title: Insulin receptor activation by IGF-II in breast cancers: evidence for a new autocrine/paracrine mechanism.
abstract: IGF-II, produced by breast cancer epithelial and stromal cells, enhances tumor growth by activating the IGF-I receptor (IGF-I-R) via autocrine and paracrine mechanisms. Previously we found that the insulin receptor (IR), which is related to the IGF-I-R, is overexpressed in breast cancer cells. Herein, we find that, in breast cancer the IR is activated by IGF-II. In eight human breast cancer cell lines studied there was high affinity IGF-II binding to the IR, with subsequent IR activation. In these lines, IGF-II had a potency up to 63% that of insulin. In contrast, in non malignant human breast cells, IGF-II was less than 1% potent as insulin. Via activation of the IR tyrosine kinase IGF-II stimulated breast cancer cell growth. Moreover, IGF-II also activated the IR in breast cancer tissue specimens; IGF-II was 10-100% as potent as insulin. The IR occurs in two isoforms generated by alternative splicing of exon 11; these isoforms are IR-A (Ex11-) and IR-B (Ex11+). IR-A was predominantly expressed in breast cancer cells and specimens and the potency of IGF-II was correlated to the expression of this isoform (P<0.0001). These data indicate, therefore, that the IR-A, which binds IGF-II with high affinity, is predominantly expressed in breast cancer cells and represents a new autocrine/paracrine loop involved in tumor biology.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Medicina Interna, Malattie Endocrine e del Metabolismo, Università di Catania, Ospedale Garibaldi, Italy.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sciacca
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Costantino
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pandini
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mineo
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Frasca
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Scalia
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sbraccia
authors.forename: I D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Goldfine
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vigneri
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Belfiore
mesh_terms: D001667:Binding, Competitive; D001940:Breast / Q000378:metabolism; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism*; D002455:Cell Division / Q000502:physiology; D006031:Glycosylation; D006801:Humans; D007335:Insulin-Like Growth Factor II / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020033:Protein Isoforms / Q000378:metabolism; D011972:Receptor, Insulin / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D020033:Protein Isoforms; D007335:Insulin-Like Growth Factor II; D011972:Receptor, Insulin