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- Title
Colorectal cancer-derived small extracellular vesicles induce TGFβ1-mediated epithelial to mesenchymal transition of hepatocytes.
- Authors
Pucci, Marzia; Moschetti, Marta; Urzì, Ornella; Loria, Marco; Conigliaro, Alice; Di Bella, Maria Antonietta; Crescitelli, Rossella; Olofsson Bagge, Roger; Gallo, Alessia; Santos, Mark F.; Puglisi, Caterina; Forte, Stefano; Lorico, Aurelio; Alessandro, Riccardo; Fontana, Simona
- Abstract
Background: Metastatic disease is the major cause of cancer-related deaths. Increasing evidence shows that primary tumor cells can promote metastasis by preparing the local microenvironment of distant organs, inducing the formation of the so-called "pre-metastatic niche". In recent years, several studies have highlighted that among the tumor-derived molecular components active in pre-metastatic niche formation, small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) play a crucial role. Regarding liver metastasis, the ability of tumor-derived sEVs to affect the activities of non-parenchymal cells such as Kupffer cells and hepatic stellate cells is well described, while the effects on hepatocytes, the most conspicuous and functionally relevant hepatic cellular component, remain unknown. Methods: sEVs isolated from SW480 and SW620 CRC cells and from clinical samples of CRC patients and healthy subjects were used to treat human healthy hepatocytes (THLE-2 cells). RT-qPCR, Western blot and confocal microscopy were applied to investigate the effects of this treatment. Results: Our study shows for the first time that TGFβ1-carrying CRC_sEVs impair the morphological and functional properties of healthy human hepatocytes by triggering their TGFβ1/SMAD-dependent EMT. These abilities of CRC_sEVs were further confirmed by evaluating the effects elicited on hepatocytes by sEVs isolated from plasma and biopsies from CRC patients. Conclusions: Since it is known that EMT of hepatocytes leads to the formation of a fibrotic environment, a well-known driver of metastasis, these results suggest that CRC_sEV-educated hepatocytes could have an active and until now neglected role during liver metastasis formation.
- Subjects
EPITHELIAL-mesenchymal transition; EXTRACELLULAR vesicles; LIVER cells; KUPFFER cells; COAT proteins (Viruses); CELL anatomy; METASTATIC breast cancer
- Publication
Cancer Cell International, 2023, Vol 23, Issue 1, p1
- ISSN
1475-2867
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1186/s12935-023-02916-8