Decoy Receptor 1

Decoy receptor 1 (DcR1, TNFRSF10C, also TRAIL-R3 or CD263) is a glycophospholipid-anchored membrane protein of the TNF receptor superfamily that binds the apoptosis-inducing ligand TRAIL (TNFSF10) yet is structurally incapable of transducing the death signal. DcR1 possesses the characteristic extracellular cysteine-rich domains required for TRAIL binding but lacks both the transmembrane segment-containing death domain and any cytoplasmic region: it is tethered to the cell surface via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor, and it cannot oligomerize the death-inducing signaling complex. Consequently, DcR1 functions as an anti-apoptotic decoy, sequestering TRAIL away from the death receptors TRAIL-R1 (DR4) and TRAIL-R2 (DR5) and thereby protecting normal cells, particularly certain endothelial, epithelial and hematopoietic cells, from TRAIL-mediated killing. Many tumors overexpress DcR1 alongside DcR2 as an immune-evasion mechanism, conferring resistance to TRAIL-based therapy; promoter methylation silencing of DcR1 in some cancers conversely restores TRAIL sensitivity.