Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, ul. Gronostajowa 7, 30-387 Kraków, Poland.
Nat Rev Urol. 2012 Feb 21;9(5):274-82. doi: 10.1038/nrurol.2012.14.
Prostate cancer is a prevalent disease that is characterized by a presumably long latency period and a moderate propensity to metastasize. Although a range of mechanisms have been implicated in prostate carcinogenesis, the factors determining the initiation of metastasis remain obscure. The synchronized function of prostate cells depends on their metabolic and electrical coupling; disturbance of these functions has long been suggested to be integral to prostate carcinogenesis. However, although connexins form intercellular channels involved in gap-junction-mediated intercellular coupling (GJIC), whether these proteins also have GJIC-independent roles in cancer progression and metastasis remains a matter of debate. Some data indicate a correlation between connexin expression and the invasive potential of prostate cancer cells, which points to stage-specific functions of connexins during prostate cancer development. For example, restoration of connexin expression seems to be crucial for the formation of invasive cell subsets within heterogeneous prostate cancer cell populations that have undergone aberrant differentiation. Consequently, the clinical application of therapeutic and prophylactic approaches focused on the modulation of connexin expression in prostate cancer cells should be reconsidered.
前列腺癌是一种常见疾病，其特征是潜伏期长，有中度转移倾向。虽然有多种机制参与前列腺癌的发生，但决定转移起始的因素仍不清楚。前列腺细胞的同步功能取决于它们的代谢和电偶联；这些功能的紊乱长期以来被认为是前列腺癌发生的一个组成部分。然而，尽管连接蛋白形成参与间隙连接介导的细胞间偶联（GJIC）的细胞间通道，但这些蛋白在癌症进展和转移中是否具有 GJIC 独立的作用仍存在争议。一些数据表明连接蛋白表达与前列腺癌细胞的侵袭潜能之间存在相关性，这表明连接蛋白在前列腺癌发展过程中有特定阶段的功能。例如，连接蛋白表达的恢复似乎对于在经历异常分化的异质性前列腺癌细胞群体中形成侵袭性细胞亚群至关重要。因此，应该重新考虑针对前列腺癌细胞中连接蛋白表达的调节的治疗和预防方法的临床应用。
