scholarly journals Monitoring Epithelial–Mesenchymal Transition of Pancreatic Cancer Cells via Investigation of Mitochondrial Dysfunction

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae Jun Sim ◽  
Keun-Yeong Jeong
Keyword(s):  
Pancreatic Cancer ◽  
Membrane Potential ◽  
Mitochondrial Dysfunction ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Ros Generation ◽  
Oxygen Species ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Pancreatic Cancer Cells ◽  
Hypoxic Environment

In this protocol, we introduced a method of measuring mitochondrial dysfunction to confirm the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) in pancreatic cancer cells under a hypoxic environment. There are many expertized and complicated methods to verify EMT. However, our methods have indicated that EMT can be identified by examining changes in reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and membrane potential in mitochondria. To demonstrate whether the changes in the indicators of mitochondrial dysfunction are correlative to EMT, cell morphology, and expression of E-cadherin and N-cadherin were additionally observed. The results verified that a decrease in membrane potential and an increase in ROS in mitochondria were associated with EMT of pancreatic cancer cells. This protocol would be useful as a basis for providing an additional indicator for changes in the tumor microenvironment of pancreatic cancer cells relating to EMT under a hypoxic environment.

scholarly journals YAP overexpression promotes the epithelial-mesenchymal transition and chemoresistance in pancreatic cancer cells

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 237-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
YANLI YUAN ◽  
DEYU LI ◽  
HAIBO LI ◽  
LIANCAI WANG ◽  
GUANGJIN TIAN ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pancreatic Cancer ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Pancreatic Cancer Cells

scholarly journals Pancreatic Cancer Cells Respond to Type I Collagen by Inducing Snail Expression to Promote Membrane Type 1 Matrix Metalloproteinase-dependent Collagen Invasion

2011 ◽  
Vol 286 (12) ◽  
pp. 10495-10504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario A. Shields ◽  
Surabhi Dangi-Garimella ◽  
Seth B. Krantz ◽  
David J. Bentrem ◽  
Hidayatullah G. Munshi
Keyword(s):  
Pancreatic Cancer ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Type I Collagen ◽  
Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Type I ◽  
Collagen Gels ◽  
Mesenchymal Transition ◽  
Pancreatic Cancer Cells ◽  
Membrane Type

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is characterized by pronounced fibrotic reaction composed primarily of type I collagen. Although type I collagen functions as a barrier to invasion, pancreatic cancer cells have been shown to respond to type I collagen by becoming more motile and invasive. Because epithelial-mesenchymal transition is also associated with cancer invasion, we examined the extent to which collagen modulated the expression of Snail, a well known regulator of epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Relative to cells grown on tissue culture plastic, PDAC cells grown in three-dimensional collagen gels induced Snail. Inhibiting the activity or expression of the TGF-β type I receptor abrogated collagen-induced Snail. Downstream of the receptor, we showed that Smad3 and Smad4 were critical for the induction of Snail by collagen. In contrast, Smad2 or ERK1/2 was not involved in collagen-mediated Snail expression. Overexpression of Snail in PDAC cells resulted in a robust membrane type 1-matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP, MMP-14)-dependent invasion through collagen-coated transwell chambers. Snail-expressing PDAC cells also demonstrated MT1-MMP-dependent scattering in three-dimensional collagen gels. Mechanistically, Snail increased the expression of MT1-MMP through activation of ERK-MAPK signaling, and inhibiting ERK signaling in Snail-expressing cells blocked two-dimensional collagen invasion and attenuated scattering in three-dimensional collagen. To provide in vivo support for our findings that Snail can regulate MT1-MMP, we examined the expression of Snail and MT1-MMP in human PDAC tumors and found a statistically significant positive correlation between MT1-MMP and Snail in these tumors. Overall, our data demonstrate that pancreatic cancer cells increase Snail on encountering collagen-rich milieu and suggest that the desmoplastic reaction actively contributes to PDAC progression.

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