EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX-6 - ROLE OF MATRIX METALLOPROTEINASES IN TUMOR INVASION AND METASTASIS

Over the course of these Serial Reviews the reader has been made aware of the growing importance of the extracellular matrix in modern cell biology. The matrix not only has a mechanical role in maintaining the integrity of the tissues, but also controls the flow of nutrients and signals to the cells, and indeed, provides many of these signals. There are a number of pathological situations in which cells cause excessive degradation of their own matrix, e.g., osteoarthritis, periodontitis and decubitus ulcer. One of the most striking examples of unbridled attack upon the matrix is seen in the process of tumor invasion and metastasis. All barriers to cell movement through tissues and into vessels are obliterated, largely through the action of a battery-of extracellular metalloproteinases. The regulation of these proteinases in cancer is the subject of this review.