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Cancers
Special Issues
Extracellular Matrix Proteins in Cancer
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Extracellular Matrix Proteins in Cancer

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Tumor Microenvironment".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2025 | Viewed by 677

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Dragana Nikitovic

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, School of Medicine, The University of Crete, 71003 Heraklion, Greece
Interests: matrix pathobiology; cancer; inflammation; oxidative stress; cytotoxicity; matrix pathobiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Aikaterini Berdiaki

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory of Histology-Embryology, Medical School, University of Crete, 71003 Heraklion, Greece
Interests: histology; cytology; tumor microenvironment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The transformed extracellular matrix (ECM) constitutes the non-cellular component of a cancerous microenvironment, and its interactions with cellular components (tumor cells, normal tissue cells, blood vessels, stromal cells and cells of the immune system) modulate cell function and morphology, signaling transductions and subsequently tumor development. Protein ECM components include proteoglycans (extracellular, pericellular/basement membrane and cell surface PGs), fibrous proteins (collagens, elastin) and glycoproteins (laminin, fibronectin). ECM remodeling and changes in composition influence cell proliferation, motility, adhesion and invasion.

This Special Issue focuses on describing and updating the role of ECM proteins in different cancer-type microenvironments as well as defining ECM-associated molecular and structural mechanisms in tumor development.

Original research articles and review articles related to the topic are invited for this Special Issue.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Dragana Nikitovic
Dr. Aikaterini Berdiaki
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • extracellular matrix
  • cancer
  • tumor microenvironment
  • ECM proteins
  • proteoglycans
  • glycoproteins
  • collagens
  • fibrous proteins
  • molecular mechanisms

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

17 pages, 1015 KiB  
Review
The Role of eHsp90 in Extracellular Matrix Remodeling, Tumor Invasiveness, and Metastasis
by Pragya Singh and Daniel G. Jay
Cancers 2024, 16(22), 3873; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16223873 - 19 Nov 2024
Viewed by 349
Abstract
Identifying proteins that act in tumor invasiveness and metastasis remains a critical unmet need in our search for effective cancer therapy. Hsp90, an abundant intracellular chaperone protein, plays a key role in maintaining cell homeostasis, and its elevated activity is pivotal in cancer [...] Read more.
Identifying proteins that act in tumor invasiveness and metastasis remains a critical unmet need in our search for effective cancer therapy. Hsp90, an abundant intracellular chaperone protein, plays a key role in maintaining cell homeostasis, and its elevated activity is pivotal in cancer progression. Due to the reliance of cancer cells on Hsp90’s chaperone function to sustain tumor growth and spread, Hsp90 inhibitors have been the subject of numerous clinical trials over the past two decades. However, these efforts have largely been unsuccessful, primarily due to the cellular toxicity caused by pan-Hsp90 inhibitors at doses required for anticancer efficacy. Therefore, novel approaches to target Hsp90 are necessary. An identified subpopulation of Hsp90 located outside cells (eHsp90) may offer a promising alternative as a therapeutic target against cancer. Studies including our own have shown that eHsp90 is released specifically by cancer cells, and eHsp90 has unique interactors and functions extracellularly to promote tumor invasiveness, the initial step in metastasis. Inhibition of eHsp90 has been shown to suppress metastasis in animal models, indicating its therapeutic potential, although the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Cancer cells modulate the tumor microenvironment (TME) during the invasion, especially the ECM proteins and the state of the ECM is a strong predictor of invasive and metastatic cancer. Given that most of the known eHsp90 clients are ECM proteins or are proteins involved in ECM modulation, ECM remodelling could be the key mechanism through which eHsp90 enhances invasiveness. This review will focus on ECM modulation by eHsp90 as a driver of cancer invasion and metastasis. We will also discuss the potency of inhibiting eHsp90 in inhibiting invasion and metastatic spread in preclinical models and the using circulating Hsp90 patient samples as a biomarker of cancer invasion and metastasis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extracellular Matrix Proteins in Cancer)
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