Department of Immunology, Key Laboratory of Cancer Immunology and Biotherapy, National Clinical Research Center of Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin 300060, P.R. China.
Biotherapy Center, Key Laboratory of Cancer Immunology and Biotherapy, National Clinical Research Center of Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin 300060, P.R. China.
Int J Oncol. 2016 Jan;48(1):5-12. doi: 10.3892/ijo.2015.3234. Epub 2015 Nov 6.
The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a process through which epithelial cells trans-differentiate and acquire an aggressive mesenchymal phenotype. In tumor cells, EMT is a vital step of tumor progression and metastasis. Amid the increasing interest in tumor EMT, only a few studies focused on the soluble mediators secreted by tumor cells passing through this phenotypic switch. In this review, we focus on the essential role of interleukin-8 (IL-8) signaling for the acquisition and maintenance of tumor EMT via direct and indirect mechanisms. Besides the autocrine loop between IL-8 and tumor cells that have gone through EMT, IL-8 could potentiate adjacent epithelial tumor cells into a mesenchymal phenotype via a paracrine mode. Moreover, understanding the role of IL-8 in EMT will provide insight into the pathogenesis of tumor progression and may facilitate the development of an effective strategy for the prevention and treatment of metastatic cancer.
上皮-间充质转化（EMT）是上皮细胞转分化并获得侵袭性间充质表型的过程。在肿瘤细胞中，EMT 是肿瘤进展和转移的重要步骤。在人们对肿瘤 EMT 的兴趣日益增加的情况下，只有少数研究关注肿瘤细胞通过这种表型转换分泌的可溶性介质。在这篇综述中，我们重点讨论了白细胞介素-8（IL-8）信号通过直接和间接机制在获得和维持肿瘤 EMT 中的重要作用。除了 EMT 后肿瘤细胞之间的 IL-8 自分泌环外，IL-8 还可以通过旁分泌模式将相邻的上皮肿瘤细胞转化为间充质表型。此外，了解 IL-8 在 EMT 中的作用将有助于深入了解肿瘤进展的发病机制，并可能为预防和治疗转移性癌症提供有效的策略。
