Nievergall Eva, Saunders Thomas, Lackmann Martin
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
Crit Rev Oncog. 2012;17(2):211-32. doi: 10.1615/critrevoncog.v17.i2.60.
Intense research over the past 15 years has demonstrated Eph receptors and their cell surface ephrin ligands to be one of the most prevalent and complex cell-cell communication systems; this system guides cell positioning and orchestrates tissue patterning in multicellular organisms by coordinating synchronised cell-cell adhesion or segregation of interacting cells. The expression of many Eph and ephrin family members together with their embryonic patterning functions often re-emerge during oncogenesis and have generated considerable interest as targets for anticancer therapies. The first generation of monoclonal antibodies, kinase inhibitors, and vaccines suggests considerable promise in preclinical and early clinical development, but there is little doubt that successful clinical use will rely on a comprehensive understanding of the complex and sometimes puzzling activities of Eph receptors during tumor progression.
在过去15年里的深入研究表明，Eph受体及其细胞表面的ephrin配体是最为普遍和复杂的细胞间通讯系统之一；该系统通过协调相互作用细胞间的同步细胞-细胞黏附或分离来引导细胞定位并协调多细胞生物体中的组织模式形成。许多Eph和ephrin家族成员的表达及其胚胎模式形成功能在肿瘤发生过程中常常再次出现，并作为抗癌治疗靶点引起了广泛关注。第一代单克隆抗体、激酶抑制剂和疫苗在临床前和早期临床开发中显示出了巨大潜力，但毫无疑问，临床的成功应用将依赖于对肿瘤进展过程中Eph受体复杂且有时令人费解的活性有全面的了解。
