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Query: UMLS:C0178874 (tumor progression)
 40,807 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Based on the clinicopathological classification of distinct stages of tumor progression in the melanocytic system, we have investigated the in vitro growth patterns and requirements of normal melanocytes and melanocytes isolated from different lesions of melanoma progression. Normal melanocytes depend on a combination of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) or insulin, 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH), and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) for in vitro proliferation. Nevus cells display a reduced need for TPA and are largely independent of bFGF. Both melanocytes and nevus cells have a finite lifespan in vitro and show no spontaneous transformation, whereas melanoma cells can be grown indefinitely in vitro. Cells from primary melanomas require only IGF-I or insulin for continuous growth, and metastatic melanoma cells can proliferate in base medium without addition of any growth factors or proteins. This progressive growth autonomy is paralleled by an increased competence for endogenous growth factor production. Among these growth factors, bFGF and melanoma growth-stimulatory activity (MGSA) act in an autocrine fashion. Melanoma-derived growth factors without apparent autocrine function, such as platelet-derived growth factor A and B (PDGF-A and PDGF-B) and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha), might still be important for melanoma growth by stimulating surrounding normal fibroblasts, endothelial cells, or keratinocytes to secrete growth-promoting factors. The significance of growth factors such as transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and melanoma-inhibiting activity II (MIA II), which have a potentially negative autocrine function, remains unknown. The successful propagation of melanocytic cells of all stages of melanoma progression has yielded valuable insight into the mechanisms of growth regulation and malignant transformation.
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PMID:In vitro growth patterns of normal human melanocytes and melanocytes from different stages of melanoma progression. 144 12

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) tumor progression can involve partial or complete conversion to a more treatment-resistant non-small cell (NSCLC) phenotype. In a cell culture model of this phenomenon, we have previously demonstrated that insertion of the viral Harvey ras gene (v-Ha-ras) into SCLC cell lines with amplification and overexpression of the c-myc gene induced many NSCLC phenotypic features. We now report that the v-Ha-ras gene can also induce morphologic, biochemical, and growth characteristics consistent with the NSCLC phenotype in an N-myc amplified SCLC cell line, NCI-H249. We show that v-Ha-ras has novel effects on these cells, abrogating an SCLC-specific growth requirement for gastrin-releasing peptide, and inducing mRNA expression of three NSCLC-associated growth factors and receptors, platelet-derived growth factor B chain, transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha), and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R). TGF-alpha secretion and EGF-R also appear, consistent with the induction of an autocrine loop previously shown to be growth stimulatory for NSCLC in culture. These data suggest that N-myc and v-Ha-ras represent functional classes of genes that may complement each other in bringing about the phenotypic alterations seen during SCLC tumor progression, and suggest that such alterations might include the appearance of growth factors and receptors of potential importance for the growth of the tumor and its surrounding stroma.
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PMID:v-rasH induces non-small cell phenotype, with associated growth factors and receptors, in a small cell lung cancer cell line. 216 28

We examined the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) on EGF receptor (EGFR) phosphorylation and the expression of mRNAs for oncogenes, growth factors, their receptors and metalloproteinase genes by MKN-28 gastric carcinoma cells which express EGF, TGF-alpha and EGFR genes. Both EGF and TGF-alpha stimulated EGFR phosphorylation, EGF and TGF-alpha induced FOS, MYC and ERBB-2 oncogene expression. Interestingly, EGF increased the expression of mRNAs for TGF-alpha and EGFR. On the other hand, TGF-alpha increased TGF-alpha mRNA but decreased the expression of mRNAs for EGFR and TGF-beta. Furthermore, mRNAs for interstitial collagenase, stromelysin and procollagen type I genes were also enhanced after treatment with EGF and TGF-alpha. These results indicate that EGF and TGF-alpha successively evoke cascade phenomena which favor tumor progression, invasion and extracellular matrix formation, acting as autocrine growth regulators for gastric carcinomas.
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PMID:Induction of growth factor-receptor and metalloproteinase genes by epidermal growth factor and/or transforming growth factor-alpha in human gastric carcinoma cell line MKN-28. 216 68

Tumor necrosis factors (TNFs) are a class of cytokines secreted by activated effector cells involved in host defense against tumor progression. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) and recombinant human transforming growth factor-alpha (rHuTGF-alpha) were shown to interfere with the in vitro antiproliferative effects of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-alpha (rHuTNF-alpha) and -beta on a human cervical carcinoma cell line, ME-180. The inhibitory effect could be observed at EGF or rHuTGF-alpha concentrations of 100 pg/ml, and was maximal between 1 and 10 ng/ml. This response was not due to down regulation of the TNF receptor or to alteration of the affinity of TNF-alpha for its receptor. Since the antiproliferative effect of recombinant human interferon-gamma was not significantly affected by the presence of EGF or rHuTGF-alpha, the inhibition was specific for recombinant TNFs and was not due solely to enhanced proliferation induced by the growth factors. Neither growth factor had a substantial protective effect on the synergistic cytotoxicity observed when tumor cells were exposed simultaneously to rHuTNF-alpha and recombinant human interferon-gamma. TGF-beta can also interfere with the antiproliferative effects of rHuTNF-alpha in vitro. At concentrations of less than 1 ng/ml, TGF-beta significantly antagonized the cytotoxic effects of rHuTNF-alpha on NIH 3T3 fibroblasts. Since EGF, platelet-derived growth factor, and TGF-beta all enhanced NIH 3T3 cell proliferation, but only TGF-beta interfered with rHuTNF-alpha cytotoxicity, the protective effects of TGF-beta were not related in a simple manner to enhanced cell proliferation. rHuTGF-alpha and TGF-beta did not have a significant protective effect against rHuTNF-alpha-mediated cytotoxicity on two other tumor cell lines, BT-20 and L-929 cells. Based upon these observations we suggest that growth factors might enhance tumor growth in vivo by a combination of distinct mechanisms: (a) by autocrine stimulation tumor cell growth; and/or (b) by interfering with normal effector mechanisms of host defense.
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PMID:Effects of growth factors on the antiproliferative activity of tumor necrosis factors. 380 82

Urine from nude mice contains epidermal growth factor (EGF) and a minor acid-stable component with an apparent molecular weight of 20,000, which competes with EGF for binding to EGF membrane receptors and which promotes colony formation by normal rat kidney cells in soft agar. The levels of this Mr 20,000 urine-derived growth factor are increased approximately 4- to 10-fold in nude mice bearing tumors following s.c. injection of cultured human tumor cells. Following removal of the primary tumor, the concentration of this factor is reduced to basal levels, and thus, elevated levels of this growth factor appear to be dependent on tumor burden. The Mr 20,000 urinary component is separable into four EGF competing activities by high-performance liquid chromatography; the major species is immunologically related to mouse submaxillary gland EGF and therefore appears to be of host origin. However, in addition to elevated levels of host growth factor, urine from tumor-bearing mice also contains transforming growth factor activity in amounts comparable to that released by the tumor cells in culture. The tumor-derived urinary transforming growth factor activity is immunologically unrelated to EGF but is immunoreactive with an antiserum to transforming growth factor-alpha. We propose that the nude mouse may be a useful model to examine the role of both host- and tumor-derived growth factors in tumorigenesis and the usefulness of these factors as biological markers of response to therapy and tumor progression.
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PMID:Comparison of growth factors functionally related to epidermal growth factor in the urine of normal and human tumor-bearing athymic mice. 387 12

Cells respond to certain soluble factors that bind to cell surface receptors possessing intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. Overexpression of these molecules has been associated with tumor progression. Enhanced prostatic cancer cell growth in vitro has been reported in the presence of certain growth factors. To characterize the patterns of expression of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFr) and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF alpha), we studied tissue from 107 prostate specimens using immunohistochemistry. We observed that epithelial cells of normal (n = 4) and benign prostatic (n = 56) tissues express EGFr but were unreactive for TGF alpha, while stroma cells in these tissues express TGF alpha but not EGFr. However, coexpression of EGFr and TGF alpha was identified in 22 of 46 prostatic adenocarcinomas studied. These results suggest that the major mode of action of EGFr/TGF alpha in normal and benign prostate is that of a paracrine or juxtacrine loop, the ligand being expressed in the stroma cells and the receptor in the epithelial cells. Since a subset of prostatic carcinomas coexpressed the ligand and the receptor in their tumor cells, it is suggested that an independent autocrine signaling mechanism may occur and grant a selective advantage for the growth of prostate cancers.
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PMID:Expression of transforming growth factor-alpha and the epidermal growth factor receptor in human prostate tissues. 752 98

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is overexpressed on the superficial layers of malignant urothelium and is suspected of playing a role in tumor progression. TP40 is a chimeric protein composed of transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF alpha) fused to a modified form of Pseudomonas exotoxin A (PE) that is selectively cytotoxic to EGFR-bearing cells and is currently undergoing clinical study for the intravesical therapy of bladder cancer. We constructed a recombinant toxin PE35/TGF alpha-KDEL as an improved agent for the local therapy of EGFR-bearing bladder cancer. PE35/TGF alpha-KDEL does not require intracellular proteolysis to generate a carboxyl-terminal fragment capable of reaching the target cell cytosol and contains a modified carboxyl-terminal sequence KDEL, that increases toxin activity. These features make PE35/TGF alpha-KDEL from 10- to 700-fold more potent than TP40 on four human bladder cancer cell lines. PE35/TGF alpha-KDEL may be a useful agent for treatment of EGFR-bearing cancers.
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PMID:A recombinant form of Pseudomonas exotoxin A containing transforming growth factor alpha near its carboxyl terminus for the treatment of bladder cancer. 850 21

Modulations in the positive hepatocyte growth factor, transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) and its receptor epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), occur in rat and human liver tumors. The purpose of this study was to determine if TGF-alpha and EGFR are altered in basophilic and acidophilic preneoplastic and neoplastic liver lesions generated in DEN-initiated mice exposed to a variety of hepatocarcinogens. Female B6C3F1 mice were initiated with N-nitrosodiethylamine (DEN) and treated with hepatocarcinogenic concentrations of unleaded gasoline vapor (2,000 ppm), methyl tertiary butyl ether vapor (7,814 ppm), phenobarbital (500 ppm, diet), or chlordane (25 ppm, diet). Hepatic foci and tumors were identified and evaluated immunohistochemically with antibodies for TGF-alpha and EGFR. In all treatment groups, basophilic hepatic foci were negative for TGF-alpha immunoreactivity (554/564, 98%). In contrast, regardless of treatment, acidophilic hepatic foci were immunoreactive for TGF-alpha (107/108, 99%). There was no significant difference in mean hepatic labeling index as measured by the incorporation of 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine between foci immunoreactive and nonimmunoreactive for TGF-alpha. The incidence of immunoreactivity for TGF-alpha increased in hepatocellular tumors that were predominantly of the basophilic phenotype. Of basophilic hepatocellular adenomas, 16/81 (20%) were immunoreactive for TGF-alpha, while 17/29 (59%) of hepatocellular carcinomas stained positive for TGF-alpha. A similar increased incidence of EGFR immunoreactivity was found in basophilic hepatocellular adenomas (17/67, 25%) and carcinomas (19/28, 68%) relative to basophilic foci (11/367, 3%), suggesting an autocrine mechanism for the development of mouse liver tumors. The increased incidence of TGF-alpha immunoreactivity in basophilic liver tumors suggests that TGF-alpha is a marker of tumor progression in mouse liver. Furthermore, TGF-alpha modulations were dependent on phenotype rather than treatment, indicating inherent differences in the expression of TGF-alpha in basophilic and acidophilic hepatic lesions.
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PMID:Quantitative relationship between transforming growth factor-alpha and hepatic focal phenotype and progression in female mouse liver. 921 Feb 59

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor (HB-EGF), a potent mitogen and migration factor for vascular smooth muscle cells (SMC), promoted neovascularization in vivo in the rabbit cornea. MRI demonstrated quantitatively the angiogenic effect of HB-EGF when introduced subcutaneously into nude mice. HB-EGF is not directly mitogenic to endothelial cells but it induced the migration of bovine endothelial cells and release of endothelial cell mitogenic activity from bovine vascular SMC. This mitogenic activity was specifically blocked by neutralizing anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antibodies. In contrast, EGF or transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) had almost no effect on release of endothelial mitogenicity from SMC. In addition, RT-PCR analysis demonstrated that VEGF165 mRNA levels were increased in vascular SMC 4-10-fold by 0.35-2 nM of HB-EGF, respectively. Our data suggest that HB-EGF, as a mediator of intercellular communication, may play a new important role in supporting wound healing, tumor progression and atherosclerosis by stimulating angiogenesis.
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PMID:Intercellular communication between vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells mediated by heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor and vascular endothelial growth factor. 956 10

Various growth factors and basement membrane proteins have been implicated in the pathobiology of astrocytomas. The goal of this study was to determine the relative contribution of these two factors in modulating the phenotype of U-373 MG glioblastoma cells as determined by the expression of the intermediate filament proteins glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin, and nestin. For these determinations, cells plated in serum-free medium were treated either with growth factors binding to tyrosine kinase receptors including transforming growth factor-alpha, epidermal growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor-AA, basic fibroblast growth factor, and insulin-like growth factor-1 or with basement membrane proteins including collagen IV, laminin, and fibronectin. The changes in the expression levels of intermediate filament proteins in response to these treatments were analyzed by quantitation of immunoblots. The results demonstrate that collagen IV and growth factors binding to tyrosine kinase receptors decrease the glial fibrillary acidic protein content of U-373 MG cells. Growth factors binding to tyrosine kinase receptors also decrease the vimentin content of these cells but do not affect their nestin content. On the other hand, basement membrane proteins decrease the nestin content of U-373 MG cells but do not affect their vimentin content. The significance of these results with respect to the role played by different factors in modulating the phenotype of neoplastic astrocytes during tumor progression is discussed.
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PMID:Effects of growth factors and basement membrane proteins on the phenotype of U-373 MG glioblastoma cells as determined by the expression of intermediate filament proteins. 977 47


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