title: Activated protein C enhances cell motility of endothelial cells and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells by intracellular signal transduction.
abstract: Activated protein C (APC), an anticoagulant serine protease, has been shown to have non-hemostatic functions related to inflammation, cell survival, and cell migration. In this study we investigate the mechanism by which APC promotes angiogenesis and breast cancer invasion using ex vivo and in vitro methods. When proteolytically active, APC promotes cell motility/invasion and tube formation of endothelial cells. Ex vivo aortic ring assays verify the role of APC in promoting angiogenesis, which was determined to be dependent on EGFR and MMP activation. Given the capacity of APC to promote angiogenesis and the importance of this process in cancer pathology, we investigated whether the mechanisms by which APC promotes angiogenesis can also promote motility and invasion in the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line. Our results indicate that, extracellularly, APC engages EPCR, PAR-1, and EGFR in order to increase the invasiveness of MDA-MB-231 cells. APC activation of matrix metalloprotease (MMP) -2 and/or -9 is necessary but not sufficient to increase invasion, and APC does not utilize the endogenous plasminogen activation system to increase invasion. Intracellularly, APC activates ERK, Akt, and NFkappaB, but not the JNK pathway to promote MDA-MB-231 cell motility. Similar to the hemostatic protease thrombin, APC has the ability to enhance both endothelial cell motility/angiogenesis and breast cancer cell migration.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7035, USA.
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Gramling
authors.forename: Lea M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Beaulieu
authors.forename: Frank C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Church
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects*; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000187:drug effects; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000201:enzymology; D000074283:Endothelial Protein C Receptor; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D066246:ErbB Receptors / Q000378:metabolism; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D042541:Intracellular Space / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000201:enzymology; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D010958:Plasminogen / Q000378:metabolism; D011486:Protein C / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000378:metabolism; D044463:Receptor, PAR-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D000074283:Endothelial Protein C Receptor; C478370:PROCR protein, human; D011486:Protein C; D044463:Receptor, PAR-1; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D010958:Plasminogen; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D066246:ErbB Receptors; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases