Mysliwiec Angela G, Ornstein Deborah L
Department of Hematology/Oncology, Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, TX, USA.
Clin Colorectal Cancer. 2002 Feb;1(4):208-19. doi: 10.3816/CCC.2002.n.002.
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) appear to play a key role in the development and progression of human malignancies. MMPs mediate the destruction of the extracellular matrix, which is an important early step in tumor invasion and metastasis. Growing evidence suggests that MMPs also have angiogenic activity and participate in the early stages of tumorigenesis and primary tumor growth. Investigations in experimental animal models have confirmed the importance of MMPs in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer, and studies in humans show a direct association between increased MMP expression and tumor invasiveness, development of metastases, and shortened survival. In this review, the physiologic role of MMPs in normal tissues is examined and data supporting the role of MMPs in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer are reviewed. The results of clinical trials with MMP inhibitors in colorectal cancer and promising areas for future investigation are also discussed.
基质金属蛋白酶（MMPs）似乎在人类恶性肿瘤的发生和发展中起关键作用。MMPs介导细胞外基质的破坏，这是肿瘤侵袭和转移的重要早期步骤。越来越多的证据表明，MMPs还具有血管生成活性，并参与肿瘤发生和原发性肿瘤生长的早期阶段。对实验动物模型的研究证实了MMPs在结直肠癌发病机制中的重要性，而对人类的研究表明，MMP表达增加与肿瘤侵袭性、转移的发生以及生存期缩短直接相关。在这篇综述中，我们研究了MMPs在正常组织中的生理作用，并回顾了支持MMPs在结直肠癌发病机制中作用的数据。还讨论了结直肠癌中MMP抑制剂的临床试验结果以及未来研究的有前景领域。
