tumor-microenvironment
The integrin switch is a shift in which cell-surface integrins a cell expresses upon ECM detachment or invasion — from pro-apoptotic integrins such as α5β1 to pro-survival integrins such as αvβ3 or α6β4 — that helps cancer cells resist anoikis.
The specific integrins involved are tumor-type-specific: melanoma switches αvβ1→αvβ3 during dermal invasion, glioma favors αvβ5/αvβ3, breast/prostate/ovarian cancers favor αvβ3, and cervical/colon cancers favor αvβ6.
Related terms
Source papers
- Anoikis: To Die or Not to Die? doi:10.3390/ijms27020579