Immune suppression in premalignant respiratory papillomas: enriched functional CD4+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells and PD-1/PD-L1/L2 expression.

Purpose: Respiratory papillomas, caused by human papillomaviruses types 6 and 11 (HPV6/11), are premalignant lesions with potential for malignant conversion. The cytokine and chemokine micromilieu of papillomas is T(H)2-like with a marked absence of IFN-γ expression. To illuminate why patients with recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) fail to effectively control their disease, we further investigated the suppressive cellular microenvironment in papillomas.

Experimental Design: CD4(+)CD25(+)CD127(low/-)Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells (Treg) and CD4(+)CD25(-)CD127(low/-)Foxp3(-) T cells within papillomas were characterized and isolated. Their suppressor function was measured by inhibition of peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proliferation. Expression of PD-1, CD69, and Helios was identified on these T cells. PD-L1, PD-L2, CCL17, and CCL22 mRNA was also identified in papillomas by quantitative PCR.

Results: Functional Tregs were markedly enriched in papillomas and strongly inhibited anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 antibody activated PBMC proliferation. The natural Treg marker Helios was reduced on Tregs from papillomas, indicating that the majority of Tregs in papillomas are adaptive. The majority of the papilloma-derived CD4(+) T cells expressed the CD4(+)CD25(-)CD127(low/-)Foxp3(-)PD1(+)CD69(+) phenotype and failed to suppress PBMC proliferation, suggesting that they are chronically activated and exhausted. The Treg-attracting chemokine CCL22 was equally expressed by all laryngeal tissues examined. However, CCL17 was robustly expressed by papillomas compared with unaffected laryngeal tissues from RRP patients and individuals without RRP. PD-L1 was elevated in papillomas compared with control laryngeal tissues.

Conclusions: Papilloma CD4(+) T cells are enriched with functional Tregs, and the adaptive Helios(-) Treg fraction was increased within the T(H)2-like papilloma micromilieu. CD4(+)CD25(-)CD127(low/-)Foxp3(-) T-cells failed to suppress PBMC proliferation and may be exhausted. The PD-1/PDL-1 pathway may represent an additional immunosuppressive mechanism that contributes to defective HPV6/11 clearance in RRP.