Johansson N, Ahonen M, Kähäri V M
Turku Centre for Biotechnology, University of Turku, Finland.
Cell Mol Life Sci. 2000 Jan 20;57(1):5-15. doi: 10.1007/s000180050495.
Controlled degradation of extracellular matrix (ECM) is essential for the growth, invasion, and metastasis of malignant tumors, and for tumor-induced angiogenesis. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a family of zinc-dependent neutral endopeptidases collectively capable of degrading essentially all ECM components and they apparently play an important role in all these aspects of tumor development. Furthermore, recent evidence suggests that MMPs also play a role in tumor cell survival. In this review, we discuss the current concept concerning the role of MMPs and their inhibitors in tumor invasion, as a basis for prognosis and targeted therapeutic intervention in cancer.
细胞外基质（ECM）的可控降解对于恶性肿瘤的生长、侵袭、转移以及肿瘤诱导的血管生成至关重要。基质金属蛋白酶（MMPs）是一类锌依赖性中性内肽酶家族，它们共同能够降解基本上所有的ECM成分，并且显然在肿瘤发展的所有这些方面都发挥着重要作用。此外，最近的证据表明MMPs在肿瘤细胞存活中也发挥作用。在本综述中，我们讨论了关于MMPs及其抑制剂在肿瘤侵袭中的作用的当前概念，作为癌症预后和靶向治疗干预的基础。
