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Modulating T regulatory cells in cancer: how close are we?
Author(s) -
Banerjee Ashish,
Vasanthakumar Ajithkumar,
Grigoriadis George
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
immunology and cell biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.999
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1440-1711
pISSN - 0818-9641
DOI - 10.1038/icb.2013.12
Subject(s) - autoimmunity , inflammation , immune system , cancer , malignancy , immunology , immune tolerance , biology , homeostasis , function (biology) , foxp3 , cancer research , medicine , microbiology and biotechnology
Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a specialized subset of CD4 T cells that have an indispensable role in maintaining immune homeostasis and tolerance. Although studies in mice and humans have clearly highlighted that the absence of these cells results in severe autoimmunity and inflammation, increased Treg numbers and/or function is not always beneficial. This is best exemplified in certain cancers where increased Tregs promote cancer progression by interfering with immune surveillance. Conversely, in other types of cancers that have an inflammatory component, Tregs can inhibit cancer progression by dampening inflammation. In this review article, we provide a historical perspective of the discovery of Tregs, followed by a summary of the existing literature on the role of Tregs in malignancy.