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Review
. 2019 Sep 19;8(9):1492.
doi: 10.3390/jcm8091492.

NK Cell Plasticity in Cancer

Sizhe Liu  1 , Payal Dhar  2 , Jennifer D Wu  3   4
Affiliations
Review

NK Cell Plasticity in Cancer

Sizhe Liu et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Natural killer (NK) cells are critical immune components in controlling tumor growth and dissemination. Given their innate capacity to eliminate tumor cells without prior sensitization, NK-based therapies for cancer are actively pursued pre-clinically and clinically. However, recent data suggest that tumors could induce functional alterations in NK cells, polarizing them to tumor-promoting phenotypes. The potential functional plasticity of NK cells in the context of tumors could lead to undesirable outcomes of NK-cell based therapies. In this review, we will summarize to-date evidence of tumor-associated NK cell plasticity and provide our insights for future investigations and therapy development.

Keywords: NK cells; cancer; plasticity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Cancer-induced phenotypic and functional alterations in natural killer (NK) cells. The function and phenotype of cytotoxic NK cells can be altered by tumor environment cues to become pro-tumorigenic or to lose anti-tumor function. PIGF, placental growth factor; ILC1, type I innate lymphoid cells; TME, tumor microenvironment; dNK, decidual NK; NCR, natural cytotoxicity receptor; DNAM, DNAX accessory molecule.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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