Abstract
Fibroblasts constitute a ubiquitous mesenchymal cell type and produce the extracellular matrix (ECM) of connective tissue, thereby providing the structural basis of various organs. Fibroblasts display differential transcriptional patterns unique to the organ of their origin and they can be activated by common stimuli such as transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) signaling. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) reside in the cancer tissue and contribute to cancer progression by influencing cancer cell growth, invasion, angiogenesis and tumor immunity. CAFs impact on the tumor microenvironment by remodeling the ECM and secreting soluble factors such as chemokines and growth factors. Differential expression patterns of molecular markers suggest heterogeneous features of CAFs in terms of their function, pathogenic role and cellular origin. Recent studies elucidated the bimodal action of CAFs on cancer progression and suggest a subgroup of CAFs with tumor-suppressive effects. This review attempts to describe cellular features of colorectal CAFs with an emphasis on their heterogeneity and functional diversity.
Highlights
Fibroblasts constitute a ubiquitous mesenchymal cell type and produce the extracellular matrix (ECM) of connective tissue, thereby providing the structural basis of various organs
Transforming growth factor (TGF-β) signaling activation of tumor stroma predicts disease relapse in colorectal cancer (CRC), and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) target gene expression in Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) is implicated in metastasis initiation by CRC cells [23]
We found that found that the genes with higher expression in lung fibroblasts relative to other fibroblasts the genes with higher expression in lung fibroblasts relative to other fibroblasts were were globally downregulated in lung CAFs [29]
Summary
Clonal growth and differentiation of alveolar epithelial cells can be achieved when co-cultured with lung fibroblasts [7]. The pathological importance of tumor stroma has been shown by the observations that stromal gene expression profiles are predictive of patient prognosis of various cancer types [10,11,12]. In parallel, accumulating evidence suggests that activation of colorectal CAFs is associated with metastasis, therapeutic response and patient prognosis, underscoring their critical role in CRC progression [10,22,23]. Transforming growth factor (TGF-β) signaling activation of tumor stroma predicts disease relapse in CRC, and TGF-β target gene expression in CAFs is implicated in metastasis initiation by CRC cells [23]. We discuss the phenotypic and functional diversity of CAFs, with an emphasis on their pathological role in CRC
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