Worthley Daniel L, Giraud Andrew S, Wang Timothy C
Cancer Microenviron. 2010 Feb 12;3(1):117-25. doi: 10.1007/s12307-009-0033-8.
The normal gastrointestinal stroma consists of extra-cellular matrix and a community of stromal cells including fibroblasts, myofibroblasts, smooth muscle cells, pericytes, endothelium and inflammatory cells. α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) positive stromal fibroblasts, often referred to as myofibroblasts or activated fibroblasts, are critical in the development of digestive cancer and help to create an environment that is permissive of tumor growth, angiogenesis and invasion. This review focusses on the contribution of activated fibroblasts in carcinogenesis and where possible directly applies this to, and draws on examples from, gastrointestinal cancer. In particular, the review expands on the definition, types and origins of activated fibroblasts. It examines the molecular biology of stromal fibroblasts and their contribution to the peritumoral microenvironment and concludes by exploring some of the potential clinical applications of this exciting branch of cancer research. Understanding the origin and biology of activated fibroblasts will help in the development of an integrated epithelial-stromal sequence to cancer that will ultimately inform cancer pathogenesis, natural history and future therapeutics.
正常的胃肠道基质由细胞外基质和一群基质细胞组成，包括成纤维细胞、肌成纤维细胞、平滑肌细胞、周细胞、内皮细胞和炎性细胞。α平滑肌肌动蛋白（α-SMA）阳性的基质成纤维细胞，通常被称为肌成纤维细胞或活化成纤维细胞，在消化系统癌症的发展中至关重要，并有助于创造一个有利于肿瘤生长、血管生成和侵袭的环境。本综述聚焦于活化成纤维细胞在致癌作用中的贡献，并尽可能直接将其应用于胃肠道癌症，并借鉴胃肠道癌症的实例。特别是，该综述扩展了活化成纤维细胞的定义、类型和起源。它研究了基质成纤维细胞的分子生物学及其对肿瘤周围微环境的贡献，并通过探索癌症研究这一令人兴奋的分支的一些潜在临床应用来得出结论。了解活化成纤维细胞的起源和生物学特性将有助于建立一个癌症上皮-基质整合序列，这最终将为癌症发病机制、自然史及未来治疗提供信息。
