TGFb2 induces the soluble isoform of CTLA-4 – implications for CTLA-4 based checkpoint inhibitor antibodies in malignant melanoma

FUNDING This work was funded by the Chief Scientist’s office, Scotland grant no. ETM/280. Acknowledgments Microscopy was performed in the Microscopy and Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen. Flow cytometry was performed in the Iain Fraser Cytometry Centre. We are very grateful to our lab manager Ms. Gill Moir for her assistance with this work and also to the many BSc/MSc project students who worked on this project. We are extremely grateful for all of the volunteer melanoma patient donors and healthy donors that supported this work. FA-F received an Elphinstone PhD scholarship funded by the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences & Nutrition at the University of Aberdeen.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A novel role for the soluble isoform of CTLA-4 in normal, dysplastic and neoplastic oral and oropharyngeal epithelia

Acknowledgments: The authors would like to acknowledge the NHS Grampian Biorepository for their help in acquiring samples, especially Andrea Chapman for confirming the diagnosis of the samples. Microscopy was performed in the Microscopy and Histology Core Facility at the University of Aberdeen. We thank the following for their work during their summer projects: Rory Maciver (INSPIRE National Scholarship, Academy of Medical Sciences through the University of Aberdeen), Ramisha Basharat (summer scholarship by the Development Trust of the University of Aberdeen through funds from CRANES, Scotland), Sara Lucila Lorenzo Guerra (ERASMUS+), and Khaled Shawki (currently at Horus University, Egypt). Funding: This work was supported by funding from Friends of Anchor (RS 17 007), TENOVUS Scotland (G17.11), and the NHS Endowment Grant (17/042 and 18/24). P.C., F.A.-F. and B.R. were funded by the University of Aberdeen doctoral Elphinstone Scholarship.Peer reviewedPublisher PD