Register for Bidirectional signaling between EGFR and ER contributes to pathophysiology
Breast CancerMay 6, 2003
2003 MAY 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Bidirectional signaling between EGFR and ER contributes to pathophysiology.
"Interactions between the estrogen receptor (ER) and the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) contribute to the biological effects of these binding protein families," scientists in the United States report.
"EGFR stimulates DNA synthesis and gene transcription in the uterus, related in part to estrogen-independent activation of the nuclear ER. This results from signal transduction enacted by the plasma membrane tyrosine kinase growth factor receptor, leading to 1) phosphorylation and activation of the nuclear ER, and 2) phosphorylation of coregulator proteins," wrote E.R. Levin and colleagues, University of California Irvine, Long Beach Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
"More recently, it has been shown that a pool of ERalpha resides in or associates with the plasma membrane as a cytoplasmic protein. These ERs utilize the membrane EGFR to rapidly signal through various kinase cascades that influence both transcriptional and nontranscriptional actions of estrogen in breast cancer cells," the researchers stated.
The researchers concluded: "This is congruent with a general theme of receptor signaling, where membrane G protein-coupled receptors activate tyrosine kinase growth factor receptors (EGFR, IGF-I receptor) that subsequently signal to MAPKs and other pathways. Overall, the bidirectional cross-talk between EGFR and cellular pools of ER contributes to reproductive organ physiology and pathophysiology."
Levin and colleagues published their study in Molecular Endocrinology (Bidirectional signaling between the estrogen receptor and the epidermal growth factor receptor. Mol Endocrinol, 2003;17(3):309-317).
For more information, contact E.R. Levin, University of California Irvine, Long Beach Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Medical Service 111I, Division of Endocrinol, Long Beach, CA 90822, USA.
Publisher contact information for the journal Molecular Endocrinology is: Endocrine Society, 4350 East West Highway Suite 500, Bethesda, MD 20814-4110, USA.
The information in this article comes under the major subject areas of DNA Oncology and Genomics. This article was prepared by Cancer Weekly editors from staff and other reports.
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