Researchers discover how liver cancer cells evade the immune system

Researchers from KU Leuven and the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) in Belgium have identified a mechanism used by metastatic liver cancer cells to evade the immune system. The study reveals that cancer cells use the enzyme DHHC17 to perform palmitoylation, attaching a fatty acid to the protein laminin-511.

This process acts as a "mask" that misleads the immune system. Specifically, it alters the activity of neutrophils, a key immune defense. Instead of attacking the tumor, the neutrophils respond to the modified laminin-511 by creating neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), which inadvertently help the cancer cells survive and spread.

In mouse models, inhibiting the DHHC17 enzyme restored the anti-cancer capabilities of neutrophils and significantly reduced the growth of metastatic tumors. The findings suggest that fatty acid-rich environments, such as those found in fatty livers, may provide optimal conditions for cancer metastasis through this mechanism.