Signalling networks associated with urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and its inhibitor PAI-1 in breast cancer tissues: new insights from protein microarray analysis.

Wolff, C; Malinowsky, K; Berg, D; Schragner, K; Schuster, T; Walch, A; Bronger, H; Höfler, H; Becker, KF

journal article

Title:: Signalling networks associated with urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and its inhibitor PAI-1 in breast cancer tissues: new insights from protein microarray analysis.
Document type:: journal article
Author(s):: Wolff, C; Malinowsky, K; Berg, D; Schragner, K; Schuster, T; Walch, A; Bronger, H; Höfler, H; Becker, KF
Abstract:: The urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and the main uPA inhibitor PAI-1 play important roles in cell migration and invasion in both physiological and pathological contexts. Both factors are clinically applicable predictive markers in node-negative breast cancer patients that are used to stratify patients for adjuvant chemotherapy. In addition to their classical functions in plasmin regulation, both factors are key components in cancer-related cell signalling. Such signalling cascades are well described in cell culture systems, but a better understanding of uPA- and PAI-1-associated signalling networks in clinical tissues is needed. We examined the expression of uPA, PAI-1, and 21 signalling molecules in 201 primary breast cancer tissues using protein microarrays. Expression of uPA was significantly correlated with the expression of ERK and Stat3, while expression of PAI-1 was correlated with the uPA receptor and Akt activation, presumably via integrin and HER-receptor signalling. Analysis of uPA expression did not reveal any significant correlation with staging, grading or age of the patients. The PAI-1 expression was correlated with nodal stage. Network monitoring for uPA and PAI-1 in breast cancer reveals interactions with main signalling cascades and extends the findings from cell culture experiments. Our results reveal possible mechanisms underlying cancer development. Copyright © 2010 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley& Sons, Ltd.
Journal title abbreviation:: J Pathol
Year:: 2011
Journal volume:: 223
Journal issue:: 1
Pages contribution:: 54-63
Language:: eng
Pubmed ID:: http://view.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21125664
Print-ISSN:: 0022-3417
TUM Institution:: Institut für Allgemeine Pathologie und pathologische Anatomie ; Institut für Medizinische Statistik und Epidemiologie
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