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Updated: May 23, 2026

Quantification of Breast Cancer Cell Invasiveness Using a Three-dimensional (3D) Model
Published on: June 11, 2014
ErbB2-driven breast cancer cell invasion depends on a complex signaling network activating myeloid zinc
Bo Rafn1, Christian Friberg Nielsen, Sofie Hagel Andersen
1Unit of Cell Death and Metabolism and Centre for Genotoxic Stress Research, Danish Cancer Society Research Center, Strandboulevarden 49, Copenhagen 2100, Denmark.
Abstract:
Aberrant ErbB2 receptor tyrosine kinase activation in breast cancer is strongly linked to an invasive disease. The molecular basis of ErbB2-driven invasion is largely unknown. We show that cysteine cathepsins B and L are elevated in ErbB2 positive primary human breast cancer and function as effectors of ErbB2-induced invasion in vitro. We identify Cdc42-binding protein kinase beta, extracellular regulated kinase 2, p21-activated protein kinase 4, and protein kinase C alpha as essential mediators of ErbB2-induced cysteine cathepsin expression and breast cancer cell invasiveness. The identified signaling network activates the transcription of cathepsin B gene (CTSB) via myeloid zinc finger-1 transcription factor that binds to an ErbB2-responsive enhancer element in the first intron of CTSB. This work provides a model system for ErbB2-induced breast cancer cell invasiveness, reveals a signaling network that is crucial for invasion in vitro, and defines a specific role and targets for the identified serine-threonine kinases.
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