Colorectal Cancer Cells Adhere to and Migrate Along the Neurons of the Enteric Nervous System.

ABSTRACT:

Background & aims

In several types of cancers, tumor cells invade adjacent tissues by migrating along the resident nerves of the tumor microenvironment. This process, called perineural invasion, typically occurs along extrinsic nerves, with Schwann cells providing physical guidance for the tumor cells. However, in the colorectal cancer microenvironment, the most abundant nervous structures belong to the nonmyelinated intrinsic enteric nervous system (ENS). In this study, we investigated whether colon cancer cells interact with the ENS.

Methods

Tumor epithelial cells (TECs) from human primary colon adenocarcinomas and cell lines were cocultured with primary cultures of ENS and cultures of human ENS plexus explants. By combining confocal and atomic force microscopy, as

SUBMITTER: Duchalais E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5696385 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature