Department of Pathology, GROW - School for Oncology & Developmental Biology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Hotchkiss Brain Institute and Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer. 2017 Dec;1868(2):420-434. doi: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2017.08.003. Epub 2017 Aug 25.
The enteric nervous system (ENS) is the intrinsic neural network of the gastrointestinal tract, which is essential for regulating gut functions and intestinal homeostasis. The importance of the ENS is underscored by the existence of severe gastrointestinal diseases, such as Hirschsprung's disease and intestinal pseudo-obstruction, which arise when the ENS fails to develop normally or becomes dysregulated. Moreover, it is known that enteric neurons are involved in intestinal inflammation. However, the role of the ENS in colorectal cancer (CRC) carcinogenesis remains poorly understood, even though processes like perineural invasion and neoneurogenesis are important factors in CRC. Here we summarize how enteric neurons are affected during CRC and discuss the influence of enteric neurons, either direct or indirect, on the development and/or progression of CRC. Finally, we illustrate how the ENS could be targeted as a potential anti-cancer therapy, establishing the ENS as an integral part of the tumor microenvironment.
肠神经系统（ENS）是胃肠道的内在神经网络，对于调节肠道功能和肠道稳态至关重要。ENS 存在严重的胃肠道疾病，如先天性巨结肠和假性肠梗阻，这表明当 ENS 不能正常发育或失调时，ENS 的重要性就凸显出来了。此外，已知肠神经元参与肠道炎症。然而，ENS 在结直肠癌（CRC）发生中的作用仍知之甚少，尽管神经周围浸润和新生神经等过程是 CRC 的重要因素。在这里，我们总结了 CRC 期间肠神经元如何受到影响，并讨论了肠神经元对 CRC 的发展和/或进展的直接或间接影响。最后，我们说明了如何将 ENS 作为一种潜在的抗癌治疗方法，将 ENS 确立为肿瘤微环境的一个组成部分。
