Human Genetics Division, Medical Biotechnology Department, National Institute of Genetics Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), Tehran, Iran.
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Mol Biol Rep. 2022 Nov;49(11):10935-10948. doi: 10.1007/s11033-022-07865-5. Epub 2022 Aug 25.
The importance of the immune system on tumor surveillance has been investigated for many years, and its impact on controlling tumor progression has been verified. An important subgroup of the innate immune system is natural killer (NK) cells, whose essential function in modulating tumor behavior and suppressing metastasis and tumor growth has been demonstrated. The first idea of NK cells' crucial biological processes was demonstrated through their potent ability to conduct direct cellular cytotoxicity, even without former sensitization. These properties of NK cells allow them to recognize transformed cells that have attenuated self-ligand and express stress-induced ligands. Furthermore, secretion of various cytokines and chemokines after their activation leads to tumor elimination via either direct cytotoxic effect on malignant cells or activation of the adaptive immune system. In addition, novel immunotherapeutic approaches tend to take advantage of NK cells' ability, leading to antibody-based approaches, the formation of engineered CAR-NK cells, and adoptive cell transfer. However, the restricted functionality of NK cells and the inability to infiltrate tumors are its blind spots in breast cancer patients. In this review, we gathered newly acquired data on the biology and functions of NK cells in breast cancer and proposed ways to employ this knowledge for novel therapeutic approaches in cancers, particularly breast cancer.
免疫系统对肿瘤监测的重要性已经被研究了很多年，其对控制肿瘤进展的影响也得到了验证。先天免疫系统的一个重要亚群是自然杀伤 (NK) 细胞，已经证明其在调节肿瘤行为、抑制转移和肿瘤生长方面具有重要作用。NK 细胞的关键生物学过程的第一个观点是通过其强大的直接细胞毒性能力得到证明的，即使没有先前的致敏作用。NK 细胞的这些特性使它们能够识别减弱自身配体并表达应激诱导配体的转化细胞。此外，它们激活后分泌各种细胞因子和趋化因子，通过直接杀伤恶性细胞或激活适应性免疫系统来消除肿瘤。此外，新型免疫治疗方法倾向于利用 NK 细胞的能力，导致基于抗体的方法、工程 CAR-NK 细胞的形成和过继细胞转移。然而，NK 细胞的功能受限以及无法浸润肿瘤是其在乳腺癌患者中的盲点。在这篇综述中，我们收集了 NK 细胞在乳腺癌中的生物学和功能的新数据，并提出了利用这些知识为癌症，特别是乳腺癌的新型治疗方法提供思路。
