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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Feb 1.
Published in final edited form as: Trends Immunol. 2016 Jan 7;37(2):141–153. doi: 10.1016/j.it.2015.12.007

Figure 2. The effect of small molecule inhibitors on tumor microenvironment.

Figure 2

Targeted therapies have been shown to alter the TME in multiple ways, including direct and indirect effects. Some agents could reverse the immunosuppressive environment by inhibiting the function and infiltration of MDSCs and Tregs. Numerous therapies increase the expression of tumor antigens on the tumor cell surface, increasing cross priming of DCs for enhanced T cell activation. Therapies also can increase expression of NK cells expressing member D (NKG2D) ligands, which serve as co-stimulatory molecules for CTLs, as well as activators of NK cells, which also increase the cytotoxicity of NK cells.