Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0178874 (tumor progression)
 40,807 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Clinical trials of adenoviral p53 gene therapy provide the evidence that the bystander effect induced by the wild-type p53 gene transfer on adjacent tumor cells contributes to tumor progression; its mechanism, however, remains uncharacterized. We report in this work that injection of adenovirus expressing the human wild-type p53 gene (Ad5CMVp53) into established human colorectal tumors in nu/nu mice resulted in CD95 ligand (CD95L) overexpression, followed by a massive neutrophil infiltration. Culture supernatants of human colorectal cancer cells infected with Ad5CMVp53 exhibited a potent chemotactic activity against murine polymorphonuclear neutrophils, which could be abolished by the anti-CD95L mAb (NOK-1). In vivo cell depletion experiments indicated that neutrophils were in part responsible for the antitumor effect of the Ad5CMVp53 infection. Our data directly suggest that overexpression of CD95L by the wild-type p53 gene transfer induces neutrophil infiltration into human colorectal tumors, which may play a critical role in the bystander effect of p53 gene therapy.
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PMID:Contribution of CD95 ligand-induced neutrophil infiltration to the bystander effect in p53 gene therapy for human cancer. 1106 49

Despite multimodal therapy, glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is associated with a poor prognosis with a median survival of less than 1 year. However, a small number of patients with GBM shows survival times of several years. Although clinical features like age and performance status at diagnosis are well known prognostic parameters, molecular markers for prognosis of overall survival are still lacking. Therefore, we compared 2 age- and gender-matched groups of GBM patients with different post-operative time to tumor progression (TTP), defined as 'short-term' for TTP of less than 6 months (n = 21), and 'long-term' for TTP of more than 24 months (n = 21) for genetic alterations of the PTEN, CDKN2A and TP53 genes as well as overexpression of the EGFR, p53 and Mdm2 proteins. For the GBMs with 'short-term' TTP vs. 'long-term' TTP, the studies revealed PTEN mutations in 4/21 vs. 2/21, TP53 mutations in 5/21 vs. 8/21, homozygous deletion of the CDKN2A gene in 5/21 vs. 6/21, overexpression of EGFR in 7/20 vs. 10/20, accumulation of p53 protein in 9/20 vs. 7/20 and of Mdm2 protein in 0/20 vs. 1/20 cases studied. Taken together, our data indicate that mutations of the PTEN and TP53 tumor suppressor genes, homozygous deletion of the CDKN2A gene as well as overexpression of the EGFR, p53 and Mdm2 proteins lack prognostic significance for overall survival time in patients with GBMs.
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PMID:Molecular analysis of the PTEN, TP53 and CDKN2A tumor suppressor genes in long-term survivors of glioblastoma multiforme. 1108 71

Angiogenesis is essential for tumor growth and metastasis. It is regulated by numerous angiogenic factors, one of the most important being vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Recently, VEGF-C, a new VEGF family member, has been identified that binds to the tyrosine kinase receptors flt-4 [VEGF receptor (VEGFR) 3] and KDR (VEGFR2). Although the importance of VEGF has been shown in many human tumor types, the contribution of VEGF-C and its primary receptor flt-4 to tumor progression is less well understood. We have therefore measured the level of VEGF-C, flt-4, and KDR mRNA by RNase protection assay and the pattern of VEGF-C expression by immunohistochemistry in 11 normal breast tissue samples and 61 invasive breast cancers. No significant difference in VEGF-C expression was observed between normal and neoplastic breast tissues (P = 0.11). There was a significant correlation between VEGF-C and both flt-4 (P = 0.02) and KDR (P = 0.0002), but no association was seen between VEGF-C and either lymph node status (P = 0.66) or number of involved nodes (P = 0.88), patient age (P = 0.83), tumor size (P = 0.20), estrogen receptor status (P = 0.67), or tumor grade (P = 0.35). No significant relationship was present between VEGF-C and vascular invasion (P = 0.30), tumor vascularity (P = 0.21), VEGF-A (P = 0.62), or thymidine phosphorylase expression (P = 1.00). VEGF-C was expressed predominantly in the cytoplasm of tumor cells, although occasional stromal components including fibroblasts were also positive. We could demonstrate no association between lymph node metastasis and either VEGF-C (P = 0.66) or flt-4 (P = 0.4). However, we did observe a significant loss of the long but not the short isoform of flt-4 in tumors compared with normal tissues (P = 0.02 and P = 0.25, respectively), and this difference was largely accounted for by the reduction of long flt-4 in node-positive tumors. These findings strongly support a role for VEGF-C/flt-4 signaling in tumor growth by enhancement of angiogenesis and/or lymphangiogenesis and suggest that differential regulation of these processes may be controlled via flt-4 isoform transcription. They further suggest that the measurement of flt-4 isoform expression may identify a patient group that is likely to have node-positive disease and therefore benefit from additional treatment and also emphasize an additional ligand interaction that could be exploited by anti-VEGFR therapy.
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PMID:The short form of the alternatively spliced flt-4 but not its ligand vascular endothelial growth factor C is related to lymph node metastasis in human breast cancers. 1110 44

In the human breast cancer cell line MCF-7, the nucleotides ATP gamma S and UTP, acting extracellularly through the purinergic receptor P2Y(2), lead to elevated intracellular calcium levels and increased proliferation. ATP gamma S and UTP treatment of MCF-7 cells activated transcription of the immediate early gene c-fos, an important component in the response to proliferative stimulation. c-fos induction was enhanced by co-treatment with ATP gamma S and a variety of proliferative agents including growth factors, tumour promoters and stress. Stimulation with ATP gamma S or epidermal growth factor (EGF) led to extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) activation and phosphorylation of the transcription factors CREB and Elk-1. Co-stimulation synergistically activated fos expression and notably led to increased levels of ERK, CREB and EGF receptor phosphorylation, as well as hyperphosphorylation of ternary complex factor. Nevertheless, the ERK pathway does not fully account for this synergy, since fos induction was differentially sensitive to the MEK inhibitor U0126, indicating that these two agonists signal differently to this immediate early gene. Thus, extracellular nucleotides co-operate with growth factors to activate genes linked to the proliferative response in MCF-7 cells through activation of specific purinergic receptors, which thereby represent important potential targets for arresting the neoplastic progression of breast cancer cells.
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PMID:Extracellular ATP activates multiple signalling pathways and potentiates growth factor-induced c-fos gene expression in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. 1113 6

The t(4;14) translocation occurs frequently in multiple myeloma (MM) and results in the simultaneous dysregulated expression of 2 potential oncogenes, FGFR3 (fibroblast growth factor receptor 3) from der(14) and multiple myeloma SET domain protein/Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome candidate gene 1 from der(4). It is now shown that myeloma cells carrying a t(4;14) translocation express a functional FGFR3 that in some cases is constitutively activated by the same mutations that cause thanatophoric dysplasia. As with activating mutations of K-ras and N-ras, which are reported in approximately 40% of patients with MM, activating mutations of FGFR3 occur during tumor progression. However, the constitutive activation of ras and FGFR3 does not occur in the same myeloma cells. Thus the activated forms of these proteins appear to share an overlapping role in tumor progression, suggesting that they also share the signaling cascade. Consistent with this prediction, it is shown that activated FGFR3-when expressed at levels similar to those seen in t(4;14) myeloma-is an oncogene that acts through the MAP kinase pathway to transform NIH 3T3 cells, which can then generate tumors in nude mice. Thus, FGFR3, when overexpressed in MM, may be not only oncogenic when stimulated by FGF ligands in the bone marrow microenvironment, but is also a target for activating mutations that enable FGFR3 to play a ras-like role in tumor progression.
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PMID:Activated fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 is an oncogene that contributes to tumor progression in multiple myeloma. 1151 Apr 69

Myc-activating chromosomal 12;15 translocations, the hallmark mutations of inflammation-induced BALB/c plasmacytomas, have recently been shown to undergo remodeling by isotype switch-like genetic recombinations that remove approximately 180 kb of immunoglobulin heavy-chain sequence in the vicinity of the rearranged, expressed Myc gene. Here we combine cytogenetic data on the 12;15 translocation (SKY and FISH) with the molecular analysis of key junction sites (long-range PCR followed by DNA sequencing) to demonstrate that translocation remodeling occurred as an infrequent, stepwise, and disomic tumor progression event in the tetraploid, fully transformed, and transplantable plasmacytoma TEPC 3610. This result was used, in conjunction with previously obtained molecular data on five other primary plasmacytomas, to devise a hypothesis that predicts that the selective pressure to undergo translocation remodeling may be predetermined by the location of the break site in Myc. The pressure may be low if the break occurs 5' of the normal promoter region of Myc, but it may be considerably stronger if the break occurs 3' of the Myc promoter. Published 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
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PMID:Translocation remodeling in the primary BALB/c plasmacytoma TEPC 3610. 1117 Feb 86

Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation causes human skin aging and skin cancer through the activation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) which are responsible for the degradation of collagen and tumor progression in human skin. The molecular mechanisms of UV-induced MMPs are yet to be defined. Our previous studies and others suggest that i) the transient activation of cell surface receptors and subsequent activation of MAP kinase cascade contributes to the transcriptional up-regulation of MMPs; and ii) UV-induced expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1 beta and TNF-alpha may also account for the expression of MMPs. However, signaling pathway through which cytokines induce MMP expression remains to be unraveled. In this study, we investigated the pathway that leads to the IL-1 beta-induced up-regulation of MMP-1 in human keratinocytes. IL-1 beta activated epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor in cultured human keratinocytes in a time- and dose-dependent manner. IL-1 beta-induced EGF receptor tyrosine phosphorylation started at 5 min and peaked at 10 min and remained elevated up to 40 min post IL-1 beta treatment. EGF receptor kinase inhibitor PD153035 and AG1478 inhibited IL-1 beta-induced EGF receptor tyrosine phosphorylation. To test the effect of EGF receptor transactivation on downstream components, we examined the ERK activation by IL-1 beta. We found that IL-1 beta-induced ERK phosphorylation, PD153035 and MEK inhibitor PD98059 blocked IL-1 beta-induced ERK activity. Furthermore, both inhibitors also dramatically reduced IL-1 beta-induced expression of c-jun and c-fos mRNA which are required for up-regulation of MMPs. EGF receptor kinase inhibitor PD153035 and AG1478 and MEK inhibitor PD98059 also blocked IL-1 beta induction of MMP-1 in cultured human keratinocytes. Collectively, our data indicate that IL-1 beta-induced expression of MMP-1 is mediated by transactivation of EGF receptor and through ERK pathway in human keratinocytes.
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PMID:Transmodulation of epidermal growth factor receptor mediates IL-1 beta-induced MMP-1 expression in cultured human keratinocytes. 1117 16

We describe a patient affected by multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A (MEN 2A) bearing a heterozygous germline mutation (Cys(634)Arg) in exon 11 and an additional somatic mutation of the RET protooncogene. A large intragenic deletion, spanning exon 4 to exon 16, affected the normal allele and was detected by quantitative PCR, Southern blot analysis, and screening of several polymorphic markers. This deletion causes RET loss of heterozygosity exclusively in the metastasis, thus suggesting a role for this second mutational event in tumor progression. No additional mutations were found in the other exons analyzed. We provide the first evidence that RET, a dominant oncogene, is affected by a germline mutation and by an additional somatic deletion of the wild-type allele. This unusual genetic profile may be related to the clinical course and very poor outcome.
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PMID:Loss of heterozygosity at the RET protooncogene locus in a case of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A. 1123 7

To elucidate the sequence of molecular events intricate with angiogenesis and the initiation and progression prostate cancer, the temporal and spatial expression patterns of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM1/CD31), hypoxia-induced factor-1alpha (HIF-1alpha), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and the cognate receptors VEGFR1 and VEGFR2 were characterized. Immunohistochemical and in situ analyses of prostate tissue specimens derived from the spontaneous autochthonous transgenic adenocarcinoma of the mouse prostate (TRAMP) model identified a distinct early angiogenic switch consistent with the expression of PECAM-1, HIF-1alpha, and VEGFR1 and the recruitment of new vasculature to lesions representative of high-grade prostatic epithelial neoplasia (PIN). During progression of prostate cancer, the intraductal microvessel density (IMVD) was also observed to increase as a function of tumor grade. Immunoblot and in situ analyses further demonstrated a distinct late angiogenic switch consistent with decreased expression of VEGFR1, increased expression of VEGFR2, and the transition from a differentiated adenocarcinoma to a more poorly differentiated state. Analysis of clinical prostate cancer specimens validated the predictions of the TRAMP model. This resolution of prostate cancer-associated angiogenesis into distinct early and late molecular events establishes the basis for a "progression-switch" model to explain how the targets of antiangiogenic therapy might change as a function of tumor progression.
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PMID:Angiogenesis and prostate cancer: identification of a molecular progression switch. 1128 56

We here review the literature on genetics related to pheochromocytoma. About 10 percent of these neuroendocrine tumors are hereditary and are most often associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN 2), von Hippel-Lindau disease, and neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF 1). Hereditary tumor syndromes such as the aforementioned ones, are ideal to study the molecular pathogenesis of tumorigenesis as opposed to sporadic tumors in which genetic alterations often merely represent epigenetic tumor progression phenomena. Recent advances in molecular genetics, especially of RET, VHL, NF1, and SDHD, helped better understand the pathogenesis of pheochromocytoma. In this paper, we not only summarize key points of genetic discoveries related to pheochromocytoma, but also report in table format all known RET germline mutations related to pheochromocytoma.
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PMID:Genetic aspects of pheochromocytoma. 1130 96


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