The tumor suppressor semaphorin 3B triggers a prometastatic program mediated by interleukin 8 and the tumor microenvironment.

ABSTRACT: Semaphorins are a large family of evolutionarily conserved morphogenetic molecules originally identified for their repelling role in axonal guidance. Intriguingly, semaphorins have recently been implicated in cancer progression (Neufeld, G., T. Lange, A. Varshavsky, and O. Kessler. 2007. Adv. Exp. Med. Biol. 600:118-131). In particular, semaphorin 3B (SEMA3B) is considered a putative tumor suppressor, and yet we found that it is expressed at high levels in many invasive and metastatic human cancers. By investigating experimental tumor models, we confirmed that SEMA3B expression inhibited tumor growth, whereas metastatic dissemination was surprisingly increased. We found that SEMA3B induced the production of interleukin (IL) 8 by tumor cells by activating the p38-mitogen-activated protein k

SUBMITTER: Rolny C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2373847 | biostudies-literature | 2008 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature