Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39820810›Full record

ArticlePloS one2025

Distinct immunological features of oropharyngeal cancer peritumoral tonsillar tissues from inflammatory tonsils and regional lymph nodes: A pilot study.

Naohiro Wakisaka, Makiko Moriyama-Kita, Satoru Kondo, Eiji Kobayashi, Takayoshi Ueno, Yosuke Nakanishi, Kazuhira Endo, Hisashi Sugimoto, Tomokazu Yoshizaki

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Naohiro WakisakaDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, NHO Kanazawa Medical Center, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.ORCID 0000-0003-0909-1650
Makiko Moriyama-KitaDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.ORCID 0000-0002-0778-3939
Satoru KondoDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Eiji KobayashiDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Takayoshi UenoDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Yosuke NakanishiDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Kazuhira EndoDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Hisashi SugimotoDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
Tomokazu YoshizakiDivision of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCancer immune responses are generated in secondary lymphoid organs, such as the lymph nodes and tonsils. In the current study, transcriptional profiles of peritumoral tonsillar tissues (PTTs) from oropharyngeal cancers (OPCs) were assessed and compared with those of inflammatory tonsils and regional lymph nodes (rLNs).

methodsRNA samples of PTTs and rLNs from 13 OPCs, and 4 inflammatory tonsils were subjected to microarray analysis, and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified from 730 nCounter Panel immune-related genes. Gene Set enrichment Analysis (GSEA) was used for DEG profiling of PTTs and rLNs between lymph node metastasis-negative and metastasis-positive cases. The top 20 genes, as ranked by GSEA metric scores, were extracted and subjected to principal component analysis (PCA). The correlation of each patient's PCA score with lymph node status was assessed by Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) analysis.

resultsComparing DEG analyses of PTTs with those of inflammatory tonsils and rLNs revealed 144 and 45 upregulated genes, respectively. ClueGO, a widely used Cytoscape plug-in, revealed activated pathways in PTTs, including lymphocyte proliferation (followed by T cell activation involved in the immune response) and positive regulation of leukocyte migration (followed by antimicrobial humoral immune response mediated by antimicrobial peptides) as the most significantly enriched immune system process functions in the gene ontology when comparing inflammatory tonsils and rLNs. The area under the ROC curves of PTTs and rLNs were 0.806 and 0.389, and were significant by DeLong's test (p = 0.025).

conclusionPTTs exhibit unique immunological features distinguishing them from inflammatory tonsils and rLNs. Gene expression analysis of PTTs is useful for investigating the mechanism of OPC lymphatic spread, even compared with analysis of rLNs.

Indexed as

Lymph NodesOropharyngeal NeoplasmsPalatine TonsilAgedFemaleGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansInflammationLymphatic MetastasisMaleMiddle AgedPilot ProjectsTonsillar Neoplasms

Identifiers

PMID39820810
PMCPMC11737673

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.