Morphofunctional characteristics of the immune microenvironment and proliferative activity in the cervical transformation zone in benign and neoplastic changes

DOI: 10.47026/2413-4864-2026-3-37-46

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Shcheglov B.O., Reva I.V., Usov V.V., Zolotov A.S., Krasnikov Yu.A., Gaynullina Yu.I., Shcheglova S.N., Reva G.V.

Morphofunctional characteristics of the immune microenvironment and proliferative activity in the cervical transformation zone in benign and neoplastic changes

Keywords: cervical cancer, benign changes of the cervix, Ki-67, CD68, CD163, immune microenvironment, immunohistochemistry

Examining the immune microenvironment of a tumor is important for clarifying the mechanisms of tumor progression and searching for additional morphofunctional diagnostic criteria. The aim of the study was to evaluate the proliferative activity and phenotypic diversity of immunocytes in the cervical transformation zone in patients with benign changes and cervical cancer. Materials and methods. The study included 80 biopsy samples of the cervical mucosa obtained from patients with HSIL during targeted biopsy. Depending on the autopsy report, the material was divided into two groups: benign changes and cervical cancer. The expression of Ki-67, CD4, CD8, CD68, and CD163 was immunohistochemically evaluated. Descriptive statistics methods, Mann–Whitney criterion and Spearman correlation analysis were used for statistical processing. Results. In cervical cancer, the age of the patients and Ki-67 expression were statistically significantly higher than in benign changes. CD4 differences between the groups did not reach statistical significance. At the same time, the content of CD8+, CD68+ and CD163+ cells in the tumor tissue was significantly higher. Positive correlations of Ki-67 with CD4, CD8, CD68 and CD163 were revealed, the most pronounced ones were between CD8 and macrophage markers. Conclusions. Cervical cancer is accompanied by increased proliferative activity and restructuring the immune microenvironment with an increase in CD8+, CD68+ and CD163+ cells. A comprehensive assessment of Ki-67 and the phenotype of immunocytes can serve as an additional morphofunctional criterion for characterizing the pathological process.

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About authors

Shcheglov Bogdan O.: Candidate of Medical Sciences, Medical Analytics, Medical Complex, Assistant Professor, Department of Fundamental Medicine, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (b.shcheglov@mail.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2262-1831)

Reva Ivan V.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Fundamental Medicine, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (reva.iv@dvfu.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3727-393X)

Usov Viktor V.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Clinical Medicine, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (usov.vv@dvfu.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1182-7551)

Zolotov Alexander S.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Clinical medicine, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (zolotov.as@dvfu.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0045-9319)

Krasnikov Yuri A.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Theory and Methodology of Adaptive Physical Culture, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (krasnikov.yua@dvfu.ru; )

Gaynullina Yulia I.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Vladivostok State University, Russia, Vladivostok (gaynullina.YI@vvsu.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2694-3712)

Shcheglova Svetlana N.: Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor, Department of Pedagogical Sciences, North-Eastern State University, Russia, Magadan (schegloff@mail.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5898-9120)

Reva Galina V.: Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Department of Fundamental Medicine, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Far Eastern Federal University, Russia, Vladivostok (reva.gv@dvfu.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6502-4271)

Article link

Shcheglov B.O., Reva I.V., Usov V.V., Zolotov A.S., Krasnikov Yu.A., Gaynullina Yu.I., Shcheglova S.N., Reva G.V. Morphofunctional characteristics of the immune microenvironment and proliferative activity in the cervical transformation zone in benign and neoplastic changes [Electronic resource] // Acta medica Eurasica. – 2026. – №3. P. 37-46. – URL: https://acta-medica-eurasica.ru/en/single/2026/3/5/. DOI: 10.47026/2413-4864-2026-3-37-46.

Single article

Shcheglov B.O., Reva I.V., Usov V.V., Zolotov A.S., Krasnikov Yu.A., Gaynullina Yu.I., Shcheglova S.N., Reva G.V.