title: Natural killer cells, ageing and cancer.
abstract: Natural killer (NK) cells are key components of innate immunity and substantially contribute to anti-tumor immune responses. The role of NK cells in immune surveillance is linked to many aspects of NK cell biology, but the age of the animal being studied or the human under treatment is rarely taken into account. The solicited reviews constituting a collection of papers presented here as a "Symposium-in-Writing" on the topic of NK cells, ageing and cancer were inspired by the increasing knowledge of NK cell biology and genetics, and emerging data on their impact in the clinic (disease associations and therapies), together with the realization that older individuals also differ from younger ones regarding innate as well as adaptive immunity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Immunology and Stem Cell Bank, University Hospital "Alexandrovska", Medical University, 1, Georgi Sofiiski str., 1431, Sofia, Bulgaria. naumovaej@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Elissaveta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Naumova
authors.affiliation: Center for Medical Research (ZMF), University of Tübingen Medical School, Tübingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Graham
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pawelec
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Immunology and Stem Cell Bank, University Hospital "Alexandrovska", Medical University, 1, Georgi Sofiiski str., 1431, Sofia, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: Anastasiya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mihaylova
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity / Q000276:immunology; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000276:immunology; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive / Q000379:methods; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology* / Q000637:transplantation; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy
keywords: Ageing; Cancer; NK cell therapy; NK cells