title: Intracrine mechanism of estrogen synthesis in breast cancer.
abstract: It has been demonstrated that biologically active estrogens are locally produced from circulating inactive steroids in an intracrine mechanism in the breast carcinoma. The in situ production of estrogens is considered to play an important role in the proliferation of breast cancer cells, especially in the postmenopausal women. Therefore, the total blockade of this pathway may lead to an improvement in the prognosis in breast cancer patients due to the inhibition of estrogenic actions. In this review, we describe the recent studies of enzymes related to intracrine mechanism of estrogen synthesis, including aromatase, steroid sulfatase (STS), and 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, in human breast carcinoma tissues, and discuss the biological significance of local production of estrogens in human breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan. t-suzuki@patholo2.med.tohoku.ac.jp
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Takuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Moriya
authors.forename: Takanori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishida
authors.forename: Noriaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ohuchi
authors.forename: Hironobu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sasano
mesh_terms: D015067:17-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases / Q000378:metabolism; D001141:Aromatase / Q000378:metabolism; D047072:Aromatase Inhibitors; D001940:Breast / Q000378:metabolism; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009376:Neoplasms, Hormone-Dependent / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D043266:Steryl-Sulfatase / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D047072:Aromatase Inhibitors; D004967:Estrogens; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D015067:17-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases; C044256:3 (or 17)-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase; D001141:Aromatase; D043266:Steryl-Sulfatase