Functional characterization of neutrophils in patients with multiple myeloma
- 1Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Health Sciences, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
- 2Haematology Section, Pathology Department, the University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia
- 3Pathology Department, Ndola Teaching Hospital, Ndola, Zambia
Abstract
Multiple myeloma is a hematologic cancer caused by abnormal plasma cell proliferation in the bone marrow and is associated with significant immune dysfunction. Neutrophils, essential components of the innate immune response, may function poorly in patients with multiple myeloma, increasing the risk of infection and affecting disease progression. This study aimed to systematically evaluate the extent of neutrophil dysfunction in patients with newly diagnosed and relapsed multiple myeloma. The study employed a cross-sectional analytical design and recruited 72 participants: 30 multiple myeloma patients and 42 age- and sex-matched healthy controls from the University Teaching Hospital and the Cancer Diseases Hospital of Lusaka, Zambia. 4 mL of venous blood was collected from all participants in ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid vacutainers for laboratory analysis. Neutrophils were isolated from whole blood using Polymorphprep™, and functionality was assessed using in vitro assays, including a phagocytosis assay using fluorescently labeled bacterial particles and a reactive oxygen species assay using the fluorescent probe 2’, 7’-Dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, measured by flow cytometry. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA. Neutrophils from multiple myeloma patients demonstrated significantly lower phagocytic capacity (45.0% vs 75.9%, P < 0.001) and reactive oxygen species production (44.7% vs 74.9%, P < 0.001) compared to controls. The logistic regression analysis demonstrated strong associations between multiple myeloma and both reactive oxygen species (OR=5097.6, P < 0.001) and phagocytic dysfunction (OR=7272.7, P < 0.001). By contrast, age, sex, white blood cell count, and absolute neutrophil count were not significantly associated with these outcomes. The study found that patients with multiple myeloma exhibit qualitative impairment of neutrophil function, despite normal quantitative neutrophil counts, underscoring the importance of functional immune monitoring in patient management.
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BibTeX
@article{mwampembwa2026functional,
title = {{Functional characterization of neutrophils in patients with multiple myeloma}},
author = {Kapina Mwampembwa and Emmanuel Mweni and Humphrey Mwape and Ruth Daka and John Nzobokela and Chrispin Chisanga and Sody Munsaka},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0360063},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0360063},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Functional characterization of neutrophils in patients with multiple myeloma
AU - Kapina Mwampembwa
AU - Emmanuel Mweni
AU - Humphrey Mwape
AU - Ruth Daka
AU - John Nzobokela
AU - Chrispin Chisanga
AU - Sody Munsaka
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/08
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0360063
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0360063
AB - Multiple myeloma is a hematologic cancer caused by abnormal plasma cell proliferation in the bone marrow and is associated with significant immune dysfunction. Neutrophils, essential components of the innate immune response, may function poorly in patients with multiple myeloma, increasing the risk of infection and affecting disease progression. This study aimed to systematically evaluate the extent of neutrophil dysfunction in patients with newly diagnosed and relapsed multiple myeloma. The study employed a cross-sectional analytical design and recruited 72 participants: 30 multiple myeloma patients and 42 age- and sex-matched healthy controls from the University Teaching Hospital and the Cancer Diseases Hospital of Lusaka, Zambia. 4 mL of venous blood was collected from all participants in ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid vacutainers for laboratory analysis. Neutrophils were isolated from whole blood using Polymorphprep™, and functionality was assessed using in vitro assays, including a phagocytosis assay using fluorescently labeled bacterial particles and a reactive oxygen species assay using the fluorescent probe 2’, 7’-Dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, measured by flow cytometry. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA. Neutrophils from multiple myeloma patients demonstrated significantly lower phagocytic capacity (45.0% vs 75.9%, P < 0.001) and reactive oxygen species production (44.7% vs 74.9%, P < 0.001) compared to controls. The logistic regression analysis demonstrated strong associations between multiple myeloma and both reactive oxygen species (OR=5097.6, P < 0.001) and phagocytic dysfunction (OR=7272.7, P < 0.001). By contrast, age, sex, white blood cell count, and absolute neutrophil count were not significantly associated with these outcomes. The study found that patients with multiple myeloma exhibit qualitative impairment of neutrophil function, despite normal quantitative neutrophil counts, underscoring the importance of functional immune monitoring in patient management.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -