Desmosomes: new perpetrators in tumour suppression.
review · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 21508970.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/nrc3051 and PMC identifier 3799918.
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Abstract
Adherens junctions, which are intercellular adhesive complexes that are crucial for maintaining epithelial homeostasis, are downregulated in many cancers to promote tumour progression. However, the role of desmosomes - adhesion complexes that are related to adherens junctions - in carcinogenesis has remained elusive. Recent studies using mouse genetic approaches have uncovered a role for desmosomes in tumour suppression, demonstrating that desmosome downregulation occurs before that of adherens junctions to drive tumour development and early invasion, suggesting a two-step model of adhesion dysfunction in cancer progression.
Medical subject headings
- Desmosomes
- Neoplastic Processes
- Tumor Suppressor Proteins