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REVIEW article

Front. Immunol.
Sec. Immunological Tolerance and Regulation
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1479181

Unveiling sialoglycans' immune mastery in pregnancy and their intersection with tumor biology

Provisionally accepted
Jianmei Huang Jianmei Huang 1Lu Feng Lu Feng 2Jianming Huang Jianming Huang 3Guonan Zhang Guonan Zhang 3*Shixiu Liao Shixiu Liao 1*
  • 1 Henan Provincial People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, China
  • 2 The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
  • 3 Sichuan Cancer Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Sialylation is a typical final step of glycosylation, which is a prevalent post-translational modification of proteins. Sialoglycans, the products of sialylation, are located on the outmost of cells and participate in pivotal biological processes. They have been identified as glycoimmune checkpoints and are currently under rigorous investigation in the field of tumor research. It is noteworthy that the exploration of sialoglycans in tumor and pregnancy contexts was both initiated in the 1960s. Mechanisms in these two conditions exhibit similarities. Trophoblast infiltration during pregnancy gets controlled, while tumor invasion is uncontrolled. The maternal-fetal immunotolerance balances acceptance of the semiallogeneic fetus and resistance against "non-self" antigen attack simultaneously. Tumors mask themselves with sialoglycans as "don't eat me" signals to escape immune surveillance.The trophoblastic epithelium is covered with sialoglycans, which have been demonstrated to play an immune regulatory role throughout the entire pregnancy. Immune abnormalities are commonly recognized as an important reason for miscarriages. Therapeutic strategies that desialylation and targeting receptors of sialoglycans have been studied in tumors, while agents Agents that target glyco-immune checkpoints have not been studied in pregnancy. Thus, investigating the roles of glyco-immune checkpoints in pregnancy and their intersection with tumors may help to develop novel therapies for pregnancy-related diseases, such as miscarriage and preeclampsia. Thus, investigating the roles of sialoglycans in pregnancy and their intersection with tumors may facilitate the development of novel therapies targeting glyco-immune checkpoints for the treatment of pregnancy-related diseases, such as miscarriage and preeclampsia.

    Keywords: sialoglycan, glyco-immune checkpoint, Pregnancy, Maternal-fetal immunity, tumor, Immunity

    Received: 13 Aug 2024; Accepted: 04 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Huang, Feng, Huang, Zhang and Liao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Guonan Zhang, Sichuan Cancer Hospital, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan Province, China
    Shixiu Liao, Henan Provincial People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450000, Henan Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.