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Blocking B cell vesicles to enhance chemotherapy

Inhibiting extracellular vesicles formation could enhance chemotherapy’s efficacy

March 7, 2019 2:41 PM UTC

Blocking extracellular vesicles derived from B cells could offer a new therapeutic avenue to enhance the efficacy of chemotherapy for cancer, according to a Zhejiang University study.

Chemotherapy reduces antitumor immunity by inducing systemic immunosuppression. Chemotherapy-treated tumor cells release ATP, which is converted into adenosine, an inhibitor of CD8+ T cell responses. This pathway coupled with drug resistance are the main reasons for chemotherapeutic failure, said Zhijian Cai, a professor of immunology at Zhejiang University...