Streptococcus salivarius-mediated CD8+ T cell stimulation required antigen presentation by macrophages in oral squamous cell carcinoma

It has been shown that the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients presented cytotoxic CD8 T cell response against Streptococcus salivarius (S. salivcrrius), of which the frequency was positively associated with recurrence-free survival in OSCC patients. To identify the conditions required for regulating S. salivarius-specific CD8 T cell-mediated cytotoxicity, we selectively depleted individual components of the PBMCs, and observed that the depletion of monocytes/macrophages, but not other immune cell subsets, significantly downregulated the S. salivarius-specific CD8 T cell cytotoxicity. Monocyte/macrophage alone was sufficient to reconstitute optimal granzyme B expression from S. salivarius-specific CD8 T cells. Also, both the memory and the naive CD8 T cells reacted to S. salivarius-stimulation, with the memory CD8 T cells presenting significantly higher S. salivarius-reactivity. Using M1- and M2-polarized macrophages from circulating monocytes, we found that M1polarized macrophages, with significantly higher IL-12 expression and significantly lower IL-10 and MHC class II molecule expression, was more effective at promoting granzyme B responses in CD8 T cells, and required CD80/CD86 costimulating molecules for optimal responses. Interestingly, the tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) from resected tumors presented characteristics of M2-polarized macrophages with high MHC class II expression and low IL-12 secretion. The frequency of tumor-infiltrating S. salivarius-specific cytotoxic CD8 T cell was inversely correlated with the level of IL-10 secretion and the MHC class II molecule expression in autologous TAMs. Together, we demonstrated that monocyte/macrophages presented essential antigen-presentation and costimulatory roles in CD8 T cell-mediated S. salivarius-specific granzyme B responses, and the polarization of macrophages could influence the potency of CD8 T cell responses.