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Updated: Aug 8, 2026
Induction and Analysis of Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition
Published on: August 27, 2013
Differential protein expression profiling by iTRAQ-2DLC-MS/MS of lung cancer cells undergoing epithelial-mesenchymal
Venkateshwar G Keshamouni1, George Michailidis, Catherine S Grasso
1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Michigan Proteomics Consortium, National Resource for Proteomics and Pathways, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109, USA. vkeshamo@med.umich.edu
Abstract:
Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) induces epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of epithelial cells in both normal embryonic development and certain pathological contexts. Here, we show that TGF-beta induced-EMT in human lung cancer cells (A549; adenocarcinoma cells) mediates tumor cell migration and invasion phenotypes. To gain insights into molecular events during EMT, we employed a global stable isotope labeled profiling strategy using iTRAQ reagents, followed by 2DLC-MS/MS, which identified a total of 51 differentially expressed proteins during EMT; 29 proteins were up-regulated and 22 proteins were down-regulated. Down-regulated proteins were predominantly enzymes involved in regulating nutrient or drug metabolism. The majority of the TGF-beta-induced proteins (such as tropomyosins, filamin A, B, & C, integrin-beta1, heat shock protein27, transglutaminase2, cofilin, 14-3-3 zeta, ezrin-radixin-moesin) are involved in the regulation of cell migration, adhesion and invasion, suggesting the acquisition of a invasive phenotype.
