Atypical chemokine receptor CCRL2 is overexpressed in prostate cancer cells

Atypical chemokine receptors have recently emerged as important molecular players in health and diseases; they affect chemokine availability and function and impact a multitude of pathophysiological events, including the tumorigenesis process. This family of atypical receptors comprises five members: ACKR1/DARC, ACKR2/D6, ACKR3/CXCR7, ACKR4/CCRL1, and ACKR5/CCRL2. This work evaluated the differential expression of these receptors in prostate cancer using quantitative PCR. Further evaluation of CCRL2 at the protein level confirmed its overexpression in a metastatic cell line and in malignant prostatic tissues from patients. CCRL2, a presumed member of the atypical chemokine receptor family, plays a key role in lung dendritic cell trafficking to peripheral lymph nodes. Recent studies have reported the expression of CCRL2 in different human cancer cell lines and tissues. However, its function and expression in prostate cancer has not been previously addressed.