Biological significance of interstitial collagenase in DMBA-induced mammary tumors of the rat

Summary In this review the production of interstitial collagenase in DMBA-induced mammary tumors of the rat has been examined. Cell sorting and cell cultures have given us the opportunity to relate the release of collagenase to a specific cell type. By means of FITC-fluorescence and monospecific antibodies (S. Sakamoto, Harvard University, Boston) it was further possible to localize collagenase in vitro and in vivo. The most outstanding characteristic is that collagenase is produced both by cuboidal, epithelial cell and by macrophages in vitro but not by myoepithelial-like cells. On the other hand, synthesis of collagenase in vivo was detected in some stromal cells, possibly macrophages, but not in neoplastic cuboidal cells. This observation has been related to the inability of cuboidal cells to interact with stromal, fibrillar collagen in vivo since tumor cells are arranged in glandular-like structures bordered by myoepithelial cells and a basement membrane.In vitro, fibrillar rat tail tendon collagen was found to be a potent stimulator of collagenase production by cuboidal cells. Collagenase stimulation by interstitial collagen therefore suggests a plausible mechanism for the degradation of collagen fibrils during local invasion by mammary tumor cells.Part of this work was supported by the National Cancer Institute Bethesda, USA (Contract NO1-CB-74109).