{
  "abstract": "Background: Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer with a highly immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. This study investigated the role of matrix Gla protein (MGP)-high cancer-associated fibroblasts (MGPhi CAFs) in melanoma progression and their potential relevance to immunotherapy.\n\nMethods: Single-cell RNA sequencing and tissue validation were used to characterize MGP expression, and its association with prognosis was analyzed. In vitro assays and mouse melanoma models were used to investigate the effects of MGPhi CAFs on tumor progression, myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) recruitment and apoptosis. The role of MDSCs was further examined by adoptive transfer. The antitumor effects of vitamin K2, anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and their combination were evaluated in vivo. Normality was assessed using the Shapiro-Wilk test. Group differences were analyzed using two-tailed paired or unpaired Student’s t-tests or one-way or two-way analysis of variance followed by Tukey’s multiple comparisons test. Survival curves were compared using the log-rank test.\n\nResults: MGP expression was reduced in melanoma tissues, and low MGP expression was associated with poor prognosis. MGPhi CAFs inhibited melanoma cell proliferation and migration and suppressed tumor growth. Mechanistically, MGPhi CAFs reduced C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 2/C-X-C motif chemokine receptor 2-mediated MDSC recruitment and promoted MDSC apoptosis by inhibiting tumor necrosis factor receptor 2-cellular FLICE-like inhibitory protein signaling and activating caspase-8. Adoptive transfer of MDSCs reversed the antitumor effects of MGPhi CAFs. Vitamin K2 increased MGP protein levels in CAFs isolated from tumors. Combined vitamin K2 and anti-PD-1 treatment produced greater antitumor activity than either monotherapy.\n\nConclusions: MGPhi CAFs suppress melanoma progression by reducing MDSC recruitment and survival. These findings identify an MGPhi CAF-MDSC regulatory axis and support further evaluation of vitamin K2 combined with anti-PD-1 therapy in melanoma.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery, The Affiliated Friendship Plastic Surgery Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China",
    "Department of Burn and Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital With Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China",
    "The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 11,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Liying Tu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Min Yi"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Zengyang Feng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yingying Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Tianyi Ni"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Lifan Zhou"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Binlin Luo"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Youzhi Tang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Shujie Ruan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Wei Yan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Weicheng Gao",
      "orcid": "0009-0002-0525-5005"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4qm9xyspfpvcf.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1136/jitc-2026-016095",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13711602/",
  "id": "4qm9xyspfpvcf",
  "issns": [
    "2051-1426"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1136/jitc-2026-016095",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "1506"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Basic and Translational Cancer Immunology"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2403|Immune cells in cancer"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223657017",
  "pdf_url": "https://jitc.bmj.com/content/14/10/e016095.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13711602",
  "pmid": "42933889",
  "published": "2026-10-26",
  "publisher": "BMJ Publishing Group",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4qm9xyspfpvcf.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-31T12:22:21Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13711602",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1136/jitc-2026-016095"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2403|Immune cells in cancer",
      "subfield": "immunology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "MGPhi cancer-associated fibroblasts orchestrate MDSC-mediated immunosuppression in melanoma through TNF signaling",
  "title_text": "MGPhi cancer-associated fibroblasts orchestrate MDSC-mediated immunosuppression in melanoma through TNF signaling",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-31T12:22:21Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4qm9xyspfpvcf",
  "venue": "Journal for Immunotherapy of Cancer",
  "versions": []
}