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Low levels of urokinase plasminogen activator components in basal cell carcinoma of the skin
Author(s) -
Maguire T.,
Chin D.,
Soutar D.,
Duffy M.J.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
international journal of cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.475
H-Index - 234
eISSN - 1097-0215
pISSN - 0020-7136
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0215(20000215)85:4<457::aid-ijc2>3.0.co;2-6
Subject(s) - plasminogen activator , basal cell carcinoma , metastasis , urokinase receptor , skin cancer , pathology , urokinase , melanoma , serine protease , cancer research , lesion , carcinoma , cancer , basal cell , biology , medicine , protease , enzyme , biochemistry
Basal cell carcinoma of the skin (BCC) is the most common cancer worldwide. Unlike most other human malignancies, BCCs rarely metastasise. In this investigation, we show that the serine protease urokinase plasminogen activator (u‐PA), which is causally involved in metastasis, is expressed at lower levels in BCCs compared to other skin cancers, such as squamous‐cell carcinomas (SCCs) or malignant melanomas. Similarly, the u‐PA receptor as well as the inhibitor PAI‐1 were present at lower levels in BCCs relative to both SCCs and melanomas. In contrast to u‐PA, tissue‐plasminogen activator, which is not thought to be involved in metastasis, was present at similar levels in the different types of skin lesion investigated. We conclude that the failure of BCCs to metastasise may at least be partially related to low expression of components of the u‐PA system. Int. J. Cancer 85:457–459, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.