title: Urinary-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and its receptor (uPAR) in squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity.
abstract: OSCC (oral squamous cell carcinoma) is the most common oral malignancy and is estimated to affect approx. 350000 new patients worldwide this year. OSCC is characterized by a high degree of morbidity and mortality, as most patients exhibit local, regional and distant metastasis at the time of diagnosis. Recent genome-wide screening efforts have identified the serine proteinase uPA (urinary-type plasminogen activator, also known as urokinase) as a strong biomarker for prediction of poor disease outcome and a key candidate for molecular classification of oral neoplasms using a 'gene signature' approach. The proteinase uPA binds a surface-anchored receptor designated uPAR (uPA receptor), focalizing proteolytic activity to the pericellular milieu. Furthermore, uPA-uPAR can interact with transmembrane proteins to modify multiple signal transduction pathways and influence a wide variety of cellular behaviours. Correlative clinical data show elevated uPA-uPAR in oral tumour tissues, with tumours exhibiting high levels of both uPA and uPAR as the most invasive. Combined in vitro, pre-clinical and clinical data support the need for further analysis of uPA-uPAR as a prognostic indicator as well as a potential therapeutic target in OSCC.
authors: Department of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, M214E Medical Sciences Building, University of Missouri, 1 Hospital Drive, Columbia, MO 65212, USA.
authors: Zonggao
authors: Z
authors: Shi
authors: M Sharon
authors: MS
authors: Stack
mesh_terms: D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D055293:Receptors, Urokinase Plasminogen Activator; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014568:Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: C524898:PLAUR protein, human; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D055293:Receptors, Urokinase Plasminogen Activator; D014568:Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator