Hypoxia induces EMT in low and highly aggressive pancreatic tumor cells but only cells with cancer stem cell characteristics acquire pronounced migratory potential.

ABSTRACT: Tumor hypoxia induces epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), which induces invasion and metastasis, and is linked to cancer stem cells (CSCs). Whether EMT generates CSCs de novo, enhances migration of existing CSCs or both is unclear. We examined patient tissue of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) along with carcinomas of breast, lung, kidney, prostate and ovary. For in vitro studies, five established PDA cell lines classified as less (CSC(low)) and highly aggressive CSC-like cells (CSC(high)) were examined by single and double immunofluorescence microscopy, wound-, transwell-, and time-lapse microscopy. HIF-1α and Slug, as well as HIF-2α and CD133 were co-expressed pointing to a putative co-existence of hypoxia, EMT and CSCs in vivo. CSC(high) cells exhibited high basal expression

SUBMITTER: Salnikov AV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3458836 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature