Title:The Effects of β -Glucans on Dendritic Cells and Implications for Cancer Therapy
Volume: 13
Issue: 5
Author(s): Sabrin H. Albeituni and Jun Yan
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Beta glucans, dendritic cells (DC), dectin-1, tumor immunotherapy.
Abstract: β-Glucans are polysaccharides of β-D-glucose extracted from the cell walls of different species of mushrooms, yeast, oat,
barley, seaweeds, algae and bacteria. Modern biomedical research has identified β-glucans as biological response modifiers (BRM) with
anti-tumor properties that elicit potent immune responses through their recognition by a variety of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs)
on dendritic cells (DCs), macrophages and neutrophils. Complement receptor-3 (CR3), lactosylceramides, scavenger receptors and
dectin-1 are involved in β-glucan recognition, triggering a series of signaling events that modulate innate and subsequently adaptive
immune responses. β-Glucan binding to specific receptors in DCs and macrophages triggers their activation and maturation, increases
their antigen-presentation ability and enhances the production of proinflammatory cytokines that stimulate the polarization of TH1 or
TH17 responses, and induces the activation of antigen-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL). Moreover, large β-glucans can be
degraded by macrophages into smaller moieties, when released, prime CR3 receptor on neutrophils and natural killer (NK) cells
mediating CR3-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (CR3-DCC) of iC3b opsonized tumor cells. Elucidating the molecular mechanisms of β-
glucan-induced signaling in immune cells is essential for the design of new therapeutic strategies against cancer. Future studies should be
done to translate β-glucan research to the clinic.