T Cell engineering for cancer immunotherapy by manipulating mechanosensitive force-bearing receptors

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2023 Jul 25:11:1220074. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1220074. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

T cell immune responses are critical for in both physiological and pathological processes. While biochemical cues are important, mechanical cues arising from the microenvironment have also been found to act a significant role in regulating various T cell immune responses, including activation, cytokine production, metabolism, proliferation, and migration. The immune synapse contains force-sensitive receptors that convert these mechanical cues into biochemical signals. This phenomenon is accepted in the emerging research field of immunomechanobiology. In this review, we provide insights into immunomechanobiology, with a specific focus on how mechanosensitive receptors are bound and triggered, and ultimately resulting T cell immune responses.

Keywords: T cell activation; cancer immunotherapy; immunoengineering; mechanobiology of T cell; mechanosensitive receptors.

Publication types

  • Review

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (12022206,11772253), Natural Science Basic Research Plan in Shaanxi Province of China (2022KWZ-17), and the Shaanxi Province Youth Talent Support Program, the Young Talent Support Plan of Xi’an Jiaotong University.