title: Ectonucleotidases in tumor cells and tumor-associated immune cells: an overview.
abstract: Increasing evidence points out that genetic alteration does not guarantee the development of a tumor and indicates that complex interactions of tumor cells with the microenvironment are fundamental to tumorigenesis. Among the pathological alterations that give tumor cells invasive potential, disruption of inflammatory response and the purinergic signaling are emerging as an important component of cancer progression. Nucleotide/nucleoside receptor-mediated cell communication is orchestrated by ectonucleotidases, which efficiently hydrolyze ATP, ADP, and AMP to adenosine. ATP can act as danger signaling whereas adenosine, acts as a negative feedback mechanism to limit inflammation. Many tumors exhibit alterations in ATP-metabolizing enzymes, which may contribute to the pathological events observed in solid cancer. In this paper, the main changes occurring in the expression and activity of ectonucleotidases in tumor cells as well as in tumor-associated immune cells are discussed. Furthermore, we focus on the understanding of the purinergic signaling primarily as exemplified by research done by the group on gliomas.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Letícia Scussel
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Bergamin
authors.forename: Elizandra
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Braganhol
authors.forename: Rafael Fernandes
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Zanin
authors.forename: Maria Isabel Albano
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Edelweiss
authors.forename: Ana Maria Oliveira
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Battastini
mesh_terms: D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D018450:Disease Progression; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000201:enzymology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases; C027201:ectoATPase