Frontiers in Immunology (Jan 2023)

Phenotypic and functional alteration of CD45+ immune cells in the decidua of preeclampsia patients analyzed by mass cytometry (CyTOF)

  • Min Fu,
  • Min Fu,
  • Min Fu,
  • Xiaowei Zhang,
  • Xiaowei Zhang,
  • Xiaowei Zhang,
  • Chunfeng Liu,
  • Chunfeng Liu,
  • Chunfeng Liu,
  • Jinli Lyu,
  • Jinli Lyu,
  • Jinli Lyu,
  • Xinyang Liu,
  • Xinyang Liu,
  • Xinyang Liu,
  • Shilin Zhong,
  • Shilin Zhong,
  • Shilin Zhong,
  • Yiheng Liang,
  • Yiheng Liang,
  • Yiheng Liang,
  • Ping Liu,
  • Ping Liu,
  • Ping Liu,
  • Liting Huang,
  • Liting Huang,
  • Liting Huang,
  • Zhansong Xiao,
  • Zhansong Xiao,
  • Zhansong Xiao,
  • Xinxin Wang,
  • Xinxin Wang,
  • Xinxin Wang,
  • Xinxin Wang,
  • Xiaoling Liang,
  • Hao Wang,
  • Shangrong Fan,
  • Shangrong Fan,
  • Shangrong Fan

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2022.1047986
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

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Preeclampsia (PE) is a severe placenta-related pregnancy disease that has been associated with maternal systemic inflammation and immune system disorders. However, the distribution and functional changes in immune cells of the maternal–placental interface have not been well characterized. Herein, cytometry by time-of-flight mass spectrometry (CyTOF) was used to investigate the immune atlas at the decidua, which was obtained from four PE patients and four healthy controls. Six superclusters were identified, namely, T cells, B cells, natural killer (NK) cells, monocytes, granulocytes, and others. B cells were significantly decreased in the PE group, among which the reduction in CD27+CD38+ regulatory B cell (Breg)-like cells may stimulate immune activation in PE. The significantly increased migration of B cells could be linked to the significantly overexpressed chemokine C-X-C receptor 5 (CXCR5) in the PE group, which may result in the production of excessive autoantibodies and the pathogenesis of PE. A subset of T cells, CD11c+CD8+ T cells, was significantly decreased in PE and might lead to sustained immune activation in PE patients. NK cells were ultimately separated into four subsets. The significant reduction in a novel subset of NK cells (CD56-CD49a-CD38+) in PE might have led to the failure to suppress inflammation at the maternal–fetal interface during PE progression. Moreover, the expression levels of functional markers were significantly altered in the PE group, which also inferred that shifts in the decidual immune state contributed to the development of PE and might serve as potential treatment targets. This is a worthy attempt to elaborate the differences in the phenotype and function of CD45+ immune cells in the decidua between PE and healthy pregnancies by CyTOF, which contributes to understand the pathogenesis of PE, and the altered cell subsets and markers may inspire the immune modulatory therapy for PE.

Keywords