Macrophage-based assays to assess immunotherapeutics on macrophage functions and mediated immune response
10 / 18 / 2023
While macrophages play a central role in innate immune inflammatory mechanisms and in priming adaptive responses, they exhibit phenotypically and functionally distinct subsets, influenced by their environment and local stimuli.
In cancer and as a key component of the tumor microenvironment, they strongly regulate immunity and differentially influence tumorigenesis, depending on surrounding cues.
Unlike M1 macrophages that promote proinflammatory responses, M2 macrophages display immunoregulatory functions and trigger inflammation resolution and immunosuppression, thereby mediating tumor promotion.
Behind these opposing subsets, macrophages exhibit a level of plasticity and are themselves capable of mutually regulating each other along a sliding scale between pro- and anti-inflammatory functions.
Therefore, modifying or interfering with macrophage polarization or their switch from an M2 to an M1 phenotype remains an attractive strategy to potentiate the effector immune response. In this context, in vitro macrophage-based assays are relevant to assess immunotherapeutics and question their mechanisms of action.
While mastering the key specifications of our macrophage-based models and their subtleties, our scientific and experimental expertise governs the relevance of our macrophage assays in evaluating the efficacy of immunotherapeutics either on the stimulatory M1 capacities or, especially, in relieving the suppressive functions of M2 macrophages.
Schematic diagram of macrophage preparation to evaluate immunotherapeutics on their polarization and function in immuno-oncology.