title: Impact of homeobox genes in gastrointestinal cancer.
abstract: Homeobox genes, includingHOXand non-HOXgenes, have been identified to be expressed aberrantly in solid tumors. In gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, most studies have focused on the function of non-HOXgenes including caudal-related homeobox transcription factor 1 (CDX1) and CDX2. CDX2 is a crucial factor in the development of pre-cancerous lesions such as Barrett's esophagus or intestinal metaplasia in the stomach, and its tumor suppressive role has been investigated in colorectal cancers. Recently, severalHOXgenes were reported to have specific roles in GI cancers; for example,HOXA13in esophageal squamous cell cancer andHOXB7in stomach and colorectal cancers. HOXD10 is upregulated in colorectal cancer while it is silenced epigenetically in gastric cancer. Thus, it is essential to examine the differential expression pattern of various homeobox genes in specific tumor types or cell lineages, and understand their underlying mechanisms. In this review, we summarize the available research on homeobox genes and present their potential value for the prediction of prognosis in GI cancers.
authors.affiliation: Moon Kyung Joo, Jong-Jae Park, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Korea University College of Medicine Guro Hospital, Seoul 08308, South Korea.
authors.forename: Moon Kyung
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Joo
authors.affiliation: Moon Kyung Joo, Jong-Jae Park, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Korea University College of Medicine Guro Hospital, Seoul 08308, South Korea.
authors.forename: Jong-Jae
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Moon Kyung Joo, Jong-Jae Park, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Korea University College of Medicine Guro Hospital, Seoul 08308, South Korea.
authors.forename: Hoon Jai
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Chun
mesh_terms: D001471:Barrett Esophagus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000071616:CDX2 Transcription Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D019070:Cell Lineage; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000077277:Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D005801:Genes, Homeobox; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C491273:CDX1 protein, human; D000071616:CDX2 Transcription Factor; C491270:CDX2 protein, human; C490538:HOXB7 protein, human; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C099959:homeobox protein HOXA13; C072064:HOXD10 protein, human
keywords: Caudal-related homeobox transcription factor 2; Gastrointestinal cancers; HOX genes; HOXB7; Homeobox genes