Metastatic characteristics of tumor progression in Prostate Cancer

Tumor biologist have long appreciated that both cell to\ncell and cell to extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions are\ninvolved in the invasive and metastatic events that are\ncharacteristic of malignancy. Cancer cell attachment to and\ninvasion of an ECM has been associated with metastatic\npotential of cell lines of the Dunning rat prostate model.\nIt was postulated that differences observed in the\nmetastatic potential of four Dunning cell lines may\ncorrelate with cell-matrix interactions. Four cell lines,\nhighly metastatic ML, MLL, AT-3 and non-metastatic AT-1 were\nstudied. The adhesive, invasive and chemoinvasive\ncapability of each cell line was compared. Cell adhesion\nwas examined by plating the cells on plastic dishes coated\nwith various components of the ECM (fibronectin, laminin and\ncollagen) as well as EHS Natrix (a natural ECM) . Invasion\nwas determined by examining cells ability to traverse a\nmatrigel barrier. Correlations were found between the\ncells' adhesive and invasive abilities in response to the\nECM. These observations suggest that ECM components are\nhighly involved in prostate cancer cell activities and loss\nmay contribute to tumor progression and metastasis.