Extracellular Matrix in Breast Cancer Invasion
Abstract
The goal of our project is to find novel treatments for breast cancer metastasis. We view metastasis as a breakdown of mechanisms that govern tissue organization. We postulated that metastasis is initiated by molecular cues that improperly stimulate cancer cell motility. Therefore, our approach is to block metastasis by understanding, and then interfering with, molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate cell motility. We found that, in the mammary gland, several of these mechanisms revolve around the interaction of matrix metalloproteases (MMP) with laminin-5 (Ln-5), an extracellular matrix protein of the breast gland basement membrane. One major finding in this past year was the identification of the Ln-5 site onto which cells adhere and migrate. We also defined the position, relative to this site, of the docking site for antibodies that block cell motility. A second important finding is the location of Ln-5 sites that are cleaved by MMPs, and the compositon of the Ln-5 fragments resulting from this proteolytic activity. This information is critical to design in vivo animal experiments in which we will test the ability of antibodies to Ln-5, or Ln-5 fragments, to block tumor cell motility and hopefully metastasis.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2000
- Accession Number
- ADA391915
Entities
People
- Vito Quaranta
Organizations
- Scripps Research