Mostoftheoculartumorshavepoorprognosis,andtheyremainadifficultproblemintheareaofophthalmology.Withtherapiddevelopmentofmolecularbiologyandimmunologictechniquesandthedeepresearchonoculartumorrelatedgenes,itbecomespossibletodiagnoseandtreatmalignanttumorsfromthemolecularlevel.Thetumornecrosisfactorrelatedapoptosis-inducingligand(TRAIL),amemberofthetumornecrosisfactor(TNF)superfamily,isapromisingcandidate,eitheraloneorincombinationwithestablishedcancertherapies,sinceitcaninitiateapoptosisthroughtheactivationoftheirdeathreceptors.TheabilityofTRAILtoselectivelyinduceapoptosisoftransformed,virus-infectedortumorcellsbutnotnormalcellspromotesthedevelopmentofTRAIL-basedcancertherapy.Here,wewillreviewTRAILanditsreceptors’structure,function,mechanismofactionandapplicationinoculartumorstherapy.
