Rodriguez FJ, Lewis-Tuffin LJ, Anastasiadis PZ. E-cadherin's dark side: possible role in tumor progression.
Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2012;
1826:23-31. [PMID:
22440943 DOI:
10.1016/j.bbcan.2012.03.002]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2011] [Revised: 02/28/2012] [Accepted: 03/01/2012] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
In the context of cancer, E-cadherin has traditionally been categorized as a tumor suppressor, given its essential role in the formation of proper intercellular junctions, and its downregulation in the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in epithelial tumor progression. Germline or somatic mutations in the E-cadherin gene (CDH1) or downregulation by epigenetic mechanisms have been described in a small subset of epithelial cancers. However, recent evidence also points toward a promoting role of E-cadherin in several aspects of tumor progression. This includes preserved (or increased) E-cadherin expression in microemboli of inflammatory breast carcinoma, a possible "mesenchymal to epithelial transition" (MET) in ovarian carcinoma, collective cell invasion in some epithelial cancers, a recent association of E-cadherin expression with a more aggressive brain tumor subset, as well as the intriguing possibility of E-cadherin involvement in specific signaling networks in the cytoplasm and/or nucleus. In this review we address a lesser-known, positive role for E-cadherin in cancer.
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