Biological Functions of CD24 in Malignant Tumor and its Application as a Novel Anti-tumor Target / 中国生物化学与分子生物学报

ABSTRACT

CD24 is a highly glycosylated protein that is linked to the plasma membrane via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor. As a universally expressed protein on immune cells, CD24 is also overexpressed in nearly 70% of human cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma, lung cancer and bladder cancer et al. Studies revealed that CD24 is involved in regulating cell proliferation, migration and invasion in cancer cells by interacting with P-selectin, activating Wnt and MAPK signaling pathway or other signaling molecules. Therefore, CD24-targeted siRNA or antibody has a great potential to exert anti-tumor effects by blocking the interaction. There are currently several agents or regiments targeting CD24 for the treatment of patients with various kinds of cancers that are undergoing assessment in the preclinical study at present. Recent studies revealed that CD24 was able to interact with the inhibitory receptor sialic-acid-binding Ig-like lectin 10 (Siglec-10), which located on the surface of macrophages, to compose a novel immune checkpoint. The binding of CD24 to Siglec-10 elicits an inhibitory signaling cascade, limits macrophage phagocytosis, evades immune surveillance, and promotes tumor growth, which suggested that CD24 may be a potential target in anti-tumor immunotherapy. In this review, we introduced the structure and function of CD24 and its role in cancer progression and anti-tumor immunity. Moreover, the progression in developing novel anti-cancer drugs or treatment strategies with the target of CD24 was summarized, which aims to provide a new insight in CD24-targeting therapy.