Positive Health Online

Abstract

FAN and COLLEAGUES, 1 Key Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases of the Ministry of Health, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China; 2 Department of Thoracic Surgery, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China review the roles of Retinoic Acid Receptor-Related Orphan Receptors (RORs) Roles in Cancers.

Background

Retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptors (RORs) include RORα (NR1F1), RORβ (NR1F2), and RORγ (NR1F3). These receptors are reported to activate transcription through ligand-dependent interactions with co-regulators and are involved in the development of secondary lymphoid tissues, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory diseases, the circadian rhythm, and metabolism homeostasis.

Methodology

Researches on RORs contributing to cancer-related processes have been growing, and they provide evidence that RORs are likely to be considered as potential therapeutic targets in many cancers. RORα has been identified as a potential therapeutic target for breast cancer and has been investigated in melanoma, colorectal colon cancer, and gastric cancer.

Results

RORβ is mainly expressed in the central nervous system, but it has also been studied in pharyngeal cancer, uterine leiomyosarcoma, and colorectal cancer, in addition to neuroblastoma, and recent studies suggest that RORγ is involved in various cancers, including lymphoma, melanoma, and lung cancer. Some studies found RORγ to be upregulated in cancer tissues compared with normal tissues, while others indicated the opposite results. With respect to the mechanisms of RORs in cancer, previous studies on the regulatory mechanisms of RORs in cancer were mostly focused on immune cells and cytokines, but lately there have been investigations concentrating on RORs themselves.

Conclusion

Thus, this review summarizes reports on the regulation of RORs in cancer and highlights potential therapeutic targets in cancer.

References

Jinshuo Fan  1 , Zhilei Lv  1 , Guanghai Yang  2 , Ting Ting Liao  1 , Juanjuan Xu  1 , Feng Wu  1 , Qi Huang  1 , Mengfei Guo  1 , Guorong Hu  1 , Mei Zhou  1 , Limin Duan  1 , Shuqing Liu  1 , Yang Jin  1. Retinoic Acid Receptor-Related Orphan Receptors: Critical Roles in Tumorigenesis Front Immunol.;9:1187. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.01187. 2018 eCollection. May 31 2018.