Figure 1.

Immuno-regulatory role of B cells in the tumor microenvironment in ovarian cancer. The tumor microenvironment induces naïve B cells to differentiate into subsets, such as Bregs, plasma cells and memory B cells. These subsets play different roles as Bregs inhibit the proliferation of CD4⁺ T cells, CD8⁺ T cells, DCs and NK cells while supporting the proliferation of immune-inhibitory Tregs with unknown cytokines and cell–cell contacts. On the other hand, some subsets of B cells whose markers are unknown also induce an anti-tumor response with CD8⁺ TILs, inhibiting tumor progression. Plasma cells secrete autoantibodies that can play a variety of roles in cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. It is unknown if autoantibodies can also support tumor development.