The DNA damage response: a common pathway in the regulation of NKG2D and DNAM-1 ligand expression in normal, infected, and cancer cells

Overview & Synopsis

NKG2D and DNAM-1 are two activating receptors, present on the surface of NK cells and other cells of the immune system. Their ligands – MICA, MICB, ULBP1-6 for NKG2D, PVR/CD155 and Nectin-2/CD112 for DNAM-1 – can be constitutively expressed at low levels in some normal cells, but they are more often defined as " stress-induced, " since different stimuli can positively regulate their expression. In this review, we describe the molecular mechanisms involved in the up-regulation of NKG2D and DNAM-1 ligands under different physiological and pathological " stress " conditions, including mitosis, viral infections, and cancer. We will focus on the DNA damage response, as recent advances in the field have uncovered its important role as a common signaling pathway in the regulation of both NKG2D and DNAM-1 ligand expression in response to very diverse conditions and stimuli.