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Query: UMLS:C0001511 (Adhesion)
 5,955 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Adhesion molecules are thought to play a vital role in the induction and maintenance of tissue differentiation and their loss or down-regulation has been implicated in the neoplastic process. Recent studies have shown that the morphoregulatory activities are a consequence of interactive processes between several cell adhesion molecules rather than the function of a single molecule. Therefore, we have investigated a panel of adhesion molecules including members of the integrin, cadherin and immunoglobin superfamily in colorectal cancer. Twenty-eight consecutive colorectal adenocarcinomas were stained using an avidin-biotin indirect immunoperoxidase technique. Our results showed a consistent loss of the alpha 2 and beta 1 integrin subunits (21/28 = 75% and 22/28 = 78.6% respectively) and a decrease in expression of E-cadherin in 5/5 poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas. Carcinoembryonic antigen expression was preserved but with basolateral accentuation seen in tumours. There was no statistical correlation with Dukes' stage. These results provide further evidence that in colorectal cancer there is a widespread deregulated expression of cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion molecules. Changes in the expression and function of adhesion molecules which regulate growth and differentiation may play a role in the behaviour of colorectal cancer.
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PMID:Loss of cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion molecules in colorectal cancer. 835 41

Alterations in several classes of adhesion molecules have been implicated in the progression of colorectal cancer. Cell adhesion regulator (CAR) has been identified as a regulator molecule of integrin-dependent cell adhesion. We have explored a possible involvement of the CAR gene in colorectal cancer. Reverse transcription-PCR revealed that CAR expression was detected in normal colonic cells, whereas it was decreased or undetectable in 6 of 13 (46.2%) human colon cancer cell lines. To further study the biological significance of CAR expression in colon cancer cells, a CAR expression vector was introduced into HT-29 cells, in which CAR is not expressed. Adhesion of HT-29 cells to extracellular matrix components was up-regulated by the introduction of CAR. In spite of similar growth properties with the controls, CAR-transfected HT-29 cells showed a significantly reduced spontaneous metastatic potential in nude mice. To determine whether these experimental results are of relevance with respect to actual human tumors, we investigated CAR expression in 30 surgical specimen pairs of human colorectal cancer and adjacent noncancerous tissue using semiquantitative reverse transcription-PCR. In 14 of 30 cases (46.7%), CAR expression in cancer was less than one-tenth of that in matched noncancerous tissue. The tumor:normal ratio of CAR expression was significantly lower in patients with lymph node metastasis than in those without it (P < 0.01) and in patients with distant metastasis than in those without it (P < 0.05). CAR expression was significantly lower in more advanced Dukes' stage tumors (P < 0.05). Our results suggest that down-regulation of CAR expression may play an important role in the progression and metastasis of colorectal cancer.
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PMID:Inverse association of cell adhesion regulator messenger RNA expression with metastasis in human colorectal cancer. 875 33

Adhesion receptors on the surface of cancer cells play an important role in tumor cell migration, invasion, and metastasis. A number of specific cell surface-associated molecules that mediate cell-matrix and cell-cell interactions have been characterized, including the family of integrin receptors, the cadherins, the immunoglobulin (IgG) superfamily, a 67-kDa laminin-binding protein, and the CD44 receptor. Changes in the expression and function of these adhesion molecules are important characteristics in the development of gastrointestinal malignancies and might be used in the future as prognostic factors or as new targets in diagnosis and therapy. In esophageal cancer a downregulation of the E-cadherin receptor and the cytoplasmic protein alpha-catenin is associated with tumor dedifferentiation, infiltrative growth, and lymph node metastasis. In gastric cancer a reduction of E-cadherin expression due to gene mutations is restricted to diffuse-type tumors. The occurrence of the CD44 standard and the CD44-9v isoform on the surface of gastric cancer cells is significantly related to a higher tumor-induced mortality and a shorter survival time. The CD44-6v isoform is predominantly expressed by intestinal-type gastric carcinomas giving these tumor cells the ability to metastasize in the lymph nodes. In pancreatic cancer the expression of integrin adhesion receptors is significantly altered during the malignant transformation of the pancreatic tissue while a loss of the E-cadherin receptor can generate dedifferentiation and invasiveness of pancreas carcinoma cells. There is increasing evidence that integrin receptors and different isoforms of the CD44 receptor are altered following the malignant transformation of colonic mucosa into adenomas and invasive carcinomas and thus influencing in their metastatic potential. The expression of the CD44-6v isoform seems to be associated with an adverse prognosis in colorectal cancer due to the development of tumor metastases. A strong correlation could be observed between the expression of the 67-kDa laminin receptor and the degree of differentiation, the invasive phenotype, and the metastatic abilities of colorectal cancer cells. Analyzing the expression of the E-cadherin receptor in colorectal carcinomas it has been shown that this receptor may serve as an independent prognostic marker in Dukes' stage Colon cancer to identify patients with poor prognosis and designate them for adjuvant therapy after curative surgical treatment.
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PMID:Adhesion receptors in malignant transformation and dissemination of gastrointestinal tumors. 889 33

Alterations in several classes of adhesion molecule have been implicated in the progression of colorectal cancer. Cell adhesion regulator (CAR) has been identified as a regulator molecule of integrin-dependent cell adhesion. We have explored the possible involvement of the CAR gene in colorectal cancer. Reverse transcription-PCR revealed that CAR expression was detected in normal colonic cells, whereas it was decreased or undetectable in 6 of 13 (46.2%) human colon cancer cell lines. Adhesion of HT-29 cells to extracellular matrix components was up-regulated by the introduction of CAR. CAR-transfected HT-29 cells showed a significantly reduced spontaneous metastatic potential in nude mice. In 14 of 30 cases (46.7%), CAR expression in cancer was less than one-tenth of that in matched noncancerous tissue. The tumor: normal ratio of CAR expression was significantly lower in patients with lymph node metastases than in those without (p < 0.01) and in patients with distant metastases than in those without (p < 0.05). CAR expression was significantly lower in more advanced Dukes' stage tumors (p < 0.05). Our results suggest that down-regulation of CAR expression may play an important role in the progression and metastasis of colorectal cancer.
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PMID:[Regulation of integrin function in the metastasis of colorectal cancer]. 974 20

Adhesion molecules play an important role in tumor metastasis. E-selectin can support adhesion of colon cancer cells through the recognition of specific carbohydrate ligands. High levels of soluble E-selectin (sE-selectin) had been reported in melanoma and some epithelial tumors, especially in colorectal carcinoma. The concentrations of the sE-selectin were investigated in serum samples of 64 patients (32 men and 32 women) with colorectal cancer and 16 healthy subjects. Median age was 57 (range 20-75). Nineteen patients were staged as Dukes D, 9 of whom had liver metastasis. Serum levels of sE-selectin were determined by ELISA. In the study group, sE-selectin concentrations (mean+/-SE, ng/ml) were not significantly elevated, compared with the control group (41.09+/-4.57 in the control group and 43.80+/-1.88 in patients, p>0.05). Mean sE-selectin levels were 42.27+/-1.85 in non-metastatic and 47.42+/-4.57 in metastatic patients (p>0.05). Serum concentrations of sE-selectin were significantly elevated in patients with colorectal cancer metastatic to liver (59.07+/-7.52) in comparison to other patients without liver metastasis (p=0.013). There were no significant correlations between sE-selectin levels and other parameters such as age of patients, stage of disease, histopathological differentiation or localization of primary tumor. Elevated sE-selectin levels were confirmed as correlating with poor overall survival. In conclusion, sE-selectin concentrations may not be used as a predictive marker of metastasis in colorectal carcinoma, but high levels of sE-selectin may support diagnosis of liver metastasis.
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PMID:Serum levels of soluble E-selectin in colorectal cancer. 1525 58