Haas Quentin, Simillion Cedric, von Gunten Stephan
Institute of Pharmacology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Department for BioMedical Research (DBMR), University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Front Oncol. 2018 Mar 13;8:68. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2018.00068. eCollection 2018.
Altered surface glycosylation is a key feature of cancers, including gynecologic malignancies. Hypersialylation, the overexpression of sialic acid, is known to promote tumor progression and to dampen antitumor responses by mechanisms that also involve sialic acid binding immunoglobulin-like lectins (Siglecs), inhibitory immune receptors. Here, we discuss the expression patterns of Siglecs and sialyltransferases (STs) in gynecologic cancers, including breast, ovarian, and uterine malignancies, based on evidence from The Cancer Genome Atlas. The balance between sialosides generated by specific STs within the tumor microenvironment and Siglecs on leukocytes may play a decisive role for antitumor immunity. An interdisciplinary effort is required to decipher the characteristics and biological impact of the altered tumor sialome in gynecologic cancers and to exploit this knowledge to the clinical benefit of patients.
表面糖基化改变是包括妇科恶性肿瘤在内的癌症的一个关键特征。高唾液酸化，即唾液酸的过表达，已知可通过涉及唾液酸结合免疫球蛋白样凝集素（Siglecs）（抑制性免疫受体）的机制促进肿瘤进展并抑制抗肿瘤反应。在此，我们基于来自癌症基因组图谱的证据，讨论Siglecs和唾液酸转移酶（STs）在妇科癌症（包括乳腺癌、卵巢癌和子宫恶性肿瘤）中的表达模式。肿瘤微环境中特定STs产生的唾液酸苷与白细胞上的Siglecs之间的平衡可能对抗肿瘤免疫起决定性作用。需要跨学科的努力来解读妇科癌症中改变的肿瘤唾液酸组的特征和生物学影响，并利用这些知识为患者带来临床益处。
