title: Interleukin-13 and its receptors in colorectal cancer (Review).
abstract: Interleukin (IL)-13 is an immunoregulatory cytokine secreted by numerous immune cells. Its functions are similar to those of IL-4 and they share a common receptor. This cytokine has been included in recent studies on human tumors and malignant diseases, evoking a scientific interest to investigate the role of IL-13 and its receptors as novel biomarkers and targets for therapy. Colorectal cancer is one of the most common human malignancies, its prognosis is not promising and the efficacy of molecular-targeted therapy has not been established. This review summarizes the currently available data on the role of IL-13 and its receptors in colorectal cancer, including the signaling pathways involved in mediating the effects of IL-13, the role of IL-13 and/or its receptors in the prediction of cancer and several drugs targeting IL-13 or its receptors that are currently under evaluation.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200040, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Ru
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology and General Surgery, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.
authors.forename: Shiguang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200040, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiaodong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200040, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zongyou
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200040, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jianbin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xiang
keywords: colorectal cancer; interleukin-13; interleukin-13 receptor