Effects of thermal ablation on Treg/Th17 in hepatocellular carcinoma of mice

The study was aimed to explore the possible function of thermal ablation treatment on T helper 17 (Th17) cells and regulatory T (Treg) cells in transplantation of hepatocellular carcinoma in mice. In total, 60 male C57BL/6 mice were divided into control group, model group, and treat group. Flow cytometry was used to detect the frequency of Th17 and Treg cells in peripheral blood. The levels of interleukin (IL)-17, IL-23, IL-10, and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) in serum were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).The levels of IL-17, RORγt, Foxp3, and TGF-β mRNA in tumor tissues were detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR). Compared with the model group, tumor size was significantly decreased after thermal ablation treatment. After treatment, the frequency of Th17 cells in peripheral blood was significantly decreased, while the frequency of Treg cells was profoundly increased ( P  < 0.05). The levels of IL-17 and IL-23 were significantly downregulated, while IL-10 and TGF-β levels were upregulated ( P  < 0.05). IL-17 and RORγt mRNA levels in tumor tissues were significantly decreased ( P  < 0.05), and Foxp3 and TGF-β mRNA levels were significantly increased ( P  < 0.05). Thermal ablation treatment plays a positive role in the treatment of hepatoma in mice through affecting the imbalance of Th17/Treg cells.