Nature vs. Nurture: The Two Opposing Behaviors of Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes in the Tumor Microenvironment.
Int J Mol Sci
; 22(20)2021 Oct 18.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34681881
ABSTRACT
Similar to Janus, the two-faced god of Roman mythology, the tumor microenvironment operates two opposing and often conflicting activities, on the one hand fighting against tumor cells, while on the other hand, favoring their proliferation, survival and migration to other sites to establish metastases. In the tumor microenvironment, cytotoxic T cells-the specialized tumor-cell killers-also show this dual nature, operating their tumor-cell directed killing activities until they become exhausted and dysfunctional, a process promoted by cancer cells themselves. Here, we discuss the opposing activities of immune cells populating the tumor microenvironment in both cancer progression and anti-cancer responses, with a focus on cytotoxic T cells and on the molecular mechanisms responsible for the efficient suppression of their killing activities as a paradigm of the power of cancer cells to shape the microenvironment for their own survival and expansion.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Bases de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Linfócitos T Citotóxicos
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Microambiente Tumoral
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Imunoterapia
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Neoplasias
Limite:
Animals
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Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Int J Mol Sci
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Itália