Ld. Loganadane et al., Transforming growth factor-beta 1 increases the adhesion of MDA-MB-231 mammary adenocarcinoma cells to the microvascular subendothelium, CELL AD COM, 7(1), 1999, pp. 57-71
The increase of tumor cell adhesion to the subendothelium in the presence o
f TGF-beta 1 is thought to be mediated by two major events: an enrichment o
f extracellular matrix proteins secreted by endothelial cells and an increa
se of the integrins on the surface of tumor cells. In this study, we analyz
ed the effect of TGF-beta 1 on the adhesion of a mammary adenocarcinoma cel
l line (MDA-MB-231) to the matrix of human microvascular endothelial cells
(HMEC-1). The adhesion of TGF-beta 1-treated tumor cells to a non-treated m
atrix or to purified matrix-proteins was enhanced, while no increase was ob
served when non-treated tumor cells were let to adhere to a matrix secreted
by HMEC-1 in the presence of the cytokine. Thus, the increase of cell adhe
sion was due to the effect of TGF-beta 1 on tumor cells and not to the matr
ix enrichment induced by this cytokine. The hyper-adhesion was inhibited by
the RGD peptide and EDTA indicating that integrins were involved. Integrin
subunits concentrations (alpha 5, alpha v and beta 1) on the surface of TG
F-beta 1-treated tumor cells were not modified, while confocal microscopy s
howed a reorganization of beta 1 integrin subunits on the cell surface and
in the cytoplasm resulting in actin fibers reorganization in the cytoskelet
on. This indicates that the enhanced adhesion of TGF-beta 1-treated MDA-MB-
231 cells to the subendothelium is due to a qualitative change of integrins
.