title: Genetic modification of natural killer cells for adoptive cellular immunotherapy.
abstract: Immunotherapy of cancer is a rapidly developing field; one such development is the manipulation and use of natural killer (NK) cells. These cells with 'killer instincts' are an attractive cell to utilize, as they are directly reactive toward tumor and could potentially activate the endogenous adaptive immune system. Their employment in adoptive cell transfer treatments has yielded important results and discoveries, although effective antitumor responses are limited. To address these limitations, NK cells are the target of a new generation of immunotherapy involving gene transfer. The gene modification of immune cells is a relatively recent technique and some groups have targeted NK cells for gene modification to improve their antitumor efficacy. This review will investigate studies describing the gene modification of NK cells and their encouraging antitumor effects.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Immunology Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, VIC 8006, Australia.
authors.forename: Hollie J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Pegram
authors.forename: Michael H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Kershaw
authors.forename: Phillip K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Darcy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D016207:Cytokines / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic / Q000235:genetics; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006801:Humans; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000235:genetics; D015202:Protein Engineering; D017978:Receptors, Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D016207:Cytokines; D017978:Receptors, Growth Factor; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins