Increased expression of the laminin receptor in human colon cancer.

in Journal of the National Cancer Institute (1991), 83(1), 29-36

It has been proposed that among the various cell-surface proteins capable of interacting with laminin, the 67-kd high-affinity laminin receptor plays a crucial role during tumor invasion and metastasis ... [more ▼]

It has been proposed that among the various cell-surface proteins capable of interacting with laminin, the 67-kd high-affinity laminin receptor plays a crucial role during tumor invasion and metastasis. In this study, the expression of laminin-receptor-precursor messenger RNA (mRNA) and 67-kd protein was analyzed in human colon adenocarcinoma. In 22 of 23 patients with colon cancer, we found a 2- to 23-fold increase in levels of laminin-receptor-precursor mRNA in the cancer tissues compared with those in matched normal adjacent colonic mucosa. In 10 of 11 cases studied, the level of 67-kd laminin receptor, detected by affinity-purified anti-laminin-receptor synthetic peptide antibodies on immunoblots of matched tumor and normal tissue extracts, was higher in the colon carcinoma tissue. Immunodetection of laminin receptor in tissue sections using anti-laminin-receptor-peptide antibodies confirmed that the increased expression of laminin receptor was specifically associated with the cancer cells. In a series of 72 paraffin sections of colon lesions, we observed a correlation between the expression of the laminin receptor and the Dukes' classification. Our observations indicate that increased expression of laminin-receptor-precursor mRNA is associated with enhanced levels of the 67-kd laminin receptor as well as with the invasive phenotype of colon carcinoma. Detection of this metastasis-associated gene product may be a valuable adjunct in the evaluation of human colon cancer. [less ▲]

Hormonal requirements for basement membrane collagen deposition by cultured rat mammary epithelium.

in Laboratory Investigation : Journal of Technical Methods & Pathology (1979), 41(6), 511-8

Alveoli and ducts isolated from virgin rat mammary glands synthesize basement membrane collagen (typeIV) in primary culture. Using purified antibodies to type IV collagen, prominent intracellular and ... [more ▼]

Alveoli and ducts isolated from virgin rat mammary glands synthesize basement membrane collagen (typeIV) in primary culture. Using purified antibodies to type IV collagen, prominent intracellular and extracellular fluorescence is observed in the epithelium. No fluorescence is observed with antibodies to collagen type I and III. From quantitation of the incorporation of [14c]proline-labeled proteins, 1.5 to 2.5 per cent of the newly synthesized proteins are collagen. Type IV collagen from these cultures was biochemically identified on the basis of (1) the high ratio of labeled 3-hydroxyproline to 4-hydroxyproline (1:10), (2) the gel electrophoretic pattern of the collagenase-sensitive proteins precipitated with 1.7 M NaCl, (3)the failure of the collagen to bind to diethylaminoethyl-cellulose, and(4)the immunologic cross-reactivity with mouse tumor type IV is identical with that of type IV collagen from other sources. When the supportive hormones, insulin, prolactin, hydrocortisone, progesterone, and estradiol are removed from the cultures, there is a 90 per cent reduction in the amount of [3H]proline recovered in collagen synthesis coincides with only a 30 percentdrop in the growht rate and a 20 per cent drop in total protein synthesis of the sells over the 24-hour period without hormones. Pulse-chase experimout hormones. Pulse-chase experiments revealed an enhanced turnover of collagen following hormone withdrawal. This system may be an in vitro model of collagen turnover in mammary gland in involution. [less ▲]