Classical Hodgkin lymphoma: investigation of the cross-talk between the HRS cells and the reactive lymphocytes

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is characterized by a minority of Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells in a polymorphous cellular background. The presence of these very abundant inflammatory cells suggest that they are not just bystander cells but interact actively with the HRS cells. Several studies indicate that immunological mechanisms and cross-talk between HRS cells and the surrounding inflammatory cells are important in the pathogenesis of HL by providing growth and anti-apoptotic signals for the HRS cells or by suppressing effective immune responses. Despite intensive research focused on this cross-talk, many of these interactions remain unclear. In this study we characterized (a) the reactive T lymphocytes in classical HL (cHL) tissue by gene expression profiling to further elucidate their phenotype and (b) the secretome of HRS cells using a proteomics approach