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Induction of c-met proto-oncogene expression at the metastatic site

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Abstract

In metastatic processes, gene expression may variously alter through interactions between tumor and host stromal cells at the metastatic site. Using a tail vein injection-lung metastatic model and differential display, we analyzed alteration of gene expression in experimentally metastasized lesions. We found that expression of the c-met proto-oncogene was elevated in the lungs metastasized by MC-1 cells. The up-regulation of c-met was also observed in the lungs metastasized by B16 melanoma cells. In situ hybridization analysis revealed that the elevation of c-met expression apparently occurred in tumor cells but did not in lung stromal cells at the metastatic site. The c-Met protein was also highly expressed and phosphorylated. The up-regulation of c-met appeared to be caused by induction of gene expression but not to be due to preferential selection of tumor cells highly expressing c-met. These findings suggest that the c-met proto-oncogene is up-regulated at the transcription level through some interactions between tumor and host stromal cells.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Virology, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Shirokanedai, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-0071, Japan

    Jun-ichi Imai, Masahide Sasaki & Sumio Sugano

  2. Department of Veterinary Pathology, Faculty of Agriculture, Miyazaki University, 1-1 Gakuen-kibanadai Nishi, Miyazaki, 889, Japan

    Manabu Watanabe, Ryoji Yamaguchi & Susumu Tateyama

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  1. Jun-ichi Imai
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  2. Manabu Watanabe
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  6. Sumio Sugano
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Imai, Ji., Watanabe, M., Sasaki, M. et al. Induction of c-met proto-oncogene expression at the metastatic site. Clin Exp Metastasis 17, 457–462 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006659515706

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