Participation of fibroblasts in MMP-2 binding and activation on the surface of oral squamous cell carcinoma cells
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- Published online on: March 1, 2003 https://doi.org/10.3892/ijo.22.3.657
- Pages: 657-662
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Abstract
The effect of fibroblasts on the activation of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) in oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) cells was examined. The plasma membrane of SCC cells failed to bind and activate latent MMP-2. However, treatment of SCC cells with fibroblast-conditioned medium (fibroblast-CM) led to the enhancement of the binding and activation of latent MMP-2 on the cell surface. Moreover, fibroblasts induced the expression of membrane type 1 MMP (MT1-MMP) in SCC cells. MMP-2 activated on the cell surface bound to the surface of SCC cells via αv integrins. These findings suggest that fibroblasts might facilitate the invasion of SCC cells by increasing the proteolytic activity on the surfaces of SCC cells.