Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0027627 (metastases)
 103,950 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Gene amplification of the chromosome 11q13 in breast cancer and squamous carcinomas in the head and neck results in frequent overexpression of cortactin, a prominent substrate of Src-related tyrosine kinases in the cell cortical areas. To investigate the role of cortactin in tumor progression, we analyzed MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells overexpressing green fluorescent protein-tagged murine cortactin (GFP-cortactin) and a cortactin mutant deficient in tyrosine phosphorylation under the control of a retroviral vector. Injection of MDA-MB-231 cells overexpressing GFP-cortactin into nude mice through cardiac ventricles caused bone osteolysis at a frequency approximately 85% higher than that of cells expressing the vector alone, whereas injection of cells overexpressing the mutant deficient in tyrosine phosphorylation induced 74% fewer osteolytic metastases as compared with the control group. Interestingly, the cells expressing either GFP-cortactin or the mutant did not show significant differences in growth in vitro or when injected m.f.p. in vivo. On the other hand, the cells overexpressing GFP-cortactin but not the mutant acquired a >60% enhanced capability for transendothelial invasion and endothelial cell adhesion. These data suggest that cortactin contributes to tumor metastasis by enhancing the interaction of tumor cells with endothelial cells and the invasion of tumor cells into bone tissues.
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PMID:Cortactin potentiates bone metastasis of breast cancer cells. 1155 68

Malignant cancer cells utilize their intrinsic migratory ability to invade adjacent tissues and the vasculature, and ultimately to metastasize. Cell migration is the sum of multi-step processes initiated by the formation of membrane protrusions in response to migratory and chemotactic stimuli. The driving force for membrane protrusion is localized polymerization of submembrane actin filaments. Recently, several studies revealed that molecules that link migratory signals to the actin cytoskeleton are upregulated in invasive and metastatic cancer cells. In this review, we summarize recent progress on molecular mechanisms of formation of invasive protrusions used by tumor cells, such as lamellipodia and invadopodia, with regard to the functions of key regulatory proteins of the actin cytoskeleton; WASP family proteins, Arp2/3 complex, LIM-kinase, cofilin, and cortactin.
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PMID:Regulation of the actin cytoskeleton in cancer cell migration and invasion. 1692 57

Amplification of the 11q13 region is one of the most frequent aberrations in squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck region (HNSCC). Amplification of 11q13 has been shown to correlate with the presence of lymph node metastases and decreased survival. The 11q13.3 amplicon carries numerous genes including cyclin D1 and cortactin. Recently, we reported that FADD becomes overexpressed upon amplification and that FADD protein expression predicts for lymph node positivity and disease-specific mortality. However, the gene within the 11q13.3 amplicon responsible for this correlation is yet to be identified. In this paper, we compared, using immunohistochemical analysis for cyclin D1, FADD and cortactin in a series of 106 laryngeal carcinomas which gene correlates best with lymph node metastases and increased disease-specific mortality. Univariate Cox regression analysis revealed that high expression of cyclin D1 (P=0.016), FADD (P=0.003) and cortactin (P=0.0006) predict for increased risk to disease-specific mortality. Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that only high cortactin expression correlates with disease-specific mortality independent of cyclin D1 and/or FADD. Of genes located in the 11q13 amplicon, cortactin expression is the best predictor for shorter disease-specific survival in late stage laryngeal carcinomas.
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PMID:Cortactin expression predicts poor survival in laryngeal carcinoma. 1826 91

Coordinated regulation of the actin cytoskeleton is central to cell motility, invasion and metastasis. Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a highly invasive disease displaying frequent lymph node metastasis, compounding patient management. HNSCC progression is characterized by frequent amplification of chromosome segments 3q26-29, 8q23-24 and 11q13, events that are associated with poor patient outcome. The relative frequency of these amplification events and correlation with invasive disease raises the potential that these regions harbor actin regulatory genes important in facilitating reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton to promote tumor invasion. Identification of the actin cytoskeletal regulatory genes located within the 3q26-29, 8q23-24 and 11q13 amplicons will provide an important first step towards the comprehensive understanding of the molecular events that govern invasion and metastasis in HNSCC and other tumors containing these amplifications. We utilized Ensembl MartView to conduct a gene mining analysis within chromosome segments 3q26-29, 8q23-24 and 11q13 to identify known and predicted regulators of actin-based cell movement, tumor invasion and metastasis. All examined chromosomal regions contain genes known that regulate the actin cytoskeleton, with several (PI3-kinase alpha, focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and cortactin) known to promote invasion in HNSCC and other carcinomas. Additional genes known to regulate motility and invasion were also identified. Amplification of chromosome 3q26-29, 8q23-24 and 11q13 therefore results in known or predicted overexpression of several key mediators that can act alone or potentially act in concert to promote actin-based cell invasion in HNSCC and other cancer types.
Clin Exp Metastasis 2008
PMID:Actin cytoskeletal mediators of motility and invasion amplified and overexpressed in head and neck cancer. 1832 57

Tumor metastasis depends on cell adhesiveness, motility and deformability, resulting from quantitative alterations and rearrangement of various actin-binding cytoskeletal components, such as cortactin and fascin. To clarify the involvement of cortactin and fascin expression in tumorigenesis and progression of gastric carcinoma, we performed immunohistochemistry (IHC) on tissue microarray containing gastric carcinomas, adenomas and adjacent non-neoplastic mucosa (ANNM) using the antibodies against cortactin (Ab-466, -421) and fascin as well as a comparison of their expression with clinicopathological parameters of the tumors. Gastric carcinoma cell lines MKN28, AGS, MKN45, KATO-III and HGC-27 were studied for both proteins by IHC. Cortactin-466 was found to be highly expressed in adenoma, compared with ANNMs and carcinoma (p<0.05), and more frequently in ANNMs than in carcinoma (p<0.05). Cortactin-421 expression was higher in gastric carcinomas than in adenoma and ANNMs (p<0.05). There was increased fascin expression in gastric carcinoma and adenoma than in ANNMs (p<0.05). Most of the gastric carcinoma cell lines showed expression of cortactin and fascin at different levels. Cortactin-466 expression was inversely correlated with tumor size, depth of invasion, lymphatic and venous invasion, lymph node metastasis and UICC staging (p<0.05). The converse was observed for cortactin-421 and fascin (p<0.05). There was stronger positivity of both cortactins in intestinal- versus diffuse-type carcinomas (p<0.05). Univariate analysis indicated the cumulative survival rate of patients with positive cortactin-466 expression to be higher than without its expression even stratified according to the depth of invasion (p<0.05). However, it was the converse for fascin (p<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that age, depth of invasion, lymphatic invasion, lymph node metastasis, UICC staging and Lauren's classification were independent prognostic factors for carcinomas (p<0.05). It was suggested that aberrant expression of cortactin and fascin possibly contributes to the pathogenesis, growth, invasion and metastasis of gastric carcinomas. Thus, they may be objective and effective markers to indicate the pathobiological behaviors and prognosis of gastric carcinomas.
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PMID:Aberrant expression of cortactin and fascin are effective markers for pathogenesis, invasion, metastasis and prognosis of gastric carcinomas. 1857 52

Cortactin is a multidomain actin-binding protein important for the functions of cytoskeleton by regulating cortical actin dynamics. It is involved in a diverse array of basic cellular functions. Tumorigenesis and tumor progression involves alterations in actin cytoskeleton proteins. We sought to study the role of cortactin in melanocytic tumor progression using immunohistochemistry on human tissues. The results reveal quantitative differences between benign and malignant lesions. Significantly higher cortactin expression is found in melanomas than in nevi (P<0.0001), with levels greater in metastatic than in invasive melanomas (P<0.05). Qualitatively, tumor tissues often show aberrant cortactin localization at the cell periphery, corresponding to its colocalization with filamentous actin in cell cortex of cultured melanoma cells. This suggests an additional level of protein dysregulation. Furthermore, in patients with metastatic disease, high-level cortactin expression correlates with poor disease-specific survival. Our data, in conjunction with outcome data on several other types of human cancers and experimental data from melanoma cell lines, supports a potential role of aberrant cortactin expression in melanoma tumor progression and a rational for targeting key elements of actin-signaling pathway for developmental therapeutics in melanomas.
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PMID:Cytoskeleton alterations in melanoma: aberrant expression of cortactin, an actin-binding adapter protein, correlates with melanocytic tumor progression. 1989 26

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has a poor prognosis and improved therapies are needed. Expression of EphA2 is increased in NSCLC metastases. In this study, we investigated EphA2 mutations in NSCLC and examined molecular pathways involved in NSCLC. Tumor and cell line DNA was sequenced. One EphA2 mutation was modeled by expression in BEAS2B cells, and functional and biochemical studies were conducted. A G391R mutation was detected in H2170 and 2/28 squamous cell carcinoma patient samples. EphA2 G391R caused constitutive activation of EphA2 with increased phosphorylation of Src, cortactin, and p130(Cas). Wild-type (WT) and G391R cells had 20 and 40% increased invasiveness; this was attenuated with knockdown of Src, cortactin, or p130(Cas). WT and G391R cells demonstrated a 70% increase in focal adhesion area. Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) phosphorylation was increased in G391R cells with increased survival (55%) compared with WT (30%) and had increased sensitivity to rapamycin. A recurrent EphA2 mutation is present in lung squamous cell carcinoma and increases tumor invasion and survival through activation of focal adhesions and actin cytoskeletal regulatory proteins as well as mTOR. Further study of EphA2 as a therapeutic target is warranted.
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PMID:EphA2 mutation in lung squamous cell carcinoma promotes increased cell survival, cell invasion, focal adhesions, and mammalian target of rapamycin activation. 2036 Jun 10

Metastasis is a major cause of mortality in cancer patients. Invadopodia are considered to be crucial structures that allow cancer cells to penetrate across the extracellular matrix (ECM) by using matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Previously, we isolated a highly invasive A431-III subline from parental A431 cells by Boyden chamber assay. The A431-III cells possess higher invasive and migratory abilities, elevated levels of MMP-9 and an enhanced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype. In this study, we discovered that A431-III cells had an increased potential to form invadopodia and an improved capacity to degrade ECM compared with the original A431 cells. We also observed enhanced phosphorylation levels of cortactin and Src in A431-III cells; these phosphorylated proteins have been reported to be the main regulators of invadopodia formation. Flavonoids, almost ubiquitously distributed in food plants and plant food products, have been documented to exhibit anti-tumor properties. Therefore, it was of much interest to explore the effects of flavonoid antioxidants on the metastatic activity of A431-III cells. Exposure of A431-III cells to two potent dietary flavonoids, namely luteolin (Lu) and quercetin (Qu), caused inhibition of invadopodia formation and decrement in ECM degradation. We conclude that Lu and Qu attenuate the phosphorylation of cortactin and Src in A431-III cells. As a consequence, there ensues a disruption of invadopodia generation and the suppression of MMP secretion. These changes, in concert, bring about a reduction in metastasis.
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PMID:Impact of flavonoids on matrix metalloproteinase secretion and invadopodia formation in highly invasive A431-III cancer cells. 2399 Oct 4

Metastasis remains a major cause of mortality in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Current clinicopathological features have shown limited predictability for the risk of distant metastasis in individual patients, and therefore more accurate and reliable markers are needed. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of various molecular markers present in primary tumors to predict the risk of developing distant metastasis. Restrictive clinical criteria were applied for patient selection in order to carry out a case-control study with comparable clinical features on a group-wide basis and a similar risk of metastasis. All patients were surgically treated (with postoperative radiotherapy when appropriate) and classified as stage IV disease. Immunohistochemical analysis was performed for a panel of proteins known to participate in cellular processes relevant to metastatic dissemination (E-cadherin, annexin A2, cortactin, FAK, EGFR, p53, and p-AKT). Results showed that the loss of E-cadherin expression was significantly correlated with the risk of distant metastasis (P = 0.002; log-rank test), while the loss of annexin A2 expression was nearly statistically significant (P = 0.06). None of the other protein markers assessed were associated with the development of distant metastasis. Therefore, according to our data the loss of epithelial adhesion seems to play a central role in the development of metastasis in HNSCC, and more importantly, immunohistochemical assessment of key proteins involved in cell adhesion regulation, such as E-cadherin could represent a useful tool to evaluate easily and routinely the metastatic potential of these carcinomas.
Clin Exp Metastasis 2014 Mar
PMID:Immunohistochemical markers of distant metastasis in laryngeal and hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas. 2437 Jul 15

Metastasis-mediated death remains a major challenge in cancer treatment due to the lack of identifiable biomarkers for early diagnosis. Identifying tumor-specific biomarkers is critical for the development of diagnostic and therapeutic tools. In the present study, we found that podocalyxin-like 1 (PODXL), a cell surface glycoprotein, was overexpressed in cancer tissues and was upregulated in lymph node metastatic tumor cells. The expression of PODXL was associated with the migratory ability of human oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Knockdown of PODXL by small hairpin RNA in the SAS OSCC cell line reduced tumor migration and invasion, and inhibited cell proliferation and colony formation. Suppression of PODXL resulted in downregulation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and paxillin phosphorylation. PODXL silencing inhibited filopodia formation, and suppressed F-actin and cortactin colocalization. In addition, PODXL expression was associated with the DNA methylation status, and treatment with the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-aza-deoxycytidine increased the PODXL transcriptional level. Moreover, DNA microarray analysis data revealed that suppression of PODXL significantly affected subsets of genes associated with extracellular matrix organization, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and the expression of metastasis-related cytokines. Collectively, these data showed that the overexpression of PODXL may be associated with tumor aggressiveness and that PODXL could be a diagnostic biomarker for metastatic OSCC.
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PMID:Podocalyxin-like 1 is associated with tumor aggressiveness and metastatic gene expression in human oral squamous cell carcinoma. 2482 9


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