上皮-间质转化与妇科恶性肿瘤

侵袭转移是恶性肿瘤患者死亡的主要原因,肿瘤的侵袭转移涉及到上皮-间质转化(EMT).EMT指具有极性及紧密黏附力的上皮细胞转化为无极性、流动性强的间质细胞的病理生理过程.根据生物学作用,EMT可分为3种类型.Ⅰ型EMT产生了变化多样的细胞类型,与胚胎发育有关;Ⅱ型EMT与组织再生及肾、肝、肺和肠等上皮组织器官纤维变性有关;Ⅲ型EMT涉及癌症的进展及转移.转化生长因子β(TGF-β)信号通路、Wnt信号通路、Hh途径、Notch信号途径、核因子(NF)-κB等途径参与了EMT的调控.许多研究发现,EMT参与上皮性卵巢癌、子宫内膜癌和宫颈癌细胞的病理过程.阻断EMT进程可能成为干预肿瘤恶性生物学行为的重要手段.

Epithelial to Mensenchymal Transition with Gynecologic Malignancies

Invasion and metastasis are the main causes for the death of cancer patients.Epithelial to mensenchymal transition(EMT) is implicated in the invasion and metastasis of tumor.EMT,which refers to the conversion of polarized,tight-junctional epithelial cells to the non-polarized,migratory mensenchymal cells,is a pathophysiological process.According to its biological roles,EMT is divided to three types:Type Ⅰ is concerned with embryonic development and can transit to variable cell types;Type Ⅱ is related to the regeneration of tissue and fibrosis of epithelial tissues and organs such as kidney,liver,lung and bowel;Type Ⅲ is associated with the progression and metastasis of cancer.The signaling pathways controlling EMT contain TGF-β,Wnt,Hh,Notch,NF-κB pathway and so on.A few studies have demonstrated these pathways participating in the EMT pathological process of epithelial ovarian cancer,endometrial cancer and cancer of the cervix.Blocking the pathological process of EMT might become an important means to interfere in malignant biological behaviors of tumor.