Degradation-resistant implanted biomaterials establish an immunosuppressive microenvironment that induces T cell exhaustion by recruiting myeloid cells.

ABSTRACT

Implanted biomaterials have transformed healthcare and the treatment of injury and disease, but their influence on the local immune landscape remains unclear. Here we discovered that degradation-resistant titanium-based implants establish an immunosuppressive microenvironment by recruiting myeloid cells, including monocytes, macrophages, neutrophils, and myeloid-lineage dendritic cells. Unlike normal tissues, the tissues nearby implants exhibit an chronic inflamed and immunosuppressive status characterised by myeloid-rich, T cell-exhaustion gene signature by single-cell RNA sequencing. Vitamin C treatment provides an effective strategy to rescue the immunosuppressive microenvironment, which can be used as a regular supplement to reduce the risk of malignant cell survival around the implants.