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Long non-coding RNAs and cancer mechanisms: Immune cells and inflammatory cytokines in the tumor microenvironment

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Abstract

Chronic inflammation and immune response are two central hallmarks of the tumor microenvironment (TME), teeming with immune cells and inflammatory cytokines that promote tumor progression. Intriguingly, there is mutual regulation between immune cells and cytokines. Indeed, the differentiation and function of immune cells depend on cytokines secreted from tumor cells, whereas immune activation affects the dynamics of cytokines, reshaping the TME together. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) as a blooming molecule are virtually involved in physiology and pathology events, especially TME. Notably, the regulatory loop between lncRNAs and cytokines or immune activation plays a vital role in tumor growth. Thus, this review concentrates on the interaction between lncRNAs and immune cells. It puts special attention to the intertwist between lncRNAs and cytokines or immune cells, providing a theoretical basis for lncRNAs as a potential biomarker and therapeutic tumor target.

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Funding

This work was supported by the General Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.81972278), the Youth Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.81802373), and 789 Outstanding Talent Program of SAHNMU (Grant 789ZYRC 202090147).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oncology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China

    Peipei Yang, Jie Ding, Yibo Bian, Keming Wang & Juan Li

  2. Division of Gastrointestinal Cancer Translational Research Laboratory, Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education), Peking University Cancer Hospital and Institute, Beijing, China

    Zhonghua Ma

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  1. Peipei Yang
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KMW and JL conceptualized the manuscript. PPY and JD collected the literature, wrote the manuscript, and made the figures. JW and ZHM edited and made significant revisions to the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Keming Wang or Juan Li.

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Yang, P., Ding, J., Bian, Y. et al. Long non-coding RNAs and cancer mechanisms: Immune cells and inflammatory cytokines in the tumor microenvironment. Med Oncol 39, 108 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-022-01680-5

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