WNT and NOTCH signaling pathways as activators for epidermal growth factor receptor in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract Background Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the most common histological type of esophageal cancer, with a poor prognosis. Deregulation of WNT and NOTCH signaling pathways is important in ESCC progression, which can be due to either malfunction of their components or crosstalk w...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohammad Reza Abbaszadegan, Anali Riahi, Mohammad Mahdi Forghanifard, Meysam Moghbeli
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2018-09-01
Series:Cellular & Molecular Biology Letters
Subjects:
WNT
Online Access:http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s11658-018-0109-x
Description
Summary:Abstract Background Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the most common histological type of esophageal cancer, with a poor prognosis. Deregulation of WNT and NOTCH signaling pathways is important in ESCC progression, which can be due to either malfunction of their components or crosstalk with other pathways. Therefore, identification of new crosstalk between such pathways may be effective to introduce new strategies for targeted therapy of cancer. A correlation study was performed to assess the probable interaction between growth factor receptors and WNT/NOTCH pathways via the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and Musashi1 (MSI1), respectively. Methods Levels of MSI1/EGFR mRNA expression in tumor tissues from 48 ESCC patients were compared to their corresponding normal tissues using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results There was a significant correlation between EGFR and MSI1 expression (p = 0.05). Moreover, there was a significant correlation between EGFR/MSI1 expression and grade of tumor differentiation (p = 0.02). Conclusion This study confirms a direct correlation between MSI1 and EGFR and may support the important role of MSI1 in activation of EGFR through NOTCH/WNT pathways in ESCC.
ISSN:1425-8153
1689-1392