title: Human gastric cancer organizes neighboring lymphatic vessels via recruitment of bone marrow-derived lymphatic endothelial progenitor cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Lymphatic metastasis is a critical determinant of prognosis in human gastrointestinal cancers. Studies suggest that lymphatic metastasis has been linked to lymphangiogenesis, the growth of lymphatic vessels, while the mechanisms of tumor lymphangiogenesis remain poorly characterized.
  
  
  METHODS
  Human gastric cancer cells, MKN45, were implanted under the gastric submucosa of nude mice receiving green fluorescent protein-positive bone marrow (BM) transplants. In addition, MKN45 cells were subcutaneously injected into the back of each mouse as a model of human tumor xenografts. The tumor tissue was analyzed 3 weeks after implantation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mice with MKN45 cells represent recruitment and incorporation of BM-derived lymphatic endothelial progenitor cells (LEPC) into gastric lymphatics. Moreover, in a xenograft model, MKN45 cells induced lymphangiogenesis as well as recruitment of BM-derived LEPC in tumor lymphatics in a xenograft model.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings of this study suggest that human gastric adenocarcinoma induces tumor lymphangiogenesis via recruitment of LEPC from BM.
authors: Departments of Surgical Oncology, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1194, Japan.
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Tawada
authors: Shin-ichiro
authors: S
authors: Hayashi
authors: Shinji
authors: S
authors: Osada
authors: Shigeru
authors: S
authors: Nakashima
authors: Kazuhiro
authors: K
authors: Yoshida
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D042583:Lymphangiogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D042601:Lymphatic Vessels / Q000503:physiopathology*; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured