6533b7ddfe1ef96bd12747f7

RESEARCH PRODUCT

TGF-β Dependent T-Cell Regulation in Colitis and Colon Cancer

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description

Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) is a potent growth inhibitor endowed with tumor-suppressing activity. Unfortunately, cancers are often resistant to such growth inhibition. This evasion frequently results from a genetic loss of functional TGF-β signaling components. On the other hand, cancer cells often produce high amounts TGF-β1 by themselves and sometimes respond to it with invasion and metastasis. Much effort is being done to develop therapeutic approaches to modulate TGF-β signaling in cancer cells either to inhibit the TGF-β-induced invasive phenotype or to reestablish its growth-inhibitory activities. However, TGF-β is a pleiotropic cytokine with important functions not only in cancer cells, but also in cells of the tumor environment, especially T cells that may help to fight cancer cells.