LncRNAs as an intermediate in HPV16 promoting myeloid-derived suppressor cell recruitment of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

The emerging evidence showed that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in cell growth and apoptosis as well as cancer progression and metastasis of malignant tumor, however, limited data are available on the role of lncRNAs in human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC). Here, we demonstrated that 23.98% of 196 HNSCC cases in Southwest China could be classified as HPV16 infection. The number of MDSCs in HPV-positive HNSCC was significantly higher than normal control, indicating that HPV infection may promote MDSCs aggregation. Then, we applied an array-based approach to monitor the lncRNA expression between HPV-positive HNSCC, HPV-negative HNSCC and normal oral mucous, and obtained 132 different lncRNAs in different HPV infected states of HNSCC. HOTAIR, PROM1, CCAT1, and MUC19 mRNA levels, determined by qRT-PCR were inversely correlated with MDSCs collection of HPV-associated HNSCC in 2 independent patient cohorts. The results may provide a rationale for the further evaluation of lncRNAs as a molecular target to elucidate the molecular mechanism of HPV promoting MDSCs collection of HNSCC.