Open AccessRoles of Signaling Pathways in the Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition in Cancer
Author(s) -
Xia Liu,
Fen Yun,
Lin Shi,
Zhehai Li,
Nian-Rong Luo,
Yong Jia
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
asian pacific journal of cancer prevention
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.512
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 2476-762X
pISSN - 1513-7368
DOI - 10.7314/apjcp.2015.16.15.6201
Subject(s) - epithelial–mesenchymal transition , wnt signaling pathway , signal transduction , crosstalk , carcinogenesis , notch signaling pathway , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , hmga2 , phenotype , mesenchymal stem cell , cancer research , transcription factor , metastasis , cancer , microrna , genetics , physics , gene , optics
The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a cellular process though which an epithelial phenotype can be converted into a phenotype of mesenchymal cells. Under physiological conditions EMT is important for embryogenesis, organ development, wound repair and tissue remodeling. However, EMT may also be activated under pathologic conditions, especially in carcinogenesis and metastatic progression. Major signaling pathways involved in EMT include transforming growth factor β(TGF-β), Wnt, Notch, Hedgehog and other signaling pathways. These pathways are related to several transcription factors, including Twist, Smads and zinc finger proteins snail and slug. These interact with each other to provide crosstalk between the relevant signaling pathways. This review lays emphasis on studying the relationship between EMT and signaling pathways in carcinogenesis and metastatic progression.