Ms4a7 expression in cDC1s determines cross-presentation and antitumor immunity
- Bowen Xie
- Bowen Yuan
- Xiaohong Zhao
- Tian Xie
- Ruifeng Li
- Peng Wei
- Qinli Sun
- Wenbo Hu
- Birui Pan
- Yongzhen Chen
- Kun Wei
- Zixuan Zhao
- Lei Yuan
- Xuan Zhong
- Xue Bai
- Qiuyan Lan
- Lei Qin
- Ling Ni
- Chen Dong
2025-11-13
Conventional type 1 dendritic cells (cDC1s) capture antigens in peripheral tissues and migrate to draining lymph nodes (dLNs) to prime antigen-specific CD8 + T cells. How tumor antigens are processed to activate CD8 + T cell immunity is not well understood. In this work, we show that Ms4a7 is up-regulated in cDC1s after tumor antigen uptake or exposure to exogenous stimuli and is required for their cross-priming ability. Although Ms4a7 −/− mice showed normal cDC1 development and turnover, they failed to prime antigen-specific CD8 + T cells following infection or tumor development. In human cancers, MS4A7 was expressed in a subset of cDC1s, preferentially enriched in dLNs, and correlated with patient survival. Our findings suggest a critical role for Ms4a7 in cDC1-mediated cross-presentation and antitumor CD8 + T cell responses.