Changes in cellular mechanical properties during onset or progression of colorectal cancer.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) development represents a multistep process starting with specific mutations that affect proto-oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes. These mutations confer a selective growth advantage to colonic epithelial cells that form first dysplastic crypts, and then malignant tumours and metastases. All these steps are accompanied by deep mechanical changes at the cellular and the tissue level. A growing consensus is emerging that such modifications are not merely a by-product of the malignant progression, but they could play a relevant role in the cancer onset and accelerate its progression. In this review, we focus on recent studies investigating the role of the biomechanical signals in the initiation and the development of CRC. We show that mechanical cues might contribute to early phases of the tumour initiation by controlling the Wnt pathway, one of most important regulators of cell proliferation in various systems. We highlight how physical stimuli may be involved in the differentiation of non-invasive cells into metastatic variants and how metastatic cells modify their mechanical properties, both stiffness and adhesion, to survive the mechanical stress associated with intravasation, circulation and extravasation. A deep comprehension of these mechanical modifications may help scientist to define novel molecular targets for the cure of CRC.
Gabriele Ciasca, Massimiliano Papi, Eleonora Minelli, Valentina Palmieri, Marco De Spirito, Istituto di Fisica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
Gabriele
G
Ciasca
Gabriele Ciasca, Massimiliano Papi, Eleonora Minelli, Valentina Palmieri, Marco De Spirito, Istituto di Fisica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
Massimiliano
M
Papi
Gabriele Ciasca, Massimiliano Papi, Eleonora Minelli, Valentina Palmieri, Marco De Spirito, Istituto di Fisica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
Eleonora
E
Minelli
Gabriele Ciasca, Massimiliano Papi, Eleonora Minelli, Valentina Palmieri, Marco De Spirito, Istituto di Fisica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
Valentina
V
Palmieri
Gabriele Ciasca, Massimiliano Papi, Eleonora Minelli, Valentina Palmieri, Marco De Spirito, Istituto di Fisica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy.
Marco
M
De Spirito
D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology; D018450:Disease Progression; D017491:Genes, APC; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009154:Mutation; D059016:Tumor Microenvironment / Q000502:physiology; D060449:Wnt Signaling Pathway
Atomic force microscopy; Biomechanics; Colorectal cancer; Mechanical signalling; Pressure; Wnt