AUTHOR=Guimont-Desrochers Fanny , Lesage Sylvie 

TITLE=Revisiting the Prominent Anti-Tumoral Potential of Pre-mNK Cells

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=4

YEAR=2013

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2013.00446

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2013.00446

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>Interferon-producing killer dendritic cells (IKDC) were first described for their outstanding anti-tumoral properties. The “<italic>IKDC</italic>” terminology implied the description of a novel DC subset and initiated a debate on their cellular lineage origin. This debate shifted the focus away from their notable anti-tumoral potential. IKDC were recently redefined as precursors to mature NK (mNK) cells and consequently renamed pre-mNK cells. Importantly, a putative human equivalent of pre-mNK cells was recently associated with improved disease outcome in cancer patients. It is thus timely to revisit the functional attributes as well as the therapeutic potential of pre-mNK cells in line with their newly defined NK-cell precursor function.</p>