The role of systemic inflammatory cells in meningiomas

Jeppe Haslund-Vinding*, Jens Riis Møller, Morten Ziebell, Frederik Vilhardt, Tiit Mathiesen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReviewResearchpeer-review

12 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The aim of this review is to describe the inflammatory systemic cell infiltrate and its role in pathophysiology and prognostic implications of meningiomas. Articles from PubMed describing inflammation and immune cells in meningioma were systematically selected and reviewed. Infiltrating inflammatory cells are common in meningiomas and correlate with tumor behavior and peritumoral edema. The immune cell infiltrate mainly comprised macrophages, CD4 + T cells of the Th1 and Th2 subtype, CD8 + cytotoxic T cells, mast cells, and to a lesser degree B cells. The polarization of macrophages to M1 or M2 states, as well as the differentiation of T-helper cells to Th1 or Th2 subsets, is of prognostic value, but whether or not the presence of macrophages is associated with the degree of malignancy of the tumor is controversial. The best documented immunosuppressive and tumor-promoting mechanism is the expression of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1/PD-1L) which is found on both tumor cells and tumor-infiltrating immune cells. The immune cell infiltration varies between different meningiomas. It contributes to a microenvironment with potential contradictory effects on tumor growth and edema. The immune mechanisms are potential therapeutic targets provided that their effects can be comprehensively understood.

Original languageEnglish
JournalNeurosurgical Review
Volume45
Pages (from-to)1205–1215
ISSN0344-5607
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.

Keywords

  • Immune cells
  • Immunosuppression peritumoral edema
  • Inflammation
  • Macrophage
  • Meningioma
  • Microglia

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