Table 1.

AXL involvement into tumorigenesis. Tumor microenvironment (TME); extracellular matrix (ECM); epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT); receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK).

AXL Function(s)
Tumor progression and metastasis	Rearrangement of the actin cytoskeleton Involvement in cell polarization Mediator between tumor cells and TME ECM degradation Involvement in intravasation and extravasation phenomena
EMT process	↓E-cadherin and β-catenin ↑N-cadherin, Vimentin and Slug
Drug resistance	Transactivation with other members of RTK family Polarization of macrophages into M2-subtype Induction of a pro-tumoral immune microenvironment