Figure 4.

Overall survival of two subpopulations. (A) Patients with reported COPD at baseline shown in Kaplan–Meier plot. (B) Patients with low number of activated B cells at baseline as depicted in a Kaplan–Meier plot. Central flow cytometric assessment of CD86⁺CD19⁺ B cells for cutoff determination at baseline. B cell data were available for 88 of 102 patients. Cutoff defined as 15.4% activated B cells with 38 of 88 patients (43.2%) below cutoff. (C) Robustness of the OS signal in patients with low count of activated B cells: the use of different analysis to confirm the delineated cutoff of 15.4%: median, quartiles and quintiles. (D) Postulated mode-of-action of the activated (regulatory) B cell fraction impairing the lefitolimod-triggered antitumor response. Lefitolimod targets TLR9-positive pDC leading to their activation and production of IFN-alpha initiating subsequent activation of crucial immune cells like NK, NKT and T cells. Activated, regulatory B cells suppress the antitumor properties of these cells via various processes (e.g. secretion of IL-10).