The Role of Pattern Recognition Receptors in linking Microbiota to Cancer Progression and Therapy

The interplay between host immunity, the microbiota, and cancer is a rapidly evolving area of immuno-oncology. An increasing body of evidence highlights the microbiota’s influence on tumor initiation, progression, and therapeutic response across multiple cancer types, prompting greater consideration of microbial factors in clinical decisions such as antibiotic use during immunotherapy. Despite decades of research revealing specific bacteria and their metabolites as critical players—capable of enhancing or impeding anti-tumor immunity—the mechanistic underpinnings of how these microbial signals intersect with cancer development remain severely underexplored. The immense compositional diversity of the microbiota, its dynamic modulation by diet and environment, and the multitudinous immune pathways at play, present a complex landscape that continues to obscure causal relationships and therapeutic potential.Central to this interface, Pattern Recognition Receptors (PRRs) act as sentinels for conserved microbial motifs, initiating immune cascades that arbitrate both tolerance and defense. Historically, PRR research has been anchored in infectious disease and innate immunity, yet emerging studies implicate PRRs as critical mediators in the microbiota–cancer dialogue, with evidence demonstrating context-dependent pro- and anti-tumor roles. These dualistic outcomes hinge upon factors such as the nature of microbial ligands, variation among gut and tissue-associated microbiota, PRR expression dynamics, local immunological microenvironments, and cancer subtype specificity. Despite promising insights, significant gaps persist regarding the mechanisms by which distinct PRRs and their cellular expression determine cancer risk and therapy outcomes, as well as the translational opportunities for targeting PRR pathways in personalized cancer treatment.This Research Topic aims to deepen our mechanistic understanding of the microbiota–PRR–cancer axis by collating new evidence across models, microenvironments, and malignancies. The goal is to dissect how PRR signaling mediates the bidirectional relationship between diverse microbiota and tumorigenesis; clarify associations between PRR patterns, dysbiosis, and therapeutic efficacy; and to inform novel intervention strategies—ranging from the use of PRR agonists to modulation of the microbiota itself—that could synergistically improve cancer prognosis and response to therapy.To gather further insights in the dynamic links between PRRs, microbiota, and cancer, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:o Mechanisms of PRR signaling in microbiota-driven cancer development, progression, or therapy responseo Comparative analyses of distinct PRR families (e.g., TLR, RLR, CLR, NLR, ALR, cGAS-STING) within various microbiota niches (gut, tumor-associated, pulmonary, genitourinary, and others) and in diverse cancer typeso PRR expression modulation by dysbiosis and cancer therapies, and their consequences for microbial ecology and tumor microenvironmentso Therapeutic targeting of PRR agonists to enhance or complement conventional and emerging cancer treatmentso Evaluation of PRR roles in shaping the outcomes of microbiota-targeted interventions, such as antibiotic therapy, Fecal Microbiota Transplantation, and dietary modificationsPlease note that Dr. Meriem Messaoudene holds the patent "Castalagin bioactive polyphenol molecule from Camu Camu (Myrciaria dubia) anti-cancer activity and immune potentiating effect of immune checkpoint blockers". (WO2021163802A1) Topic editors: Laura Conti, Meriem Messaoudene Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/78520/the-role-of-pattern-recognition-receptors-in-linking-microbiota-to-cancer-progression-and-therapy