In particular, the researchers focus on the adipocyte-derived collagen VI and show that it is a critical factor that promotes early tumor growth within the mammary microenvironment in vivo. The authors show that collagen VI encourages proliferation and survival of malignant cells and mice that lack collagen VI have significantly reduced tumor growth. The authors show substantial enrichment of a fragment of collagen VI on the surface of human breast tumor cells. The same fragment had powerful growth-stimulatory effects on breast cancer cells in vitro.
This study provides the first evidence that the extracellular matrix protein collagen VI can modulate tumor behavior, and offers a potential link between the epidemiological association of increased adipocyte mass and breast cancer.
TITLE: Adipocyte-derived collagen VI affects early mammary tumor progression in vivo: Interaction in the tumor/stroma microenvironment
AUTHOR CONTACT:
Philipp E. Scherer
Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY USA
Phone: 718-430-2928; Fax: 718-430-8574; E-mail: scherer@aecom.yu.edu
View the PDF of this article at: https://www.the-jci.org/article.php?id=23424
Journal of Clinical Investigation