Role of Crk Adaptor Proteins in Cellular Migration and Invasion in Human Breast Cancer
Abstract
The Crk adaptor proteins (CrkI, CrkII and CrkL) play an important role during cellular signalling by mediating the formation of protein-protein complexes and are involved in cellular migration, invasion, and adhesion. Targeting CrkI and CrkII in breast cancer cell lines by RNA interference demonstrated that loss of Crk expression corresponded with a significant decrease in cell migration and invasion. This implies that Crk adaptor proteins play an important role in integrating signals for migration and invasion of highly malignant cancer cell lines. As migration and invasion are important components of the metastatic cascade, future work includes stable knockdown of Crk in breast cancer cell lines and performing in vivo metastasis assays. Furthermore, mouse models over-expressing CrkI/II result in delayed ductal outgrowth. MMTV-CrkII mice display enhanced branching and leads to tumour development. This has important implications as we have shown elevated levels of Crk are observed in human breast cancer. This project may provide information, which could be used to develop effective treatments for breast cancer, as well as other cancer types.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA469552
Entities
People
- Kelly E. Fathers
Organizations
- McGill University