Branching N-linked oligosaccharides in breast cancer

Adv Exp Med Biol. 1994:353:95-104. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4615-2443-4_10.

Abstract

Tumor progression in rodent and human tumors is commonly associated with changes in glycoprotein glycosylation, in particular increased beta 1-6GlcNAc-branching, a regulatory step in expression of polylactosamine and extended-chain Lewis antigens. Loss of the branched oligosaccharides in murine tumor cells either due to somatic mutation, or treatment of the cells with the oligosaccharide processing inhibitor swainsonine, blocks tumor cells invasion in vitro and reduces solid tumor growth in vivo. Swainsonine and other inhibitors of N-linked oligosaccharide processing may be useful anti-cancer drugs, a premise which has begun to be tested in humans.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biomarkers, Tumor / analysis
  • Breast Neoplasms / chemistry
  • Breast Neoplasms / metabolism*
  • Carbohydrate Sequence
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / metabolism
  • Glycoproteins / metabolism*
  • Glycosylation / drug effects
  • Humans
  • Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / drug therapy
  • Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / metabolism
  • Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / pathology
  • Melanoma, Experimental / drug therapy
  • Melanoma, Experimental / metabolism
  • Melanoma, Experimental / pathology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Nude
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Neoplasm Metastasis
  • Neoplasm Proteins / metabolism*
  • Oligosaccharides / analysis*
  • Protein Processing, Post-Translational / drug effects
  • Swainsonine / pharmacology
  • Swainsonine / therapeutic use
  • Tumor Cells, Cultured

Substances

  • Biomarkers, Tumor
  • Glycoproteins
  • Neoplasm Proteins
  • Oligosaccharides
  • Swainsonine