Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics for the Treatment of Malignant Disease

Figure 1

General mechanism of tumor antigen cross-priming to CD8+ T cells. In the process of cross-priming, exogenous tumor antigen (which may be released from tumor cells via apoptosis, necrosis, or immune-mediated damage) is endocystosed by the DC. Antigen then escapes from the endosome and is processed and loaded onto MHC class I alongside cytosolic antigens. Peptide-loaded MHC class I molecules are ultimately transported to the cell surface, where they may encounter and activate CD8+ T cells through interactions with the T cell receptor [42].