lymph and blood vessel invasion, lymph node metastasis as well as clinical stages. On the other hand, CD163(+) MϕC did not associate with these clinicopathological factors with the exception of depth of tumor invasion and blood vessel invasion. Patients with high CD204(+) MϕC ESCCs showed poor disease-free survival (P = 0.021). Conditioned media of five ESCC cell lines (TE-8, -9, -10, -11 and -15) induced mRNA as well as protein expression of CD204 but not of CD163 with upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor-A mRNA in TPA treated human acute monocytic leukemia cell line THP-1. These results overall indicate that CD204 is a useful marker for TAMs contributing to the angiogenesis, progression and prognosis of ESCCs whose specific tumor microenvironment may educate macrophages to be CD204(+) M2 TAMs.

Shigeoka M ，Urakawa N ，Nakamura T ，Nishio M ，Watajima T ，Kuroda D ，Komori T ，Kakeji Y ，Semba S ，Yokozaki H ... -  《-》

Cyr61 promotes CD204 expression and the migration of macrophages via MEK/ERK pathway in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are known to be involved in the progression of various human malignancies. We previously demonstrated that CD204 was a useful marker for TAMs contributing to the angiogenesis, progression, and prognosis of human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We also showed that conditioned media of ESCC cell lines induced CD204 expression in THP-1 human monocytic leukemia cells. Here, we performed a cDNA microarray analysis between THP-1 cells stimulated with TPA (macrophage [MΦ]-like THP-1 cells) treated with and without conditioned medium of ESCC cell line to clarify the molecular characteristics of TAMs in ESCC. From the microarray data, we discovered that Cyr61 was induced in CD204-positive-differentiated THP-1 cells (TAM-like THP-1 cells). In the ESCC microenvironment, not only cancer cells but also TAMs expressed Cyr61. Interestingly, the expression levels of Cyr61 showed a significant positive correlation with the number of CD204-positive macrophages in ESCCs by immunohistochemistry. Recombinant human Cyr61 (rhCyr61) promoted cell migration and induced the expression of CD204 along with the activation of the MEK/ERK pathway in MΦ-like THP-1 cells. Pretreatment with a MEK1/2 inhibitor significantly inhibited not only the Cyr61-mediated migration but also the CD204 expression in the MΦ-like THP-1 cells. These results suggest that Cyr61 may contribute to the expression of CD204 and the promotion of cell migration via the MEK/ERK pathway in TAMs in the ESCC microenvironment.

Shigeoka M ，Urakawa N ，Nishio M ，Takase N ，Utsunomiya S ，Akiyama H ，Kakeji Y ，Komori T ，Koma Y ，Yokozaki H ... -  《Cancer Medicine》

Prognostic impact of CD204-positive macrophages in lung squamous cell carcinoma: possible contribution of Cd204-positive macrophages to the tumor-promoting microenvironment.

Hirayama S ，Ishii G ，Nagai K ，Ono S ，Kojima M ，Yamauchi C ，Aokage K ，Hishida T ，Yoshida J ，Suzuki K ，Ochiai A ... -  《-》

Software-assisted morphometric and phenotype analyses of human peripheral blood monocyte-derived macrophages induced by a microenvironment model of human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Human macrophages play important roles in tumor promotion and are called tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). We previously demonstrated that human esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs) contain TAMs and that these TAMs tend to have tumor-supporting features. Here we exposed human macrophages to conditioned media of TE-series human ESCC cell lines (TECMs) to generate an ESCC extracellular stimuli-influenced TAM model. CD14(+) peripheral blood monocytes (PBMos) from healthy donors were treated with M-CSF and with additional IL-4 or TECM exposure. Morphological changes of the cells and the induction of CD163/CD204 proteins were detected in the TECM-exposed model TAMs by immunofluorescence. A software-assisted immunofluorescent cell image analysis showed increased CD163/CD204 positivity in the model TAMs and a weak to moderate positive correlation between the cytoplasmic area and the sum fluorescent intensity of CD204. Morphological changes of the cells were significantly reflected by several cytomorphometric parameters. PBMos were elongated with M-CSF treatment, then enlarged with TECM exposure. The cytoplasmic aspect ratio was decreased by M-CSF treatment and slightly increased by TECM exposure. The nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio decreased during the whole process of cell differentiation. This system is useful for quantitative assessments of TAM-like morphological changes of macrophages and the induction of CD163/CD204 in a model ESCC microenvironment.

Nishio M ，Urakawa N ，Shigeoka M ，Takase N ，Ichihara Y ，Arai N ，Koma Y ，Yokozaki H ... -  《-》

CD163 as a marker of M2 macrophage, contribute to predicte aggressiveness and prognosis of Kazakh esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Hu JM ，Liu K ，Liu JH ，Jiang XL ，Wang XL ，Chen YZ ，Li SG ，Zou H ，Pang LJ ，Liu CX ，Cui XB ，Yang L ，Zhao J ，Shen XH ，Jiang JF ，Liang WH ，Yuan XL ，Li F ... -  《Oncotarget》