Immune inhibitory receptor LILRB2 is critical for the endometrial cancer progression

Although leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 2 (LILRB2) is known as an immune inhibitory receptor to suppress the immune system, its function in cancer development remains largely unknown. Herein, we provide the first body of information showing that LILRB2 is highly expressed in the endometrial cancer. More importantly, the expression levels of LILRB2 are inversely correlated with the overall patients' survival. Knockdown of LILRB2 results in a dramatic decrease in the proliferation, colony formation and migration in several endometrial cancer cell lines in vitro. Furthermore, in vivo xenograft experiments reveal a notable reduction of tumor cell growth. Mechanistically, LILRB2 enhances the SHP2/CaMK1/CREB signaling pathways to support the expansion and migration of the endometrial cancer cells. These findings unravel an unexpected role of LILRB2 in solid cancers except for its canonical role in immune surveillance, which may serve as a potential endometrial stem cell marker and may benefit the development of novel strategies for the treatment of endometrial cancers.