Transmembrane voltage potential of somatic cells controls oncogene-mediated tumorigenesis at long-range.

ABSTRACT: The microenvironment is increasingly recognized as a crucial aspect of cancer. In contrast and complement to the field's focus on biochemical factors and extracellular matrix, we characterize a novel aspect of host:tumor interaction - endogenous bioelectric signals among non-excitable somatic cells. Extending prior work focused on the bioelectric state of cancer cells themselves, we show for the first time that the resting potentials of distant cells are critical for oncogene-dependent tumorigenesis. In the Xenopus laevis tadpole model, we used human oncogenes such as mutant KRAS to drive formation of tumor-like structures that exhibited overproliferation, increased nuclear size, hypoxia, acidity, and leukocyte attraction. Remarkably, misexpression of hyperpolarizing ion channels at distan

SUBMITTER: Chernet BT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4102810 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature