fig6

Figure 6. (A) Heatmap of overall fluorescence expression in the pre- and post-interventional HCC and NHCC groups; (B) Correlation matrix of cytokines (IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-17A) with 37 EV surface markers in the pre-MWA HCC group; (C) Correlations of the 37 EV surface markers with pre-MWA and post-MWA CD4/CD8 ratios, including changes in ratio. Correlation coefficients were calculated using Pearson’s r for normally distributed variables and Spearman’s ρ otherwise, with normality assessed by the Shapiro-Wilk test. Asterisks indicate nominal significance (unadjusted P < 0.05). The reported P-values are nominal and did not remain significant after Bonferroni correction across the marker panel, and the correlations are exploratory. CD1c: Cluster of differentiation 1c; MCSP: melanoma-associated chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan; ROR1: receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 1; SSEA-4: stage-specific embryonic antigen-4; EV: extracellular vesicle; HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; NHCC: non-HCC group (hepatic metastases of extrahepatic primary tumors); MWA: microwave ablation; HLA_ABC: human leukocyte antigen A, B, and C; HLA_DRDPDQ: human leukocyte antigen DR, DP, and DQ; TNF_alpha: tumor necrosis factor-alpha; INF_gamma: interferon-gamma; IL: interleukin.