Alarmins and Antitumor Immunity.
Alarmins are constitutively present endogenous molecules that essentially act as early warning signals for the immune system. We provide a brief overview of major alarmins and highlight their roles in tumor immunity.



We searched PubMed up to January 10, 2016, using alarmins and/or damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), as key words. We selected and reviewed articles that focused on the discovery and functions of alarmin and their roles in tumor immunity.



Alarmins are essentially endogenous immunostimulatory DAMP molecules that are exposed in response to danger (eg, infection or tissue injury) as a result of degranulation, cell death, or induction. They are sensed by chemotactic receptors and pattern recognition receptors to induce immune responses by promoting the recruitment and activation of leukocytes, particularly antigen-presenting cells.



Accumulating data suggest that certain alarmins, High-mobility group nucleosome-binding protein 1 (HMGN1) in particular, contribute to the generation of antitumor immunity. Some alarmins can also be used as cancer biomarkers. Therefore, alarmins can potentially be applied for our fight against cancers.
Cancer and Inflammation Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland; Guizhou Provincial Peoples' Hospital, Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China.
Yingjie
Y
Nie
Cancer and Inflammation Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland; Basic Research Program, Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland.
De
D
Yang
Cancer and Inflammation Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland. Electronic address: oppenheij@mail.nih.gov.
Joost J
JJ
Oppenheim
D000067531:Alarmins / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D035843:Biomedical Research; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*
D000067531:Alarmins
alarmin; biomarker; damage-associated molecular patterns; immune response; pattern recognition receptor; tumor immunity