Fas and Fas ligand interactions in malignant disease (Review)

Apoptosis has been implicated in tumor development and progression. Fas (CD 95) and Fas ligand (FasL) are an interacting receptor ligand pair that elic its apoptosis in many cell types. Although originally described as proteins regulating peripheral immune tolerance, accumulating evidence suggests tha t Fas/FasL may play an important role in carcinogenesis, tumor outgrowth, a nd metastasis. This review summarizes our current knowledge about the regul ation of Fas and FasL expression, Fas signaling, soluble Fas production, th e role(s) of Fas and FasL in hematopoietic and non-hematopoietic tumorigene sis and progression, and the potential application of Fas-induced apoptosis in cancer therapy.