Abstract
Our previous studies have highlighted the pivotal role of gastric cancer mesenchymal stem cells (GCMSCs) in tumor initiation, progression, and metastasis. In parallel, it is well-documented that endothelial cells (ECs) undergo functional alterations in response to challenging tumor microenvironment. This study aims to elucidate whether functional changes in ECs might be induced by GCMSCs and thus influence cancer progression. Cell proliferation was assessed through CCK-8 and colony formation assays, while cell migration and invasion capabilities were evaluated by wound-healing and Transwell assays. Immunohistochemistry was employed to examine protein distribution and expression levels. Additionally, quantitative analysis of protein and mRNA expression was carried out through Western blotting and qRT-PCR respectively, with gene knockdown achieved using siRNA. Our findings revealed that GCMSCs effectively stimulate cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), both in vitro and in vivo. GCMSCs promote the migration and invasion of gastric cancer cells by inducing the expression of Slit2 in HUVECs. Notably, the inhibition of phosphorylated AKT partially mitigates the aforementioned effects. In conclusion, GCMSCs may exert regulatory control over Slit2 expression in ECs via the AKT signaling pathway, thereby inducing functional changes in ECs that promote tumor progression.
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The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to further acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Medical Research project of Jiangsu Provincial Health Commission and Jiangsu National Natural Science Foundation. The authors would also like to express our gratitude for the drawing materials provided by BioRender.
Funding
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant numbers 81972313 and 82203547); Medical Research project of Jiangsu Provincial Health Commission (Grant number X373); and Jiangsu National Natural Science Foundation (Grant number BK20210136).
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LC: Generated experimental data, Manuscript writing, experimental design; TL: Generated experimental data, experimental design; CH: Generated experimental data, experimental design; FY: Experimental data generation, experimental design; LL: Experimental data generation, experimental design; LS: Experimental data generation, samples collection; YZ: Experimental data generation, samples collection; DW: Experimental design, manuscript editing; MW: Experimental design, manuscript revision; YJ: Experimental design, manuscript revision; WZ: Experimental design, manuscript revision.
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Cui, L., Liu, T., Huang, C. et al. Gastric Cancer Mesenchymal Stem Cells Trigger Endothelial Cell Functional Changes to Promote Cancer Progression. Stem Cell Rev and Rep 20, 1285–1298 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-024-10720-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12015-024-10720-8