MACC1 mediates acetylcholine-induced invasion and migration by human gastric cancer cells

Citations Over TimeTop 10% of 2016 papers

Abstract

The neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) promotes the growth and metastasis of several cancers via its M3 muscarinic receptor (M3R). Metastasis-associated in colon cancer-1 (MACC1) is an oncogene that is overexpressed in gastric cancer (GC) and plays an important role in GC progression, though it is unclear how MACC1 activity is regulated in GC. In this study, we demonstrated that ACh acts via M3Rs to promote GC cell invasion and migration as well as expression of several markers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). The M3R antagonist darifenacin inhibited GC cell activity in both the presence and absence of exogenous ACh, suggesting GC cells secrete endogenous ACh, which then acts in an autocrine fashion to promote GC cell migration/invasion. ACh up-regulated MACC1 in GC cells, and MACC1 knockdown using siRNA attenuated the effects of ACh on GC cells. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) served as an intermediate signal between ACh and MACC1. These findings suggest that ACh acts via a M3R/AMPK/MACC1 signaling pathway to promote GC cell invasion/migration, which provides insight into the mechanisms underlying GC growth and metastasis and may shed light on new targets for GC treatment.

Related Papers

• → Stochastic Model of Autocrine and Paracrine Signals in Cell Culture Assays(2003)64 cited
• → Autocrine TGF-β in Cancer: Review of the Literature and Caveats in Experimental Analysis(2021)53 cited
• → Real-time quantitative measurement of autocrine ligand binding indicates that autocrine loops are spatially localized(1998)62 cited
• → Autocrine Stimulation in Colorectal Carcinoma (CRC): Positive Autocrine Loops in Human Colorectal Carcinoma and Applicable Significance of Blocking the Loops(2004)10 cited
• Quantitative aspects of autocrine regulation in tumors.(1990)