Tumor-infiltrating CD36(+)CD8(+)T cells determine exhausted tumor microenvironment and correlate with inferior response to chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer

BACKGROUND: The scavenger receptor CD36 was reported to be highly expressed on tumor-infiltrating CD8(+) T cells, but the clinical role remains obscure. This study aims to explore the infiltration and clinical value of CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells in NSCLC. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence were conducted for survival analyses and immunological evaluation in 232 NSCLC patients in Zhongshan Hospital. Flow cytometry analyses were carried out to assess the immune cells from fresh tumor samples, non-tumor tissues and peripheral blood. In vitro tumor infiltrating lymphocytes cultures were conducted to test the effect of CD36 blockage. RESULTS: Accumulation of CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells in tumor tissues was correlated with more advanced stage (p < 0.001), larger tumor size (p < 0.01), and lymph node metastasis (p < 0.0001) in NSCLC. Moreover, high infiltration of CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells indicated poor prognosis in terms of both overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) and inferior chemotherapy response. CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells showed decreased GZMB (p < 0.0001) and IFN-γ (p < 0.001) with elevated PD-1 (p < 0.0001) and TIGIT (p < 0.0001). Analysis of tumor-infiltrating immune cell landscape revealed a positive correlation between CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells and Tregs (p < 0.01) and M2-polarized macrophages (p < 0.01) but a negative correlation with Th1 (p < 0.05). Notably, inhibition of CD36 partially restored the cytotoxic function of CD8(+) T cells by producing more GZMB and IFN-γ. CONCLUSION: CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells exhibit impaired immune function and high infiltration of CD36(+)CD8(+) T cells indicated poor prognosis and inferior chemotherapy response in NSCLC patients. CD36 could be a therapeutic target in combination with chemotherapy in NSCLC patients. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-023-10836-z.