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Int J Biol Sci 2017; 13(11):1450-1457. doi:10.7150/ijbs.21230 This issue Cite

Research Paper

Human colorectal cancer progression correlates with LOX-induced ECM stiffening

Bo Wei^1*, Xueling Zhou^1*, Chenghua Liang¹, Xiaoming Zheng¹, Purun Lei¹, Jiafeng Fang¹, Xiaoyan Han², Lijing Wang³, Cuiling Qi^3✉, Hongbo Wei^1✉

1. Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, the Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510630, China;
2. Central Laboratory, the Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510630, China;
3. Vascular Biology Research Institute, School of Basic Course, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China.
* These authors contributed equally to this work.

✉ Corresponding authors: Cuiling Qi or Hongbo Wei. Address: Vascular Biology Research Institute, School of Basic Course, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China, or Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510630, China; Tel: +86-020-39352397; E-mail: qicuiling12345com or drweihbcom. More

Abstract

Some solid tumors are characterized by extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling and stiffening, which is related to solid tumor progression and aggression. However, the relationship between ECM stiffness and colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the relevance of ECM stiffness to clinicopathologic features using human CRC tissue microarrays. The results demonstrate that the expression of ECM components in CRC tissues is closely correlated with CRC progression and poor prognosis, which indicates that ECM stiffness may be associated with CRC development. We further studied lysyl oxidase (LOX) expression in CRC tissue and demonstrated that LOX expression is closely correlated with CRC progression. Previous studies showed that P-selectin-mediated platelet accumulation in CRC tissue may up-regulate LOX expression. Our findings indicate that P-selectin-mediated platelet aggregation may up-regulate LOX expression and enhance the remodeling and stiffening of the tumor ECM, which may promote the progression of colorectal cancer. Therefore, LOX may be a potential effective therapeutic target to treat colorectal cancer.

Keywords: tissue stiffness, LOX, colorectal cancer.

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