International Journal of Molecular Sciences (Jul 2019)

Role of Tricellular Tight Junction Protein Lipolysis-Stimulated Lipoprotein Receptor (LSR) in Cancer Cells

  • Takayuki Kohno,
  • Takumi Konno,
  • Takashi Kojima

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20143555
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 20, no. 14
p. 3555

Abstract

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Maintaining a robust epithelial barrier requires the accumulation of tight junction proteins, LSR/angulin-1 and tricellulin, at the tricellular contacts. Alterations in the localization of these proteins temporarily cause epithelial barrier dysfunction, which is closely associated with not only physiological differentiation but also cancer progression and metastasis. In normal human endometrial tissues, the endometrial cells undergo repeated proliferation and differentiation under physiological conditions. Recent observations have revealed that the localization and expression of LSR/angulin-1 and tricellulin are altered in a menstrual cycle-dependent manner. Moreover, it has been shown that endometrial cancer progression affects these alterations. This review highlights the differences in the localization and expression of tight junction proteins in normal endometrial cells and endometrial cancers and how they cause functional changes in cells.

Keywords