Fig. 4: MTPA modulates the tumor immune microenvironment towards a “hot” phenotype.

scRNAseq of the intratumoral myeloid compartment was performed following sublethal hyperthermia treatment of syngeneic rat HCC tumors. Cluster characterization by marker genes (a, b) and gene set analysis (c) demonstrate a significant shift in myeloid cells from M2 towards an M1 phenotype with hyperthermia relative to control. In addition, bulk RNAseq following MTPA of orthotopic liver tumors was notable for upregulation of numerous interferon-stimulated genes (d) relative to untreated tumor.