Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P04626 (erbB-2)
 5,251 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Overexpression of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor occurs frequently in ovarian cancer and is associated with poor patient prognosis. A constitutively active mutant EGF receptor termed variant III (EGFRvIII) has been detected at a high frequency in many human tumors, including those of the ovary. To identify the consequences of EGFRvIII expression in ovarian tumor cells, we introduced EGFRvIII into the epithelial ovarian cancer cell line (OVCA 433). The EGFRvIII-transfected cells displayed a dissociated, motile phenotype and fibroblastic morphology. The EGFRvIII-dependent phenotype was comparable to that observed in EGF-stimulated parental OVCA 433 cultures and required the catalytic activity of the mutant receptor. Disruption of adherens and desmosomal junctions in EGFRvIII expressing cells was evident by immunofluorescent detection of specific junctional components. In addition, Western blot analysis confirmed decreased levels of cellular plakoglobin and beta-catenin in EGFRvIII-expressing cells, and E-cadherin protein and mRNA were nearly absent. The loss of E-cadherin was accompanied by decreased expression of additional ovarian epithelial markers, including keratins 7, 8, and 18 and mucins 1 and 4. In contrast, the mesenchymal markers N-cadherin and vimentin were elevated in EGFRvIII expressing cells. Overall, the switch in cadherins from E-cadherin to N-cadherin, coupled with gain of vimentin expression and loss of the epithelial keratins and mucins typically expressed in well-differentiated epithelial ovarian carcinomas, are consistent with transition to a mesenchymal phenotype as an outcome of EGFRvIII expression. These findings suggest that EGFRvIII expression may regulate phenotypic plasticity in ovarian cancer and thereby contribute to more aggressive disease.
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PMID:Mesenchymal transformation in epithelial ovarian tumor cells expressing epidermal growth factor receptor variant III. 1678 82

Kaiso, a p120 catenin-binding protein, is expressed in the cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments of cells; however, the biological consequences and clinical implications of a shift between these compartments have yet to be established. Herein, we report an enrichment of nuclear Kaiso expression in cells of primary and metastatic prostate tumors relative to the normal prostate epithelium. Nuclear expression of Kaiso correlates with Gleason score (P < 0.001) and tumor grade (P < 0.001). There is higher nuclear expression of Kaiso in primary tumor/normal matched samples and in primary tumors from African American men (P < 0.0001). We further found that epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor up-regulates Kaiso at the RNA and protein levels in prostate cancer cell lines, but more interestingly causes a shift of cytoplasmic Kaiso to the nucleus that is reversed by the EGF receptor-specific kinase inhibitor, PD153035. In both DU-145 and PC-3 prostate cancer cell lines, Kaiso inhibition (short hairpin RNA-Kaiso) decreased cell migration and invasion even in the presence of EGF. Further, Kaiso directly binds to the E-cadherin promoter, and inhibition of Kaiso in PC-3 cells results in increased E-cadherin expression, as well as re-establishment of cell-cell contacts. In addition, Kaiso-depleted cells show more epithelial morphology and a reversal of the mesenchymal markers N-cadherin and fibronectin. Our findings establish a defined oncogenic role of Kaiso in promoting the progression of prostate cancer.
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PMID:Nuclear Kaiso indicates aggressive prostate cancers and promotes migration and invasiveness of prostate cancer cells. 2297 83