Role of Hyaluronic acid and its chemical derivatives in immunity during homeostasis, cancer and tissue regeneration

Abstract

Over the last few decades, scientists have recognized the critical role that various components of the extracellular matrix(ECM) play in maintaining homeostatic immunity. Besides, dysregulation in the synthesis or degradation levels of thesecomponents directly impacts the mechanisms of immune response during tissue injury caused by tumor processes or theregeneration of the tissue itself in the event of damage. ECM is a complex network of protein compounds, proteoglycansand glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). Hyaluronic acid (HA) is one of the major GAGs of this network, whose metabolismis strictly physiologically regulated and quickly altered in injury processes, affecting the behavior of different cells, fromstem cells to differentiated immune cells. In this revision we discuss how the native or chemically modified HA interactswith its specific receptors and modulates intra and intercellular communication of immune cells, focusing on cancer andtissue regeneration conditions.