Dual effect of WISP-1 in diverse pathological processes.
Wnt-1 inducible signaling pathway-1 (WISP-1), also known as CCN-4, belongs to the connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) family. WISP-1 is primarily expressed in embryonic stem cells and is involved in adult organ development. WISP-1 participates in many cellular processes, including proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis and adhesion. In addition, WISP-1 plays an important role in diverse pathophysiological processes, such as embryonic development, inflammation, injury repairs and cancers. Recent studies showed that WISP-1 was highly correlated with tumor progression and malignant transformation, whereas it played an oncogenic role in colorectal cancer, cholangiocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma and breast cancer. However, interestingly, WISP-1 exerts a tumor-suppressing role in lung and prostate cancers. WISP-1 promotes cell proliferation, adhesion, motility, invasion, metastasis and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition via particular signaling pathways. In this review, we discussed the structure, expression profile, functions, clinical significance and potential mechanisms of WISP-1 in cancer and non-neoplastic diseases.
Laboratory of Surgery, the Affiliated Hospital, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010050, China.
Mengmeng
M
Feng
Laboratory of Surgery, the Affiliated Hospital, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010050, China; Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Molecular Oncology Laboratory, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing 100142, China; Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Center for Molecular Diagnosis, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing 100142, China.
Shuqin
S
Jia
WISP-1; cancer; clinical significance; metastasis; oncogene; tumor suppressor