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Downloaded from clincancerres.aacrjournals.org on August 9, 2014. 2013 American Association for Cancer Research.
Clinical
Cancer
Research
Molecular Pathways
Abstract
Numerous reports have described Toll-like receptor (TLR) expression in the tumor microenvironment
as it relates to cancer progression, as well as their involvement in inflammation. While TLRs mediate
immune surveillance, clinical studies have associated TLR expression in the tumor with poor patient
survival, indicating that TLR expression may affect cancer treatment and survival. This review will
examine mechanisms in which TLR activation upregulates protumorigenic pathways, including the
induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS2) and COX2, which in turn increase TLR expression
and promote a feed-forward loop leading to tumor progression and the development of more aggressive
tumor phenotypes. These propagating loops involve cancer cell, stroma, and/or immune cell TLR
expression. Because of abundant TLR expression in many human tumors, several TLR agonists are now
in clinical and preclinical trials and some have shown enhanced efficacy when used as adjuvant with
radiation, chemotherapy, or cancer vaccines. These findings suggest that TLR expression influences
cancer biology and therapeutic response, which may involve specific interactions within the tumor
microenvironment, including mediators of inflammation such as nitric oxide and the arachidonic acid
signaling pathways. Clin Cancer Res; 19(6); 13406. 2012 AACR.
Background
Inflammation has emerged as a nonmutational driver
of tumor development and progression, and has been
associated with higher tumor grades and a poor prognosis
(1, 2). A quintessential signaling mechanism of inflammation uses the Toll-like receptor (TLR) family, which is a
highly conserved family of transmembrane proteins that
recognize a range of microbial agents as well as endogenous macromolecules released by injured tissue. To date,
10 isoforms have been identified in humans that are
activated by various ligands. Ligand activation of TLRs
is at the forefront of inflammatory response as it initiates
key signaling pathways in the regulation of innate and
adaptive immunity, as well as tissue repair and regeneration, and is tightly regulated under normal conditions.
However, when these inflammatory processes go awry,
the dysfunction of TLR pathways leads to the developAuthors' Afliations: 1Radiation Biology Branch; 2Laboratory of Human
Carcinogenesis, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda; 3Laboratory of Experimental Immunology, Cancer and Inammation Program, Center for Cancer
Research, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Frederick, Maryland; and 4Prostate
Cancer Institute, National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway, Galway, Ireland
L.A. Ridnour and R.Y.S. Cheng contributed equally to this work.
Corresponding Author: David A. Wink, Radiation Biology Branch, National
Cancer Institute, Building 10, Room B3-B35, Bethesda, MD 20892. Phone:
301-402-0745; Fax: 301-480-2238; E-mail: wink@mail.nih.gov
doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-12-0408
2012 American Association for Cancer Research.
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Tumor
Microenvironment
Inflammation
Hypoxia
(result from larger size)
Protumor selection
for mutants
Apoptotic
death
NF-B
MAPK
Immune
activation
T cell, NK cells
CD8+ cells
M1
Antimetastatic
Antiangiogenic
Increase
TLR ligand
TLR
tumor cell
Poor prognostic
indicators
NOS2
COX2
VEGF
IL-6
IL-8
IL-10
TLR
immune
cells
Treg
TH17
MDSC
TAM
TLR
stromal
endothelial
fibroblast
Treatment resistance
and metastatic cells
Tumor
progression
Chemoresistance
Metastasis
Immunosuppression
Increased angiogenesis
Matrix reorganization
Antitumor
treatment response
2012 American Association for Cancer Research
Figure 1. Inuence of TLR signaling on patient with cancer therapeutic outcome tumor cells in a chronically inamed tumor microenvironment usurp
host immunity through tumor cell and immune cell TLR activation leading to increased NOS2/COX2 and the recruitment of immunosuppressive cell
types that reduce host tumor surveillance and diminish therapeutic response. Alternatively, the activation of TLRs expressed on CD8 T cells mediates an
M1 antitumor response.
www.aacrjournals.org
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signaling, enhanced hypoxia-inducible factor-1a (HIF1a) expression, and dramatically reduced patient survival
(22).
Studies have correlated elevated TLR expression and
dysfunctional immunity within the tumor microenvironment with cancer progression and reduced patient survival in a number of solid tumors. Key mediating factors
during this process seem to involve TLR-MyD88 signaling and downstream activation of NF-kB (20). Increased
TLR4 and MyD88 expression predicts increased liver
metastases in patients with colorectal cancer (26), whereas TLR4 expression is associated with larger tumor
size, higher clinical staging, and lymph node metastasis
in pancreatic cancers (27). These studies indicate that
the location of TLR expression may be an important
determinant of therapeutic response as well as indicators
for patient survival. In vitro studies of human and mouse
cancer cells showing elevation of several TLRs at both
the mRNA and protein levels that mediate both proand antitumorigenic responses support these clinical
reports.
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www.aacrjournals.org
ClinicalTranslational Advances
TLRs as therapeutic targets of cytotoxic response
Enhanced TLR expression within the tumor microenvironment has made these molecules attractive therapeutic targets. Many clinical applications using TLR agonists
have met with disappointing results when used as mono
therapies due to protumor mechanisms of cancer, which
use TLR expression to facilitate immune suppression. TLR
agonists have met with greater therapeutic success when
used as adjuvants in combination with radiation, chemotherapy, or cancer vaccines by priming the host immunity
leading to enhanced T-helper (TH) cell cytotoxic or TH1
response. TH cells are a subgroup of lymphocytes that play
an important role in adaptive immunity. TH cells are not
cytotoxic themselves; rather, they function by activating
and directing other immune cells. They are critical in Bcell antibody class switching, in the activation and proliferation of cytotoxic TH1 cells, and in maximizing bactericidal activity of phagocytes such as macrophages.
TLR agonists approved as adjuvant and single use agent
therapies
The TLR2/4 agonist BCG has been used for the successful treatment of bladder cancer for more than 3
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Authors' Contributions
Conception and design: R.Y.S. Cheng, J.L. Heinecke, D.A. Wink
Development of methodology: R.Y.S. Cheng
Acquisition of data (provided animals, acquired and managed patients,
provided facilities, etc.): R.Y.S. Cheng
Analysis and interpretation of data (e.g., statistical analysis, biostatistics, computational analysis): R.Y.S. Cheng
Writing, review, and/or revision of the manuscript: L.A. Ridnour, R.Y.S.
Cheng, C.H. Switzer, J.L. Heinecke, S. Ambs, S. Glynn, H.A. Young, G.
Trinchieri, D.A. Wink
Administrative, technical, or material support (i.e., reporting or organizing data, constructing databases): J.L. Heinecke
Grant Support
This work was funded by the Intramural Program, Center for Cancer
Research, National Cancer Institute, NIH.
Received October 11, 2012; revised November 19, 2012; accepted
November 27, 2012; published OnlineFirst December 27, 2012.
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