| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |

From the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology,* Shinshu University School of Medicine, and the Department of Organ Regeneration,
Shinshu University Graduate School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Japan
Since ovarian carcinoma cells detach from the primary lesion and metastasize via peritoneal dissemination, we hypothesized that these cells are exposed to hypoxia, which may affect cell attachment and invasiveness. To address this hypothesis, we first examined in vivo the immunohistochemical expression of hypoxia-inducible factor-1
(HIF-1
) and its topological correlation with E-cadherin expression in ovarian carcinomas. We then examined in vitro the effect of hypoxia on the mRNA and protein expressions of E-cadherin using two ovarian cancer cell lines, SKOV3 and OVCAR3, and normal ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) cells. In addition, hypoxia-induced change in the expression of SNAIL, a transcriptional factor repressing E-cadherin expression, was also analyzed. Finally, we examined the facilitation of invasiveness of ovarian cancer cells under hypoxia using Matrigel invasion assay. Immunohistochemically, nuclear localization of HIF-1
was observed in 32 of the 76 (42%) carcinomas studied, and showed a topological correlation with loss of E-cadherin expression. Northern blotting, real-time PCR and Western blotting demonstrated that E-cadherin expression was remarkably decreased under hypoxia in both SKOV3 and OVCAR3 cells, but not in normal OSE cells. mRNA expression of SNAIL was increased under hypoxia in both ovarian cancer cell lines. Invasion assay revealed that hypoxia increases the invasiveness of ovarian cancer cells. Accordingly, the present study demonstrated that hypoxia induces down-regulation of E-cadherin in ovarian carcinoma cells, via up-regulation of the transcriptional repressor SNAIL. These findings suggest that hypoxia plays an important role in the change in intercellular attachment, which may be involved in the initiation of tumor progression of ovarian cancer cells.
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
M. W. Klymkowsky and P. Savagner Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition: A Cancer Researcher's Conceptual Friend and Foe Am. J. Pathol., May 1, 2009; 174(5): 1588 - 1593. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
Y. NONOMURA, F. MIZOGUCHI, A. SUZUKI, T. NANKI, H. KATO, N. MIYASAKA, and H. KOHSAKA Hypoxia-induced Abrogation of Contact-dependent Inhibition of Rheumatoid Arthritis Synovial Fibroblast Proliferation J Rheumatol, April 1, 2009; 36(4): 698 - 705. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
S. Cannito, E. Novo, A. Compagnone, L. Valfre di Bonzo, C. Busletta, E. Zamara, C. Paternostro, D. Povero, A. Bandino, F. Bozzo, et al. Redox mechanisms switch on hypoxia-dependent epithelial-mesenchymal transition in cancer cells Carcinogenesis, December 1, 2008; 29(12): 2267 - 2278. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
S.-H. Park, L. W. T. Cheung, A. S. T. Wong, and P. C. K. Leung Estrogen Regulates Snail and Slug in the Down-Regulation of E-Cadherin and Induces Metastatic Potential of Ovarian Cancer Cells through Estrogen Receptor {alpha} Mol. Endocrinol., September 1, 2008; 22(9): 2085 - 2098. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
Y. L. Pon, H. Y. Zhou, A. N.Y. Cheung, H. Y.S. Ngan, and A. S.T. Wong p70 S6 Kinase Promotes Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition through Snail Induction in Ovarian Cancer Cells Cancer Res., August 15, 2008; 68(16): 6524 - 6532. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
C. Sahlgren, M. V. Gustafsson, S. Jin, L. Poellinger, and U. Lendahl Notch signaling mediates hypoxia-induced tumor cell migration and invasion PNAS, April 29, 2008; 105(17): 6392 - 6397. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
J. Mejlvang, M. Kriajevska, C. Vandewalle, T. Chernova, A. E. Sayan, G. Berx, J. K. Mellon, and E. Tulchinsky Direct Repression of Cyclin D1 by SIP1 Attenuates Cell Cycle Progression in Cells Undergoing an Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition Mol. Biol. Cell, November 1, 2007; 18(11): 4615 - 4624. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
R. D. Lester, M. Jo, V. Montel, S. Takimoto, and S. L. Gonias uPAR induces epithelial mesenchymal transition in hypoxic breast cancer cells J. Cell Biol., July 24, 2007; 178(3): 425 - 436. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. J. Evans, R. C. Russell, O. Roche, T. N. Burry, J. E. Fish, V. W. K. Chow, W. Y. Kim, A. Saravanan, M. A. Maynard, M. L. Gervais, et al. VHL Promotes E2 Box-Dependent E-Cadherin Transcription by HIF-Mediated Regulation of SIP1 and Snail Mol. Cell. Biol., January 1, 2007; 27(1): 157 - 169. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
Q. Zhang, S.-Y. Wang, A. C. Nottke, J. V. Rocheleau, D. W. Piston, and R. H. Goodman Redox sensor CtBP mediates hypoxia-induced tumor cell migration PNAS, June 13, 2006; 103(24): 9029 - 9033. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
K A Voutilainen, M A Anttila, S M Sillanpaa, K M Ropponen, S V Saarikoski, M T Juhola, and V-M Kosma Prognostic significance of E-cadherin-catenin complex in epithelial ovarian cancer J. Clin. Pathol., May 1, 2006; 59(5): 460 - 467. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
M. A. Esteban, M. G.B. Tran, S. K. Harten, P. Hill, M. C. Castellanos, A. Chandra, R. Raval, T. S. O'Brien, and P. H. Maxwell Regulation of E-cadherin Expression by VHL and Hypoxia-Inducible Factor. Cancer Res., April 1, 2006; 66(7): 3567 - 3575. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. Barrallo-Gimeno and M. A. Nieto The Snail genes as inducers of cell movement and survival: implications in development and cancer Development, July 15, 2005; 132(14): 3151 - 3161. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
S. K. Mishra, A. H. Talukder, A. E. Gururaj, Z. Yang, R. R. Singh, M. G. Mahoney, C. Franci, R. K. Vadlamudi, and R. Kumar Upstream Determinants of Estrogen Receptor-{alpha} Regulation of Metastatic Tumor Antigen 3 Pathway J. Biol. Chem., July 30, 2004; 279(31): 32709 - 32715. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |