On October 31, 2018, the latest research on natural killer (NK) cell-mediated immunity and lung cancer is published online in theProceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesof the United States of America with the title of Modulation of NKG2D, NKp46, and Ly49C/I Facilitates Natural Killer Cell-mediated Control of Lung Cancer (PNAS IF=9.661), which is co-authored by Dr. Shi Lei from the Infection Department and Dr. Li Kang of the Department of Abdominal Oncological Surgery in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University as well as the research group of Washington University in St. Louis and University of Virginia.

Lung cancer is a solid tumor closely related to the function of NK cells, and the mechanism of NK cells in the clearance of lung cancer is not clear. This study indicates that NK cells exposed to exogenousmajor histocompatibilityclass I molecules (MHC-I) provides a significant immunologic barrier to the growth and progression of malignancy. Based on the environmental context of MHC-I molecules, it is demonstrated that, the activating receptors such as NKG2D and NKp46, and killer cell inhibitory receptors, such as Ly49C/I, exhibit dynamic plasticity.

The first author of this paper is Dr. Shi Lei, who serves for the Infection Department while the co-first author is Dr. Li Kang, who serves for the Department of Abdominal Oncological Surgery. What’s more, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University is the first author affiliation.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1804931115