title: Regulatory T cells: potential target in anticancer immunotherapy.
abstract: The concept of regulatory T cells was first described in the early 1970s, and regulatory T cells were called suppressive T cells at that time. Studies that followed have demonstrated that these suppressive T cells negatively regulated tumor immunity and contributed to tumor growth in mice. Despite the importance of these studies, there was extensive skepticism about the existence of these cells, and the concept of suppressive T cells left the center stage of immunologic research for decades. Interleukin-2 receptor alpha-chain, CD25, was first demonstrated in 1995 to serve as a phenotypic marker for CD4+ regulatory cells. Henceforth, research of regulatory T cells boomed. Regulatory T cells are involved in the pathogenesis of cancer, autoimmune disease, transplantation immunology, and immune tolerance in pregnancy. Recent evidence has demonstrated that regulatory T cell-mediated immunosuppression is one of the crucial tumor immune evasion mechanisms and the main obstacle of successful cancer immunotherapy. The mechanism and the potential clinical application of regulatory T cells in cancer immunotherapy are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chi-Mou
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Juang
authors.forename: Chien-Fu
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Hung
authors.forename: Jiun-Yih
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.forename: Huann-Cheng
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Horng
authors.forename: Nae-Fong
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Twu
authors.forename: Ming-Huei
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Kuo-Chang
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Chiou-Chung
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Kuan-Chong
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Chao
authors.forename: T-C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Ming-Shien
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Yen
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit / Q000502:physiology; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000502:physiology*; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit