Pharmacological targeting of natural killer cells for cancer immunotherapy

21Citations
Citations of this article
47Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

This article is free to access.

Abstract

Natural killer (NK) cells are innate lymphocytes that rapidly respond to cancer cells without prior sensitization or restriction to the cognate antigen in comparison with tumor antigen-specific T cells. Recent advances in understanding NK-cell biology have elucidated the molecular mechanisms underlying the differentiation and maturation of NK cells, in addition to the control of their effector functions by investigating the receptors and ligands involved in the recognition of cancer cells by NK cells. Such clarification of NK-cell recognition of cancer cells also revealed the mechanism by which cancer cells potentially evade NK–cell-dependent immune surveillance. Furthermore, the recent clinical results of T–cell-targeted cancer immunotherapy have increased the expectations for new immunotherapies by targeting NK cells. However, the potential use of NK cells in cancer immunotherapy is not fully understood. In this review, we discuss the current evidence and future potential of pharmacological targeting of NK cells in cancer immunotherapy.

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Miyazato, K., & Hayakawa, Y. (2020, June 1). Pharmacological targeting of natural killer cells for cancer immunotherapy. Cancer Science. Blackwell Publishing Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1111/cas.14418

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free