Neutrophils are the most abundant leukocytes in the blood. Moreover, neutrophils form the first line of host immune defense against bacterial and fungal invasion, and also play an important part in inflammatory and immune system responses. Intravesical bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) has been shown to reduce and delay tumor progression to muscle-invasive disease after transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TRUBTs). Following intravesical BCG, neutrophils gather around tissues infected by BCG in the early stage of inflammatory and immune responses. In our previous study, we reported that BCG induced the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), which play an important role in tumor treatment. Therefore, in the present study, we analyzed the gene expression profile of neutrophils stimulated by BCG through high-throughput arrays, which helped us determine the potential roles of neutrophils in BCG immunotherapy. The results showed that the expression of neutrophil genes led to changes in the early stage of BCG stimulation. The changed genes were involved in many functions of neutrophils such as mobility, proliferation, and secretion of cytokines, chemokines, and adhesion molecules. These changes in neutrophil biological functions may play an essential role in BCG induction of inflammatory and immune responses, and in anti-tumor processes.

中性粒细胞是血液中最丰富的白细胞。此外，中性粒细胞形成宿主免疫防御细菌和真菌入侵的第一道防线，在炎症和免疫系统反应中也发挥着重要作用。经尿道膀胱肿瘤切除术 (TRUBT) 后，膀胱内卡介苗 (BCG) 已被证明可减少和延缓肿瘤进展为肌肉浸润性疾病。膀胱内卡介苗后，在炎症和免疫反应的早期阶段，中性粒细胞聚集在受卡介苗感染的组织周围。在我们之前的研究中，我们报道了卡介苗诱导中性粒细胞胞外陷阱 (NETs) 的形成，这在肿瘤治疗中起重要作用。因此，在本研究中，我们通过高通量阵列分析了卡介苗刺激的中性粒细胞的基因表达谱，这帮助我们确定了中性粒细胞在 BCG 免疫治疗中的潜在作用。结果表明，中性粒细胞基因的表达导致卡介苗刺激早期的变化。改变的基因与中性粒细胞的许多功能有关，例如细胞因子、趋化因子和粘附分子的迁移、增殖和分泌。中性粒细胞生物学功能的这些变化可能在 BCG 诱导炎症和免疫反应以及抗肿瘤过程中发挥重要作用。和粘附分子。中性粒细胞生物学功能的这些变化可能在 BCG 诱导炎症和免疫反应以及抗肿瘤过程中发挥重要作用。和粘附分子。中性粒细胞生物学功能的这些变化可能在 BCG 诱导炎症和免疫反应以及抗肿瘤过程中发挥重要作用。