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The breast tumor microenvironment exploits eosinophil plasticity to suppress their anti-tumor activity

Varyova, Z.; Pohin, M.; Mead, G. J.; Jennings, L. K.; da Costa, V.; Spear, S.; McNeish, I.; Schwenzer, A.; Harris, A. L.; Gerard, A.; Midwood, K. S.

2026-01-12 immunology
10.64898/2026.01.12.698961 bioRxiv
Show abstract

Eosinophils recently emerged as mediators of anti-tumor immunity in immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) treated breast cancer patients. Yet, their role in the treatment-naive breast tumor microenvironment (TME) remains elusive. Here, we show that the breast TME shapes eosinophils into a less active state characterized by loss of Ly6C. While bone marrow and circulating eosinophils are Ly6C, this population progressively transitions into a Ly6C- state marked by reduced cytotoxicity and interferon (IFN) responsiveness during tumor progression. Further investigation of Ly6C uncovered previously unappreciated granularity of eosinophil differentiation in vitro, recapitulating the Ly6C to Ly6C- transition and associated functional loss observed in vivo. IFN stimulation partially restored the Ly6C phenotype ex vivo. Importantly, in ICB-treated tumors, Ly6C+ eosinophils positively correlated with increasing levels of IFNs, suggesting an additional mechanism by which IFNs contribute to effective ICB responses. We propose Ly6C as a key marker of eosinophil differentiation and activation, with the TME shaping eosinophils into a less cytotoxic Ly6C- state.

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