Briest Franziska, Berndt Alexander, Clement Joachim, Junker Kerstin, Eggeling Ferdinand von, Grimm Susanne, Friedrich Karlheinz
Institute of Biochemistry II, Jena University Hospital, Germany.
Front Biosci (Elite Ed). 2012 Jan 1;4(5):1871-87. doi: 10.2741/509.
Research in recent years has accumulated a wealth of novel insight into mechanisms by which tumor cells interact with activated fibroblasts, endothelial cells, inflammatory and immune cells and the extracellular matrix. Cancer and stromal cells co-evolve throughout tumorigenesis. As a result, the tumor stroma is now regarded as an essential contributor to tumor establishment, progression and dissemination. Moreover, the formation of suitable stroma niches has emerged as a prime determinant of metastasis. Notably, malignant tumors adopt numerous mechanisms that are also operative in embryonic and adult stem cell biology. Tumor sites show functional characteristics with striking similarities to stem cell niches. This review summarizes the current view of disease-relevant communication between tumor cells and the tumor stroma and relates it to interactions of stem cells and their respective niches. Progress in understanding the pivotal role of the microenvironment in both tumor and stem cell biology renders the tumor stroma an interesting potential future target for specific cancer therapies.
近年来的研究积累了大量关于肿瘤细胞与活化的成纤维细胞、内皮细胞、炎症和免疫细胞以及细胞外基质相互作用机制的新颖见解。癌症细胞和基质细胞在肿瘤发生过程中共同进化。因此，肿瘤基质现在被认为是肿瘤形成、进展和扩散的重要促成因素。此外，合适的基质微环境的形成已成为转移的主要决定因素。值得注意的是，恶性肿瘤采用了许多在胚胎和成人干细胞生物学中也起作用的机制。肿瘤部位表现出与干细胞微环境惊人相似的功能特征。本综述总结了目前关于肿瘤细胞与肿瘤基质之间疾病相关通讯的观点，并将其与干细胞及其各自微环境的相互作用联系起来。在理解微环境在肿瘤和干细胞生物学中的关键作用方面取得的进展使肿瘤基质成为未来特异性癌症治疗的一个有趣潜在靶点。
