Dense tissue promotes aggressive cancers (e invadopodia than breast cancer cells c...)

Dense tissue promotes aggressive cancers

Date:8/22/2008

e invadopodia than breast cancer cells cultured on a less dense matrix.

"We thought that more 'stuff' for the cells to get through was going to make it harder, so we expected to see less matrix degradation, but instead we found this interesting effect where cells actually sense the rigidity and degrade more," Weaver said.

The team examined how cells convert a sense of matrix rigidity into intracellular signals, a process called mechanotransduction.

Proteins that generate contractile forces, such as myosin "motors," are important players in mechanotransduction. Weaver and colleagues confirmed that myosin motors are involved in sparking more degradation by invadopodia in response to a rigid matrix, though the motors themselves are not present in the drilling structures.

The investigators also implicated the activities of two signaling proteins called FAK and p130Cas in the rigidity-induced invadopodia activity. These signaling proteins were present in an activated state in the invadopodia, suggesting that they are important players in this response and may represent targets for anti-invasive therapies.

Weaver said that it's exciting to find a cellular mechanism that could explain why denser breast tissue is correlated with more aggressive tumors and a poorer prognosis for patients.

"The idea that tissue rigidity leads to a more aggressive phenotype had been out there for a while," she said, "but it hadn't actually been tied to matrix degradation, which is thought to be important for metastasis and spread of cells through the body."

Because metastasis is often what makes cancers deadly, new leads on how to block it are critical, she added.

'/>"/>

Contact: Dagny Stuart McMillin
dagny.stuart@vanderbilt.edu
615-322-4747
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Source:Eurekalert

1

GOOD

Page: 1 2
Related biology news :

1. A step toward tissue-engineered heart structures for children
2. Researchers create system to build transplant tissue
3. Chloroplast f and m Thioredoxins Discovered in Nonphotosynthetic Tissues
4. Natural product discovery by Cleveland medical researchers blocks tissue destruction
5. Knocking out cell receptor may help block fat deposits in tissues, prevent weight gain
6. Intravenous gene therapy protects normal tissue of mice during whole-body radiation
7. Breast cancer research and inkjet tissue printing get NSF boost
8. Raydiance collaborates with Rutgers, MTF to develop innovative tissue processing approaches
9. Human embryonic stem cell -- derived bone tissue closes massive skull injury
10. Setting a course for the future of tissue engineering
11. New mechanical insights into wound healing and scar tissue formation

Post Your Comments:

Dense tissue promotes aggressive cancers(e invadopodia than breast cancer cells c...)