Chemokine receptors
Chemokines play a crucial role in the regulation of immune responses, also in the context of cancer, where the tumor microenvironment relies on a delicate balance of immune cell recruitment and activation (Ozga, Chow, & Luster, 2021). The interaction between chemokines and their corresponding GPCRs is a fundamental mechanism governing immune cell trafficking and positioning. For instance, CCL2 and CXCL12 bind to CCR2 and CXCR4/CXCR7 on immune cells respectively, directing the migration of monocytes, macrophages, and T cells toward the tumor site (Kohli, Pillarisetty, & Kim, 2022). Some chemokines have been reported to exert pro-cancer effects such as CCL2/CCL7/CCL8/CCL13, while others have shown anti-cancer effects such as CCL14 and CCL16 (Korbecki et al. , 2020). The pro- and anti-cancer effects of chemokines-chemokine receptors network were regulated in a context dependent manner, and therefore abnormal expression or function of chemokine receptors may disrupt the finely tuned signaling of immune responses (Strazza & Mor, 2020).