Hathaway Jessica Diann, Haque Azizul
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Charles Darby Children's Research Institute, and Hollings Cancer Center, Medical University of South Carolina, 173 Ashley Avenue, Charleston, SC 29425.
Open Cancer J. 2011 Jan 1;4:1-6. doi: 10.2174/1874079001104010001.
Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer in the United States with an increasing prevalence. However, the development of melanoma from a melanocyte precursor is still poorly defined. Understanding the molecules responsible for melanoma progression may lead to improved targeted therapy. One potential molecule is the paired box-3 (PAX-3) protein, which has been implicated in the development of melanocytes and malignant melanoma. In melanoma, the expression of PAX-3 is believed to be differentially regulated, and has been linked with malignancies and staging of the disease. The loss of PAX-3 regulation has also been associated with the loss of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) activity, but its effect on PAX-3 in differentiated melanocytes as well as metastatic melanoma remains unclear. Understanding PAX-3 regulation could potentially shift melanoma to a less aggressive and less metastatic disease. This review summarizes our current knowledge on PAX-3 during melanocyte development, its regulation, and its implications in the development of novel chemo-immunotherapeutics against metastatic melanoma.
黑色素瘤是美国最致命的皮肤癌形式，其患病率呈上升趋势。然而，黑色素瘤从黑素细胞前体发展而来的过程仍未明确界定。了解导致黑色素瘤进展的分子可能会带来改进的靶向治疗。一种潜在的分子是配对盒3（PAX-3）蛋白，它与黑素细胞和恶性黑色素瘤的发展有关。在黑色素瘤中，PAX-3的表达被认为受到差异调节，并与疾病的恶性程度和分期有关。PAX-3调节的丧失也与转化生长因子-β（TGF-β）活性的丧失有关，但其对分化的黑素细胞以及转移性黑色素瘤中PAX-3的影响仍不清楚。了解PAX-3的调节可能会使黑色素瘤转变为侵袭性和转移性较低的疾病。本综述总结了我们目前关于PAX-3在黑素细胞发育过程中的知识、其调节以及它在开发针对转移性黑色素瘤的新型化学免疫疗法中的意义。
