To die or not to die: Sema3E rules the game.
Sema3E, a ligand for PlexinD1, controls angiogenesis and promotes cancer invasion and metastasis. In this issue of Cancer Cell, Luchino and colleagues report that Sema3E also ensures breast cancer cell viability by blocking a previously unknown proapoptotic signaling cascade elicited by unliganded PlexinD1, thus behaving as a "dependence receptor."
Institute for Cancer Research at Candiolo (IRCC), Department of Oncology, University of Turin, 10060 Candiolo, Italy. Electronic address: luca.tamagnone@ircc.it.
Luca
L
Tamagnone
Michael
M
Rehman
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary*; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D039961:Semaphorins / Q000502:physiology*
D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; C493082:PLXND1 protein, human; C494123:SEMA3E protein, human; D039961:Semaphorins