Targeting Toll-like receptors against cancer

Abstract

The discovery of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) about 20 years ago was a remarkable achievement not only in the field of immunology but also in the field of medicine. The TLRs are a family of pattern recognition receptors which play an important role in immune responses by recognizing pathogen-associated molecular patterns. The TLRs also recognize danger-associated molecular patterns, which are associated with some diseases such as cancer. Recent evidence shows that TLRs are expressed not only in immune cells but also in tumor cells. The TLRs appear to play a role in tumor progression and treatment. Most likely, TLR activation has an impact on the initiation, development and treatment of tumors by modulating the inflammatory microenvironment. However, the activation of TLRs contributes to both inhibition and promotion of various tumors, with unclear underlying mechanisms. In this review article, the authors elucidate their current understanding about the role of TLRs in tumor progression, as well as the recent progress in utilizing TLR agonists as potential therapeutic agents in cancer treatment.

Keywords

Toll-like receptor / innate immunity / cancer / cancer treatment / cancer immunotherapy

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