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Epithelial-mesenchymal Transition: An Important Mechanism for Regulation of Tumor Metastasis
Chen Xiaomin1, Guo Junming1, Le Donghai2, Xia Tian1, Li Keqiang1,2*
1Medical School of Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China;2Ningbo No.2 Hospital, Ningbo 315010, China
Abstract: The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a unique process in which cells lose epithelial characteristics and gain mesenchymal properties under special physiological or pathological situations. EMT is proved to be highly relevant to tumor metastasis， and has been a focus of recent biological research. The signaling pathways including TGF-β， Wnt/β-catenin， Notch， Hedgehog， IL-6/STAT3 and NF-κB can trigger EMT in tumor cells by inducing Snail1， Snail2， Twist1， Twist2， ZEB1 and ZEB2 expression. In addition， non-coding RNAs (such as microRNAs and lncRNAs) also play critical roles in the regulation of EMT. Thus， the identification of molecular mechanism of EMT in malignant cells might provide a tool to better prevent and treat cancers.
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