Synthetic peptides containing ITIM-like domains block expression of inflammatory mediators and migration/invasion of cancer cells through activation of SHP-1 and PI3K.

Increasing evidence supports that inflammation is closely associated with the development of cancer. In an effort to develop synthetic peptides that can suppress the inflammatory activation of cancer cells, decapeptides representing immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif (ITIM)-like sequences of immune receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (IREM-1) were tested for their anti-inflammatory effects in cancer cell lines. One (named TAT-YADL) out of the five synthetic peptides tested exhibited inhibitory effects on the expression of inflammatory mediators as well as invasion and migration. The inhibitory activities of the synthetic peptides required activation of SH2-containing protein tyrosine phosphatase-1 (SHP-1) and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K).