Unique interplay between tumor and blood vessel cells promotes angiogenesis and tu...( Scientists now have a more complete und...)

Scientists now have a more complete understanding of how cancer cells send signals to surrounding tissues to promote development of the blood supply needed to support tumor growth. For the first time, it has been shown that signals expressed by tumor cells can directly interact with the outer membrane of adjacent blood vessel cells and influence growth and development. The research, published in the July issue of Cancer Cell, may provide a new and more efficient target for antiangiogenic therapy.

Tumor cells, like other cells, require blood vessels to deliver oxygen and nutrients and to remove waste. Scientists have known for some time that tumor cells can stimulate blood vessel growth by secreting growth factors that promote angiogenesis. However, most human cancer therapies based on targeting these factors have been less than successful. Dr. Cun-Yu Wang from the University of Michigan and colleagues designed a series of studies to search for other signals that play a critical role in tumor angiogenesis.

The researchers examined factors that were upregulated when cancer cells were stimulated with a known growth factor. They found that angiogenic factors stimulated the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway to induce the Notch ligand Jagged1 in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells. Jagged1 triggered Notch activation in neighboring blood vessel cells and promoted formation of new vessels. Notch signaling is known to be critical for specification of cell fate during development, and there is evidence that Notch plays a role in blood vessel formation. Angiogenesis and tumor growth was significantly enhanced in Jagged1-expressing cancer cells and high levels of Jagged1 were correlated with tumor size and blood vessel content.

Although Notch activation alone in tumor cells was not sufficient to induce angiogenesis, elevated levels of Jagged initiated crosstalk between tumor cells and blood vessel cells and stimulated tumor growth a
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Contact: Heidi Hardman
hhardman@cell.com
1-617-397-2879
Cell Press
18-Jul-2005

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