Fig. 1
From: Nanomaterials in cancer immunotherapy: targeting cancer-associated fibroblasts
© 2023 by the authors
CAF subtypes: origins, functions, and their role in cancer therapy. The illustration depicts the diverse cellular origins, heterogeneity, and functional roles of CAFs within the tumor microenvironment. CAFs can originate from various cell types, including epithelial cells, endothelial cells, mesothelial cells, adipocytes, smooth muscle cells, or differentiate from bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells. The figure also highlights three major CAF subtypes: myofibroblastic CAFs (myCAFs), inflammatory CAFs (iCAFs), and antigen-presenting CAFs (apCAFs), which are involved in extracellular matrix remodeling, cytokine secretion, and immune modulation, respectively. These CAF subtypes display distinct functions, either promoting or restraining tumor progression, reflecting the phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of CAFs. Reproduced fromYang et al. 2023b, Copyright