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Fig. 2 | Cancer Cell International

Fig. 2

From: An emerging master inducer and regulator for epithelial-mesenchymal transition and tumor metastasis: extracellular and intracellular ATP and its molecular functions and therapeutic potential

Fig. 2

ATP’s roles in epithelial-mesenchymal transition and invasion. Extracellular ATP is internalized primarily by macropinocytosis to significantly elevate intracellular ATP levels and induce EMT progress through upregulation of mesenchymal markers and downregulation of epithelial markers via enhanced transcription factors such as Snail and Slug. Extracellular ATP also acts as a messenger molecule which binds and activates purinergic signaling via P2XRs or P2YRs. P2X6R, P2X7R or P2Y11R ligation by extracellular ATP promotes increases in intracellular Ca2+and activation of ERK/MAPK, PI3K/AKT, RHO GTPase. These pathways drive the release of proteases such as MMPs and cathpsins and regulate the formation of filopodia and other actin-rich structures supportive of cancer cell invasion into the ECM. P2Y1R and P2Y2R of cancer cells are also activated, thus promoting cancer cell proliferation and stimulation of EMT

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Cancer Cell International

ISSN: 1475-2867

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