Kai‑Hung Wanga, Dah‑Ching Dingb*
aDepartment of Medical Research, Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation, Hualien, Taiwan, bDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital, Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation and Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan
Open Access funded by Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation
Abstract
In both normal and tumor tissues, receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) may be pleiotropically expressed. The RTKs not only regulate ordinary cellular processes, including proliferation, survival, adhesion, and migration, but also have a critical role in the development of many types of cancer. The Tyro3, Axl, and MerTK (TAM) family of RTKs (Tyro3, Axl, and MerTK) plays a pleiotropic role in phagocytosis, inflammation, and normal cellular processes. In this article, we highlight the cellular activities of TAM receptors and discuss their roles in cancer and immune cells. We also discuss cancer therapies that target TAM receptors. Further research is needed to elucidate the function of TAM receptors in immune cells toward the development of new targeted immunotherapies for cancer.
Keywords: Axl, MerTK, Tyro3, Axl, and MerTK receptors, Tumor immune microenvironment, Tyro3
