Differential GPR56 Expression in T Cell Subpopulations for Early-Stage Lung Adenocarcinoma Patient Identification.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the expression of GPR56 in the T cells of early-stage lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients and clarify its diagnostic significance. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from 32 patients with stage IA LUAD and 31 healthy controls. GPR56 and perforin were analysed in circulating T-cell subsets by flow cytometry. In addition, a correlation between perforin and GPR56 expression was detected. Changes in GPR56+ cells in early LUAD patients were analysed, and the diagnostic significance of GPR56+ T cells for early LUAD was studied by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: The expression of GPR56 in CD8+ T cells from early-stage LUAD patients was significantly greater than that in CD4+ T cells. The percentage of perforin-positive GPR56+ cells in early-stage LUAD patients was high. GPR56 levels in the T cells of LUAD patients were significantly lower than those in healthy controls. ROC analysis revealed that the area under the curve for the percentage of GPR56-positive CD8+ TEMRA cells to distinguish early-stage LUAD patients from healthy individuals- reached 0.7978. CONCLUSION: The decreased expression of GPR56 in the peripheral blood of early-stage LUAD patients correlated with perforin levels, reflecting compromised antitumor immunity and aiding early-stage LUAD screening.