Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-07, Section: B, page: 4063. Adviser: David R. Lairson. Includes bibliographical references.

With a continuous development of molecular-biology methods more attention has been paid to molecular detection of minimal residual diseases in solid tumors. In our study we focused on detection of MRD in neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is one of the peripheral neuroblastic tumors (pNTs) that accounts approximately for10 percent of all childhood cancers. The question raised however not answered until this day is whether evidence of MRD in bone marrow may be used as independent prognostic factor in diagnosis of neuroblastoma. Furthermore, it is important to establish what kind of testing technique should be used and what values to look at. There exist various methodologies in detection of MRD evidence in neuroblastoma. These methods differ in cost and complexity, but mainly some of them are more specific and sensitive than the other. Cancer cells may be detected in the blood as well as in the bone marrow. Very often it is the bone marrow that is affected by the metastasis in neuroblastoma, therefore 85% of all high risk neuroblastomas show positive results in the standard cytomorphology tests of bone marrow. Low numbers of cancer cells in bone marrow or peripheral blood (especially during or after the end of treatment) are below the standard values of detection limit in most of the classic methodologies...

Leukocyte differential count in peripheral blood smear has, ever since the method was developed more than 100 years ago, been one of the most frequently used diagnostics tool in the routine hematology laboratory. The manual differential count of leukocytes using a microscope is still the standard method in most small and medium sized laboratories. Even though the method does not require any expensive instruments it comes at a high cost due to it being labor intensive and time consuming. In recent years the rapid technical advancements has led to the development of automatic or semi-automatic methods in which the leukocytes are differentiated. In this study a method comparison was made between manual leukocyte differential counts, CellaVision DM1200 Vet and Advia 2120 when analyzing 106 fresh, feline blood samples. The general agreement between results was good, especially for the most common leukocytes, such as neutrophils and lymphocytes. Results for eosinophils and monocytes had moderate agreement. The confidence intervals were generally wider when CellaVision DM1200 Vet was compared with Advia 2120, than when CellaVision DM1200 Vet was compared to the manual differential count. Despite the fact that Advia 2120 and CellaVision DM1200 Vet are both faster and often show comparable results to the manual differential count, the light microscopy will remain the gold standard for difficult samples, where there is suspicion of inflammation (band neutrophils), intracellular microorganisms, reactive lymphocytes or if the sample contains a high degree of smudge cells or artifacts.

L’arthrite juvénile idiopathique (AJI) est un groupe hétérogène de rhumatismes inflammatoires chroniques affectant les enfants de moins de 16 ans. Cette atteinte inflammatoire d’origine inconnue est caractérisée par une arthrite persistant plus de 6 semaines en l’absence de traitements.Afin de mettre en évidence des mécanismes impliqués dans la physiopathologie de l’AJI, une inclusion de patients atteints d’une autre forme d’arthrite juvénile, à savoir l’arthrite septique, a été effectuée. En parallèle, des études comparatives entre le sang périphérique (SP) et le liquide synovial (LS) des patients atteints d’AJI ont été réalisées afin de rechercher des mécanismes spécifiques aux perturbations articulaires. Un intérêt particulier a été porté sur les sous-populations de monocytes et de cellules dendritiques (DCs) ainsi que les profils d’expression des microARNs (miARNs) dans le sang périphérique et le LS des patients. Ces différents marqueurs biologiques ont été choisis car ils jouent un rôle majeur à la fois dans la régulation de l’inflammation et la pathogénèse des maladies inflammatoires.L’analyse de l’expression des miARNs par une approche de séquençage à haut débit suivie d’une validation par RT-qPCR a mis en évidence des miARNs dérégulés de façon spécifique dans l’AJI par rapport à l’AS. De plus, la caractérisation phénotypique des sous-populations de cellyles myéloïdes a montré une accumulation et une activation cellulaire propre à l’AJI. Dans l’ensemble, ce projet m’a permis d’identifier différents acteurs cellulaires et moléculaires pouvant être impliqués dans la physiopathologie de l’AJI. / Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a heterogeneous group of chronic inflammatory rheumatism affecting children under 16 years of age. This inflammatory disorder of unknown origin is characterized by arthritis lasting more than 6 weeks in the absence of treatments.In order to highlight mechanisms involved in the pathophysiology of JIA, an inclusion of patients suffering from septic arthritis, another form of juvenile arthritis, was performed. In parallel, comparative studies between the peripheral blood (PB) and the synovial fluid (SF) of patients with JIA were carried out in order to search for mechanisms specific of joint disturbances.We focused on monocytes and dendritic cells (DCs) subsets as well as the expression patterns of microRNAs (miRNAs) in the PB and SF of patients. These different biological markers are known to play a major role both in the regulation of inflammation and the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases.Analysis of miRNA expression by a high-throughput sequencing approach followed by RT-qPCR validation revealed specifically deregulated miRNAs in JIA compared to AS. In addition, the phenotypic characterization of myeloid cell subpopulations showed an accumulation and activation profile specific of JIA cells. Overall, this project allowed me to identify different cellular and molecular actors that might be involved in the pathophysiology of JIA.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterised by two major histological hallmarks; neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) and neuritic plaques. But, unlike plaques, the degree of NFT deposition in the brain correlates to the severity of clinical symptoms of neuronal dysfunction. The major constituent of NFT is hyperphosphorylated tau protein. The involvement of neuropsychological testing, neuroimaging techniques and biochemical measurement of cerebrospinal fluid markers (amyloid beta and tau proteins) have improved the sensitivity and specificity of AD diagnosis. But these diagnostic methods are challenged by individual’s education level, high cost and its invasiveness, hence the need for an alternative analysis platform that overcome these challenges. Peripheral blood fulfils the criteria as a suitable medium to evaluate AD diagnostic markers. Since NFT deposition correlates with neuronal dysfunction severity and the NFT is constituted mainly of hyperphosphorylated tau protein then, the evaluation of tau in peripheral blood could provide useful information about AD progression. As tau protein in blood is susceptible to thrombin degradation, tau may be enwrapped in a vesicle such as extracellular vesicles (ECVs). The ECVs are formed when a multivesicular body fuses with the plasma membrane and release its contents into the extracellular milieu. The formation and release of these ECVs are ubiquitous and cell type specific. Besides, ECVs contain several cargo molecules such as proteins, and it can cross the blood brain barrier into peripheral blood. Therefore, blood-based neuron derived extracellular vesicles (ndECVs) could be a dependable source to measure AD-like tau protein. At present, the significance of tau protein in blood-based ndECVs for the diagnosis of AD remains largely unclear. Hence, this study aimed to quantify tau protein in peripheral blood ndECVs using flow cytometry technique and evaluate the significance of this measured proteins in the diagnosis of AD. This study set the following objectives: (1) Establish a protocol for the isolation and characterization of ECVs and ndECVs using western blot and flow cytometry techniques, (2). Use the flow cytometry platform to quantify tau protein in the ndECVs of clinical patients who had already undergone clinical diagnostic (such as CSF tau, CSF p-tau, CSF β-amyloid or MMSE evaluation). (3).Evaluate the significance of tau protein in the ndECVs as a potential biomarker for AD. Using the bead-assisted technique ECVs and ndECVs were isolated from serum and analysed. This study made attempt to measure tau protein in peripheral blood ndECVs using flow cytometry technique. While quantification of tau protein by flow cytometry platform posed a challenge, ELISA technique was used as alternative to measure the proteins in the ECVs. Tau protein was measured in some of the ndECVs, but study did not observe any significant correlation between measured tau protein in ndECVs and the validated diagnostic markers (CSF tau, CSF p-tau, CSF β-amyloid or MMSE evaluation). Of interest was the trend for a negative correlation between serum tau protein and CSF β-amyloid. Peripheral blood is a relevant source for tau protein measurement and therefore more studies are needed to evaluate the significance of blood serum tau content as a diagnostic biomarker for AD.:TABLE OF CONTENT LIST OF ABBREVIATION III LIST OF FIGURES V 1. INTRODUCTION 1 1.1. ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE 1 1.1.1. The neuritic plaque 2 1.1.2. The neurofibrillary tangles 2 1.1.3. Pathophysiology of NFT 3 1.2. EPIDEMIOLOGY AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC BURDEN OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE 4 1.3. CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE 5 1.4. CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CURRENT DIAGNOSIS OF AD 7 1.5. EXTRACELLULAR VESICLES 8 1.5.1. Formation of ECVs (ectosomes and exosomes) 9 1.5.2. Size, density and composition of ECVs 9 1.5.3. Functions of central nervous system ECVs 10 1.6. TAU PROTEIN, ECVS AND PERIPHERAL BLOOD 11 1.7. AIM OF THE STUDY 13 1.8. OBJECTIVES 13 2. METHODOLOGY 15 2.1. STUDY DESIGN 15 2.2. ETHICAL ISSUES 15 2.3. MATERIALS 15 2.4. METHODS 21 2.4.1. Blood sampling 21 2.4.2. SH-SY5Y Cell culture processing 21 2.4.3. Isolation of ECVs 22 2.4.4. Detection, characterization and quantification of ECVs and the cargo tau protein 26 2.5. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS 31 3. RESULTS 32 3.1. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROTOCOL FOR THE ISOLATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF ECVS 32 3.1.1. Precipitation versus ultracentrifugation techniques of isolating ECVs 32 3.1.2. Purification of ECVs using iodixanol or sucrose density gradient 33 3.1.3. Demonstration of other marker proteins of ECVs 34 3.1.4. Analysis of reproducibility 36 3.1.5. ECVs’ density determination 37 3.1.6. Comparing serum and plasma as ideal starting material 41 3.1.7. Optimal minimum starting volume of serum 43 3.1.8. Isolation of ndECVs from ultracentrifuge or pre-cleaned serum 44 3.2. DETECTION AND QUANTIFICATION OF ECVS’ CARGO PROTEINS, HSP70 AND TAU 45 3.2.1. western blot technique 46 3.2.2. Flow cytometry 47 3.2.3. ELISA as an alternative approach to quantify of tau protein in ndECVs 49 4. DISCUSSION 56 4.1. BASIS FOR CONSIDERING BLOOD-BASED MARKERS FOR THE DIAGNOSIS OF AD 56 4.2. BASIS FOR TARGETING TAU PROTEIN IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD 57 4.3. POTENTIAL ROLE OF NDECVS IN THE TRANSPORTATION OF TAU PROTEIN 58 4.4. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROTOCOL FOR ISOLATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF ECVS 59 4.4.1. Precipitation versus ultracentrifugation 60 4.4.2. Purification of ECVs by density gradient technique 61 4.4.3. Detection of ECVs’ cargo protein using western blot technique 63 4.4.4. ECVs isolation using the Bead-assisted technique 64 4.4.5. Isolation of cell type specific ECVs (ndECVs) 65 4.4.6. Comparison of plasma and serum as a source of ndECVs 66 4.5. DETECTION AND QUANTIFICATION OF ECVS’ CARGO PROTEINS (HSP70 & TAU) 67 4.5.1. Flow cytometry analysis 67 4.5.2. ELISA analysis 68 4.5.3. Tau protein in the ECVs of hibernating animals 71 5. CONCLUSION 73 6. REFERENCES 74 7. APPENDICES 100 7.1. CURRICULUM VITAE 100 7.2. PUBLICATIONS 101 7.3. DECLARATION OF THE INDEPENDENT WRITING OF THIS THESIS 103 7.4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 104

<p>Megakaryocyte cultures are a strong tool for the in vitro investigation of platelet production in platelet disorders. Peripheral blood derived hematopoietic progenitor cells (PB-HPCs) are the most accessible source of HPCs with high potential to produce mature megakaryocytes in vitro; however, they are present in low numbers making peripheral blood an inefficient source. Additionally, a megakaryocyte culture with an optimized thrombopoietin (TPO) concentration is required which can reliably allow the investigation of suppressive effects of antibodies/plasma from immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) patients. In this study, we developed a megakaryocyte culture with the utilization of human PB-HPCs in an efficient fashion resulting in the production of high purity megakaryocytes in a TPO-dependent manner.</p> <p>The mononuclear fraction was collected from 180 mL of peripheral whole blood and CD34+ cells were isolated by a positive selection yielding the average of 5.5 x 105 ± 2.5 x 105 CD34+ cells (n = 18). Using 96-well tissue-culture plates and seeding 10,000 CD34+ cells/well, the average of 13 experiments in triplicate can be set up utilizing isolated CD34+ in an efficient manner. Capitalizing on a TPO dose-dependent megakaryocyte production experiment, 20 ng/mL was established as the TPO concentration which resulted in the production of mature megakaryocytes without reaching the plateau in megakaryopoiesis response. On day 11 of culture, the expression of megakaryocytic lineage (CD41/61+) and maturation (CD41/61+CD42+) markers peaked at 90.65% and 76.10%. In conclusion, this culture system has broad application for investigation of platelet disorders and drug discovery which can be accessible to all researchers.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

Master of Science / Department of Animal Sciences and Industry / Duane L. Davis / Intestinal absorption of colostral leukocytes (CL), peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), and porcine umbilical cord matrix stem cells (PUC) was analyzed in neonatal pigs. Maternal CL have previously been demonstrated in pigs, and maternal PBMC have been observed in calves to enter neonatal circulation after ingestion. PUC are primitive stem cells that are easily isolated from Wharton's jelly of the porcine umbilical cord. These cells do not have an immunogenic effect on the host upon initial transplantation. The general characteristics of PUC may allow them to serve as a delivery system to the neonate. Cellular migration through the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum was assessed using confocal microscopy. In vitro experiments utilized an organ explant culture system to determine the trafficking of labeled cells. Small-intestine tissue was collected from stillborn and sacrificed neonates. All three cell types (CL, PBMC, and PUC) were detected below the luminal surface, after 72 h of culture with media, and regardless of whether explants were from stillborns or live-born pigs. In vivo trafficking was assessed using neonatal pigs that were fed PBMC isolated from their mother or PUC from an unrelated pig. The effect of prior exposure to 25% acellular colostrum (AC) in medium was evaluated for both cell types. Piglets were euthanized 8 h or 24 h post feeding and sections of the small intestine collected. Both PBMC and PUC were found in all intestinal samples. Exposure to AC had no detected effect on the ability of either cell type to attach and migrate into the tissue. Labeled PUC were detected on the surface of the epithelium and in the lamina propria 8 h post treatment. PBMC were observed on the surface of the epithelium, in the lamina propria, and superficial submucosa 8 h following ingestion. In neonates sacrificed 24 h post treatment, both PUC and PBMC were observed on the surface of the epithelium, in the lamina propria, superficial submucosa, and deep submucosa of the small intestine. PUC and PBMC were noted at the apex, intermediate between the apex and the base, or at the base of the villus.

Résumé français manquant / Scientific background: GAGs mimetics properties on regenerative process.Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are sulfated polysaccharides actually considered as major structural components of the extracellular matrix as well as regulators of cells functions during homeostatic and pathological processes. These GAGs activities are based on their ability to interact with heparin binding growth-factors (HBGF), chemokines and enzymes, to protect them from proteolytic degradation and to potentialyze their interaction with cell surface specific receptors and/or other components of the ECM. GAGs are characterized by their extensive structural diversity, based on the number and location of sulfate or acetylate groups, that would determine specific biological interactions.As comparative tool to study the relationship between the complexity of GAGs chemical structures and their biological functions, we used synthetic GAGs mimetics, derivate from a polymer of dextran and functionalized with carboxylate, sulfate and/or acetate groups. They are structurally and functionally related to natural heparan sulfates. These compounds improved both the rate and quality of regenerative process in numerous animal models of injury after topical treatment.Our hypothesize is that specific HS cooperative interactions with HBGF and ECM compounds could influence both therapeutic progenitors and stem cells properties by compartmentalizing them to specific microenvironment niches, and protecting them against deleterious signals. Such abilities to modulate stem cell biology could be a new way to explain and to take advantage of regenerative properties of these compounds. The principal aim of this work was to demonstrate the effects of GAGs mimetics on Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC) properties for application in bone repair. GAGs mimetics as new potentializing agents of mesenchymal stem cells propertiesDuring osteogenesis, a controlled expression of functional HS is required to interact and regulate the activity of growth promoting and osteogenic differentiation factors. However effects of GAGs on MSC properties remain to be analyzed. We focus on two GAGs mimetics leader molecules [OTR4131] and [OTR4120], with distinct chemical characteristics, since sulfated mimetic [OTR4120] was previously shown to stimulate bone repair in vivo. We demonstrate that its acetylated and sulfated counterpart [OTR4131] enhances proliferation, whereas [OTR4120] clearly stimulates migration and osteogenic differentiation properties of rat MSC in vitro, that could explain its bone regenerative effect in vivo. This indicates that GAGs mimetics would be of great interest for potential application in therapy, since according to their structural signature they could modulate specific activities of progenitors and stem cells, and represent an alternative to exogenous growth factor treatments. New matricial strategy for bone repair associating GAGs mimetics to biomaterials and human MSCCell based therapy associated to biomaterials for repair of bone defects are promising but not enough efficient. We proposed to develop matricial strategy, associating efficient micro-environment molecules such as GAGs mimetics, to optimize cell therapeutic approaches. First we validated that GAGs mimetics are effective on human MSC proliferation, migration and differentiation properties in vitro. We demonstrated that colonization efficiency of hydroxyapatite/β-tricalcium phosphate biomaterial scaffolds by human MSC was improved when scaffolds are functionalized with GAGs mimetics in vitro. Finally osteoformation in vivo was evaluated after ectopic transplantation of functionalized and/or cellularized biomaterials in nude mice: few effects were observed on bone formation, whereas osteoclastogenesis and vascularization were clearly modulated by GAGs mimetics immobilized. GAGs mimetics as new mobilizing agents of stem cells...

O Papilomavírus Humano (HPV) é uma prevalente infecção do mundo atual, sendo o comportamento sexual um fator determinante para a o acometimento da infecção. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar o HPV em diferentes sítios de infecção, buscando um maior entendimento do seu mecanismo de disseminação. Foram analisadas amostras das mucosas cervical, oral e do sangue de 50 pacientes do sexo feminino. Foram identificados o HPV-16, HPV-18, HPV-31 e HPV-33. Nenhuma paciente foi negativa para os quatro tipos nos três sítios. O HPV-16 foi o mais detectado e o mais prevalente nos três sítios, simultaneamente, 32 pacientes apresentaram esse perfil. Todos os tipos virais presentes no sangue, também estavam presentes na mucosa cervical, na mucosa oral ou em ambas. Foram identificados seis achados citológicos, sugestivos da infecção pelo HPV. Foi realizada a detecção dos transcritos virais de E6, E6/E7 e L1 nos três sítios. Os resultados do nosso trabalho demonstram a alta prevalência do HPV, a atividade viral nos três sítios analisados e a provável disseminação do vírus. / Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most prevalent infections of the current world, with sexual behavior being one determining fator of infection. The objective of this study was to study HPV in different sites of infection, seeking a better understanding of its mechanism and spreading. Cervical, oral and blood mucosa samples from 50 female patients were analyzed. HPV-16, HPV-18, HPV-31 and HPV-33 were identified. No patient was negative in the four types at all three sites. HPV-16 was the most detected and the most prevalent in the three sites, simultaneously, 32 patients presented this profile. All viral types present in the blood were also present in the cervical mucosa, oral mucosa, or both. Six cytological findings were identified, suggestive of infection by HPV. Detection of viral transcripts of E6, E6 / E7 and L1 was performed at the three sites. The results of our study demonstrate the high prevalence of HPV, viral activity in the three sites analyzed and the probable virus spreading.

O carcinoma epidermoide é a neoplasia maligna mais comum em boca e está entre as principais causas de morbidade e mortalidade em todo o mundo, devido a seu comportamento agressivo, evoluindo à metástase loco regional e a distância. O microambiente tumoral contém numerosos tipos celulares e muita atenção tem sido dada na literatura científica sobre a participação das células inflamatórias no desenvolvimento e progressão do câncer, pois as células neoplásicas são capazes de subverter a resposta imune. Os linfócitos T são o componente central na imunidade antitumoral, através da produção de citocinas por células e morte celular. Pouco se sabe sobre como substratos derivados de células neoplásicas influenciam as células no microambiente tumoral. Assim, o presente estudo propôs analisar a influência do meio condicionado derivado de células de carcinoma epidermoide de língua (SCC4 e MC SCC9) sobre linfoblastos (CEM) e células mononucleares do sangue periférico (PBMC-A e PBMC-B) para compreender melhor seu papel na imunidade anti-tumoral, imunoedição e evasão imune. Após estimulação com meio condicionado, os linfoblastos e as PBMCs foram submetidas ao ensaio de viabilidade celular, de citometria de fluxo e RT-qPCR para analisar a expressão de genes de apoptose e citocinas. O meio condicionado também foi coletado e avaliado por ELISA para verificar as citocinas secretadas pelas SCCs, bem como pela CEM e PBMC. Ambos meios condicionados foram capazes de reduzir a viabilidade da CEM e das PBMCs. A expressão de BCL2 e BAK não foi afetada na CEM, enquanto que MC SCC4 aumentou a expressão de BAK na PBMC-B. Os MCs das SCCs apresentaram expressão reduzida de IL-1?, IL-10 e INF-?. A IL-6 e IL-8 são expressas em níveis um pouco maiores pela SCC4 e superexpressas pela SCC9. A linhagem CEM não apresentou expressão de RNAm de IL-6, enquanto que a PBMC-B apresentou redução da expressão de IL-6 quando cultivada com ambos meios, sendo significativa com o meio MC SCC9. A expressão de RNAm de IL-8 reduziu na CEM e aumentou na PBMC-B com ambos os meios. A diferenciação para células CD4+ aumentou com ambos os MCs nas duas linhagens, reduzindo células CD34+. O MC SCC4 não alterou o número de linfócitos T CD4+/FOXP3+ da CEM e PBMC-B. O MC SCC9 induziu aumento da população CD4+/CD8+ na PBMC-B e amos os MCs induziram aumento da população CD8+/FOXP3+ da PBMC-B. Os resultados sugerem que os produtos derivados de carcinoma epidermoide de língua podem variar nas linhagens celulares, reduzindo a viabilidade, alterando a expressão de citocinas e aumentando as células CD4+ nas duas linhagens e aumentando o perfil CD8+/FOXP3+ e CD4+/CD8+ nas PBMCs. / Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common malignant neoplasm of the oral cavity, featuring as one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality due to its aggressive behavior, locoregional and distant metastases. Attention has been given to the tumor microenvironment and the role of the inflammatory cells may develop in the progression of cancer, because neoplastic cells are capable of subverting the immune response. T cells play is a central actor in the antitumor immunity because of their cytokine production by living and dying cells. Little is known about how the products derived from neoplastic cells interact with the cells in the tumor microenvironment. Therefore, the present study aimed to analyze the influence of a conditioned medium (CM) derived from tongue squamous carcinoma cells (SCC4 and SCC9) on lymphoblasts (CEM) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC-A e PBMC-B), in order to better understand its role in the antitumor immunity, immunoediting and immune evasion. Lymphoblast and PBMCs were stimulated by the conditioned medium and then submitted to a cell viability assay, flow cytometry and RT-qPCR in order to analyze the expression of apoptotic and cytokine-related genes. To verify which cytokines were secreted by SCCs as well as by CEM and PBMCs, the conditioned medium was also collected and evaluated by ELISA. Both types of conditioned medium reduced CEM and PBMC viability. For CEM, BCL2 and BAK expression remained unaffected, wherea s for PBMC-B there was an increase in the expression of BAK using the CM-SCC4. CMs showed reduced expression of IL-1?, IL-10 and INF-?. IL-6 and IL-8 are expressed a bit higher levels by SCC4 and high expressed by SCC9.CEM showed no IL-6 mRNA expression. PBMC-B reduced the expression of IL-6 when cultivated with both types of CM, with a significant reduction with the CM- SCC9. For both types of medium, IL-8 mRNA was reduced in CEM and increased in PBMC-B. The differentiation towards CD4+ cells was increased with both MCs in the two cell lines. CM-SCC4 did not altered the number of CD4+/FOXP3 cells of CEM and PBMC-B. CM-SCC9 increased the population of CD4+/CD8+ cells of PBMC-B and both types of CM increased the population of CD8+/FOXP3+ of PBMC-B. Collectively, our results suggest that the products derived from tongue squamous cell carcinoma may vary between the cell lines and reduce the viability, change cytokine expression and increase CD4+ cells and also increase the population of CD8+/FOXP3+ and CD4+/CD8+ in PBMCs.