NK Cell Protein Profiling by CyTOF

Natural killer (NK) cells are innate lymphocytes that are the first line of defense against viral infections and malignancies. CyTOF provides insights into changes in NK cell phenotype and function that can inform future disease research efforts and potential approaches to NK cell immunotherapy. On this basis, CD Genomics offers professional NK cell protein profiling services by CyTOF.

Introduction to Human NK Cells

Human NK cells are divided into two subpopulations based on their CD56 and CD16 (FcγRIIIa) expression. CD56^dim CD16⁺ NK cells exhibit high cytotoxic activity and account for 90-95% of the peripheral NK cell population. In contrast, CD56^bright CD16^- NK cells are potent cytokine producers, but relatively few. Maturation of human NK cells is characterized by loss of CD34 and C-KIT (CD117) expression, followed by successive upregulation of CD94, CD16, and killer cell Ig-like receptors (KIRs), with an expression of the latter three receptors distinguishing NK cells from other members of the innate lymphocyte-like family.

Applications of CyTOF in NK Cell Protein Profiling

By allowing the simultaneous detection of more than 40 markers on a single cell, CyTOF has greatly enhanced our ability to study human immunology.

• NK cell Characterized by CyTOF from Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma
  Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for approximately 90% of primary liver cancers, is the third leading cause of cancer deaths, and is the fourth most common cancer worldwide. To find potential targets for immunotherapy, CyFOF is used to characterize and analyze the phenotype of NK cells in PBMCs and intrahepatic lymphocytes (IHLs) in HCC patients.
  Peripheral CD56^dim NK cells from HCC patients are found to show reduced expression of CD160, Siglec-7, NKp46, and NKp30. A new NK cell subpopulation is identified in HCC patients, which consisted of CD49a⁺CD56^dim NK cells co-expressing Siglec-10, ILT2, and PD-1.

Fig.1 Summary of phenotypic alterations of CD56^dim NK cells in HCC patients. (Yoshida, Y., et al., 2021)

• CyTOF Reveals Cytokine-Induced Changes in NK Cells
  NK cells are often treated with cytokines in order to maintain cell viability and enhance antiviral and antitumor effects. CyTOF is used to reveal the changes in NK cell rearrangement after stimulation with a cytokine. The results show that all three treatments (IL-2, IL-15, and IL-12/IL-15/IL-18 combinations) can increase the expression of CD56 and CD69.

Our Services

The CyTOF is a perfect platform for high-dimensional phenotypic and functional analysis of single NK cells. The system uses elemental metal isotopes conjugated to monoclonal antibodies to simultaneously evaluate multiple parameters on a single cell with minimal overlap between channels, which can be customized for the analysis of phenotypic and functional markers of NK cells.

NK Cell Protein Profiling Services

CD Genomics provide professional and highly customizable NK cell protein profiling services by CyTOF to facilitate mechanistic studies of related diseases and the discovery of potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets. We can perform experiments based on a wide range of tissues and biological materials provided by our clients and customize the panels according to your project.

Data Analysis Services

High-dimensional data present unique analytical challenges. CD Genomics applies a variety of available visualization, clustering, and statistical methods for data analysis as a resource for the field. These statistical and visualization tools include viSNE (visualization of t-distribution random neighborhood embeddings), Citrus (cluster identification, characterization, and regression), correspondence analysis, and Friedman-Rafsky tests.

Workflow of NK Cell Protein Profiling by CyTOF

Why Choose Us

CD Genomics can provide specialized single-cell omics services for immune cells. Our scientists are experts in CyTOF and immunology. We ensure that you are properly advised on assay design and get the best panel setup for your special project. Please contact us for more information.

Reference

1. Yoshida, Y., Yoshio, S., Yamazoe, T., Mori, T., Tsustui, Y., Kawai, H., ... & Kanto, T. (2021). Phenotypic characterization by single-cell mass cytometry of human intrahepatic and peripheral NK cells in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Cells, 10(6), 1495.

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