Interleukin-6: a molecule with complex biological impact in cancer
Lukáš Lacina1,2,3, Jan Brábek4, Vladimír Král2, Ondřej Kodet1,2,3 and Karel Smetana Jr1,2
1Charles University, First Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Anatomy, Prague, 2Charles University, First Faculty of Medicine, BIOCEV, Vestec, 3Charles University, First Faculty of Medicine, Department of Dermatovenereology, Prague and 4Charles University, Faculty of Sciences, Institute of Cell Biology, Vestec, Czech Republic
Offprint requests to: Karel Smetana Jr. or Lukas Lacina, Charles University, 1st Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Anatomy, U Nemocnice 3, 128 00 Prague, Czech Republic. e-mail: karel.smetana@lf1.cuni.cz or lukas.lacina@lf1.cuni.cz
Summary. Interleukin-6 is a multifaceted cytokine, usually reported as a pro-inflammatory molecule. However, certain anti-inflammatory activities were also attributed to IL-6. The levels of IL-6 in serum as well as in other biological fluids are elevated in an age-dependent manner. Notably, it is consistently reported also as a key feature of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype. In the elderly, this cytokine participates in the initiation of catabolism resulting in, e.g. sarcopenia. It can cross the blood-brain barrier, and so it is in causal association with, e.g. depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and anorexia. In the cancer patient, IL-6 is produced by cancer and stromal cells and actively participates in their crosstalk. IL-6 supports tumour growth and metastasising in terminal patients, and it significantly engages in cancer cachexia (including anorexia) and depression associated with malignancy. The pharmacological treatment impairing IL-6 signalling represents a potential mechanism of anti-tumour therapy targeting cancer growth, metastatic spread, metabolic deterioration and terminal cachexia in patients. Histol Histopathol 34, 125-136 (2019)
Key words: Cancer microenvironment, Cytokine, Interleukin-6, Cancer, Cachexia, Anorexia, Depression
DOI: 10.14670/HH-18-033