Laboratory of Cell and Developmental Signaling, National Cancer Institute-Frederick, Frederick, Maryland 21702, USA.
Front Biosci (Landmark Ed). 2012 Jan 1;17(2):473-97. doi: 10.2741/3939.
Cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion are critical processes for the formation and maintenance of tissue patterns during development, as well as control of invasion and metastasis of cancer cells. Although great strides have been made regarding our understanding of the processes that play a role in cell adhesion and cell movement, the precise mechanisms by which diverse signaling events regulate cell and tissue architecture are poorly understood. One group of cell surface molecules, Eph receptor tyrosine kinases, and their membrane-bound ligands, ephrins, are key regulators in these processes. It is the ability of Eph/ephrin signaling pathways to regulate cell-cell adhesion and motility that establishes this family as a formidable system for regulating tissue separation and morphogenesis. Moreover, the de-regulation of this signaling system is linked to the promotion of more aggressive and metastatic tumors in humans.
细胞-细胞和细胞-基质黏附对于组织形态的形成和维持至关重要，也是控制癌细胞侵袭和转移的关键。尽管我们在理解参与细胞黏附和细胞运动的过程方面取得了重大进展，但对于不同信号事件如何精确调节细胞和组织结构的机制仍知之甚少。细胞表面分子 Eph 受体酪氨酸激酶及其膜结合配体 ephrins 是这些过程中的关键调节因子。Eph/ephrin 信号通路调节细胞-细胞黏附和运动的能力使该家族成为调节组织分离和形态发生的强大系统。此外，该信号系统的失调与促进人类更具侵袭性和转移性的肿瘤有关。
