Publications (2)13.08 Total impact
-
Article: Multiple mitogenic pathways in pancreatic cancer cells are blocked by a truncated epidermal growth factor receptor.
[show abstract] [hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: The epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR) family consists of four transmembrane tyrosine kinases that undergo homodimerization and heterodimerization. Pancreatic cancers overexpress these receptors. To examine the effects of EGFR blockade on pancreatic cancer cell mitogenesis in relation to activation of specific signaling pathways, four pancreatic cancer cell lines were infected with an adenoviral vector encoding a truncated EGFR (AdtrEGFR), and activation of signaling was assessed with the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase inhibitors PD98059 and U0126, the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580, and the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase inhibitor SP600125. In all four cell lines, AdtrEGFR markedly attenuated EGF and heparin-binding EGF-dependent cell growth, EGFR family tyrosine phosphorylation, and phosphorylation of MAPK, c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase, p38 MAPK, and activating transcription factor 2. AdtrEGFR did not alter fibroblast growth factor 2 actions on mitogenesis. In ASPC-1, PANC-1, and T3M4 cells, PD98059 and U0126 inhibited MAPK kinase activation but not EGF-stimulated mitogenesis, whereas SB203580 inhibited EGF-stimulated mitogenesis, p38 MAPK activation, and MAPK-activated protein kinase 2 activation, without attenuating the mitogenic effect of insulin-like growth factor 1. In contrast, in COLO-357 cells, PD98059, and U0126, but not SB203580, inhibited EGF-stimulated mitogenesis, whereas SP600125 did not alter the mitogenic actions of EGF in any of the cell lines. Thus, EGF promotes proliferation via the MAPK in COLO-357 cells but via p38 MAPK in ASPC-1, PANC-1, and T3M4 cells, and whereas EGFR activation leads to the activation of all four members of the EGFR family in these cells, downstream signaling is efficiently blocked by AdtrEGFR.Cancer Research 11/2002; 62(19):5611-7. · 7.86 Impact Factor -
Article: Soluble type II transforming growth factor-beta receptor attenuates expression of metastasis-associated genes and suppresses pancreatic cancer cell metastasis.
[show abstract] [hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a deadly malignancy that frequently metastasizes and that overexpresses transforming growth factor-beta s (TGF-beta s). To determine whether TGF-beta s can act to enhance the metastatic potential of PDAC, PANC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells were transfected with an expression construct encoding a soluble type II TGF-beta receptor (sT beta RII) that blocks cellular responsiveness to TGF-beta 1. When injected s.c. in athymic mice, PANC-1 clones expressing sT beta RII exhibited decreased tumor growth in comparison with sham-transfected cells and attenuated expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), a gene associated with tumor growth. When tested in an orthotopic mouse model, these clones formed small intrapancreatic tumors that exhibited a suppressed metastatic capacity and decreased expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 and the metastasis-associated urokinase plasminogen activator. These results indicate that TGF-beta s act in vivo to enhance the expression of genes that promote the growth and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells and suggest that sT beta RII may ultimately have a therapeutic benefit in PDAC.Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 02/2002; 1(3):161-7. · 5.23 Impact Factor