Fig. 1

Membrane-bound CD127 (mCD127) on CD8⁺ T cells was higher, while soluble (sCD127) was lower in patients with primary cutaneous melanoma. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from all enrolled subjects (38 patients with primary cutaneous melanoma and 22 healthy controls), while tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes were isolated from tumor and para-tumor tissues of 14 melanoma patients with surgical operation. Cells were stained with anti-CD8 and anti-CD127, and were analyzed by flow cytometry. a The representative flow cytometry analyses for peripheral blood mononuclear cells and tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes are shown. Live lymphocytes were gated according to forward scatter (FSC) and side scatter (SSC). mCD127 expression within CD8⁺ T cells were assessed. b The percentage of peripheral CD8⁺ T cells expressing mCD127 was elevated in melanoma patients compared with controls. The percentage of tissue-infiltrating CD8⁺ T cells expressing mCD127 was also increased in tumor tissues compared with para-tumor tissues. CD8⁺ T cells were purified from peripheral bloods and tissue-infiltrating lymphocytes. Total CD127 mRNA and sCD127 mRNA variant in CD8⁺ T cells was measured by real-time PCR. c Total CD127 mRNA level in peripheral CD8⁺ T cells was comparable between melanoma patients and controls. Total CD127 mRNA level in tissue-infiltrating CD8⁺ T cells was also comparable between tumor tissues and para-tumor tissues. d sCD127 mRNA level in peripheral CD8⁺ T cells was lower in melanoma patients compared with controls. sCD127 mRNA level in tissue-infiltrating CD8⁺ T cells was also lower in tumor tissues compared with para-tumor tissues. e sCD127 expression in the plasma was measured by ELISA. Plasma sCD127 level was lower in melanoma patients compared with controls. Individual level of each subject is shown. Statistical analysis was performed using Student’s t test