Association between B7-H1 and cervical cancer: B7-H1 impairs the immune response in human cervical cancer cells

The aim of the present study was to determine the preliminary mechanism of action of B7 homolog 1 (B7-H1) and investigate the association between B7-H1 and cervical cancer. The expression of B7 family proteins was measured in cervical cancer cells. Cervical cancer cells were co-cultured with T lymphocytes. An ELISA assay was subsequently conducted to analyze cytokine concentrations in the supernatants of the cultured T cells in cervical cancer cells and B7-H1 downregulated cells. Levels of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α mRNA in mice injected with cervical cancer cells or B7-H1 downregulated cells were measured by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. It was determined that cervical cancer cells express high levels of B7-H1, whereas the normal cervical epithelium does not express B7-H1. When co-cultured with T lymphocytes, cervical cancer cells were involved in the inhibition of lymphocyte activation. When B7-H1 was downregulated using a lentivirus, the proliferation ability did not change compared with cervical cancer cells, whereas the soluble factors secreted by T cells differed between cervical cancer cells and B7-H1 downregulated cells. In an animal model, injected B7-H1 downregulated cervical cancer cells elicited a more intense immune response, whereas cervical cancer cells had the wild immune response. Therefore, the results of the present study demonstrate that B7-H1 mediates the low immunogenicity of cervical cancer and is not attacked by the immune system.