PMID: 9181050Sep 1, 1996Paper

Extracellular matrix remodeling as a regulator of stromal-epithelial interactions during mammary gland development, involution and carcinogenesis

Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research = Revista Brasileira De Pesquisas Médicas E Biológicas
Z WerbJ F Wiesen

Abstract

An intact basement membrane is essential for the proper function, differentiation and morphology of many epithelial cells. The disruption or remodeling of the basement membrane occurs during normal development as well as in the disease state. Stromelysin-1 (SL-1), a member of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family, was one of the first proteinases found to be associated with cancer. In this review we describe the role of MMPs in normal mammary gland involution. To examine the importance of basement membrane during development in vivo, we altered the MMP and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMP) balance in mammary gland. Inhibition of MMP synthesis by glucocorticoids or implants or transgenic overexpression of TIMP-1 delays matrix degradation and the involution process after weaning. The mammary glands from transgenic mice that inappropriately express autoactivating isoforms of SL-1 are both functionally and morphologically altered throughout development. Transgenic mammary glands have supernumerary branches, and show precocious development of alveoli that express beta-casein expression and undergo unscheduled apoptosis during pregnancy. This is accompanied by progressive development of an altered stroma, which resemb...Continue Reading

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