Crosstalk between dendritic cell subsets and implications for dendritic cell-based anticancer immunotherapy

Abstract

Dendritic cells (DCs) are a family of professional antigen-presenting cells that have an indispensable role in the initiation of innate and adaptive immune responses against pathogens and tumor cells. The DC family is very heterogeneous. Two main types of naturally occurring DCs circulate in peripheral blood, each with its unique phenotypic and functional characteristics: myeloid DCs and plasmacytoid. There is an ample number of studies that have focused on the bi-directional crosstalk between DCs and natural killer cells or T cells. However, the crosstalk among the different DC subsets, in the context of infectious diseases and cancer, has until now not received much attention. Here, we review all available literature that has dealt with the crosstalk between plasmacytoid and myeloid DCs and the potential mode of action. Emphasis will be given to the therapeutic potential of the combination of DC subsets for DC-based immunotherapy.

Keywords::

• cancer
• crosstalk
• immunotherapy
• myeloid DCs
• plasmacytoid DCs

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This work was supported by The Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) (Veni grant 86313024 to J Tel; Vidi grant 91776363 to IJMdV; 95103002 to IJMdV), Dutch Cancer Society (KWF 2010–4722) and the Netherlands Institute for Regenerative Medicine (NIRM, grant No. FES0908). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Key issues

• Different dendritic cell (DC) subsets possess distinct properties indicative of complementary effects.

• Collaboration between DC subsets is central for the eradication of microbial infections.

• Molecular mechanisms underlying DC subsets crosstalk remain debatable with strong evidence of the involvement of both soluble cytokines and surface molecules.

• Tumor-specific immune responses are shaped by cooperation between different DC subsets.

• Utilizing the complementary qualities of DC subsets is pertinent for successful cancer immunotherapy.

Notes