title: The Fate of the Tumor in the Hands of Microenvironment: Role of TAMs and mTOR Pathway.
abstract: Since 2000, written with elegance and accuracy, Hanahan and Weinberg have proposed six major hallmarks of cancer and, together, they provide great advances to the understanding of tumoral biology. Our knowledge about tumor behavior has improved and the investigators have now recognized that inflammatory microenvironment may be a new feature for the tumor entities. Macrophages are considered as an important component of tumoral microenvironment. Biologically, two forms of activated macrophages can be observed: classically activated macrophages (M1) and alternative activated macrophages (M2). Despite the canonical pathways that control this puzzle of macrophages polarization, recently, mTOR signaling pathway has been implicated as an important piece in determining the metabolic and functional differentiation of M1 and M2 profiles. Currently, it is believed that macrophages related to tumoral microenvironment present an "M2-like" feature promoting an immunosuppressive microenvironment enhancing tumoral angiogenesis, growth, and metastasis. In the present review we discuss the role of macrophages in the tumor microenvironment and the role of mTOR pathway in M1 and M2 differentiation. We also discuss the recent findings in M1 and M2 polarization as a possible target in the cancer therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Histology, Embryology and Cell Biology, Institute of Biological Science, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil.
authors.forename: Danilo Figueiredo
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Soave
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, Parasitology and Pathology, Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marina Pacheco
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Miguel
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, Parasitology and Pathology, Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernanda Dias
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8625-4954
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Tomé
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, Parasitology and Pathology, Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil.
authors.forename: Liliana Borges
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-4237-6279
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: de Menezes
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, Parasitology and Pathology, Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil.
authors.forename: Patrícia Resende Alo
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1331-0441
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Nagib
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, Parasitology and Pathology, Institute of Tropical Pathology and Public Health, Federal University of Goias, Goiania, GO, Brazil; Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mara Rúbia Nunes
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-4733-007X
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Celes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D042583:Lymphangiogenesis; D008264:Macrophages / Q000378:metabolism*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000628:therapy*; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D010641:Phenotype; D011379:Prognosis; D015398:Signal Transduction; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; C546842:MTOR protein, human; D058570:TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases