Antiangiogenic/antitumorigenic therapies may be effective in treating certain oral cancers, according to a paper presented at the American Association for Dental Research (AADR) annual meeting in Washington, DC.
Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cells endogenously produce exceptionally high levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) -- which, in addition to its proangiogenic function, also fulfills an autocrine-paracrine role in OSCC by directly promoting OSCC cell proliferation and invasion, reported M. Tong, a researcher from Ohio State University.
Despite their epithelial origin, cultured OSCC cells express both VEGFR1 and VEGFR2, and serve as both targets and effectors for VEGF. Furthermore, the recognized angiostatic agent, endostatin, inhibits OSCC cell migration and invasion. Therefore, the researchers of this study hypothesize that at least a subpopulation of OSCC cells have the capability to undergo an "epithelial-to-endotheliod transition" and this process facilitates OSCC progression.
The results of the study imply that OSCC cells undergo a phenotypic transition that endows endotheliod characteristics that augment VEGF production (with associated autocrine-paracrine functions) and facilitate OSCC cell mobility, enabling angiogenesis, tumor progression, and metastases. These OSCC-endothelial cell commonalities introduce the prospect for concurrent antiangiogenic/antitumorigenic therapies.
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