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Paired NK cell receptors controlling NK cytotoxicity
Author(s) -
Stanietsky Noa,
Mandelboim Ofer
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/j.febslet.2010.08.047
Subject(s) - receptor , microbiology and biotechnology , tigit , biology , cytotoxicity , immune receptor , mhc class i , natural killer cell , cell , major histocompatibility complex , lymphokine activated killer cell , immunology , interleukin 21 , antigen , immune system , immunotherapy , biochemistry , t cell , in vitro
Human natural killer (NK) cells possess an arsenal of receptors programmed to regulate the NK cell functions, once encountering a target cell. In general, the activating receptors mediate cytotoxicity when engaged by their tumor specific, stress induced, virally encoded, or rarely, self ligands. Whereas, the inhibitory receptors bind self molecules, mostly MHC class I, presented on all normal and healthy nucleated cells. However, NK cells also possess numerous, highly homologous, pairs of receptors that sometimes even share the same ligands but display divergent functions. In this review we describe the NK cell repertoire of paired receptors and discuss questions regarding their function and mode of action. We focus primarily on the three PVR‐binding receptors; the co‐stimulatory DNAM1 and CD96 and the inhibitory TIGIT.