title: Semaphorin 5A mediated cellular navigation: connecting nervous system and cancer.
abstract: The ultraprecise wiring of neurons banks on the instructions provided by guidance cue proteins that steer them to their appropriate target tissue during neuronal development. Semaphorins are one such family of proteins. Semaphorins are known to play major physiological roles during the development of various organs including the nervous, cardiovascular, and immune systems. Their role in different pathologies including cancer remains an intense area of investigation. This review focuses on a novel member of this family of proteins, semaphorin 5A, which is much less explored in comparison to its other affiliates. Recent reports suggest that semaphorins play important roles in the pathology of cancer by affecting angiogenesis, tumor growth and metastasis. We will firstly give a general overview of the semaphorin family and its receptors. Next, we discuss their roles in cellular movements and how that makes them a connecting link between the nervous system and cancer. Finally, we focus our discussion on semaphorin 5A to summarize the prevailing knowledge for this molecule in developmental biology and carcinogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology Microbiology, 985950, Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5900, USA.
authors.forename: Abhilasha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Purohit
authors.affiliation: The Institute of Cancer Research, Division of Molecular Pathology, London, UK.
authors.forename: Anguraj
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sadanandam
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology Microbiology, 985950, Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5900, USA.
authors.forename: Pavan
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Myneni
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology Microbiology, 985950, Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-5900, USA. Electronic address: rsingh@unmc.edu.
authors.forename: Rakesh K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Singh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D009424:Nervous System Physiological Phenomena / Q000502:physiology*; D039961:Semaphorins; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C491228:SEMA5A protein, human; D039961:Semaphorins
keywords: Cancer; Developmental biology; Neuropilins; Plexins; Semaphorin; Semaphorin 5A