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ROS-Driven PKCζ Signaling as a Widely Involved Mechanism for Cancer Cell Motility and Metastasis.

Yasushi Sato1,2, Maki Tanaka2,3, Naoko Kitamura4

  • 1Department of Gastroenterology and Oncology, Institute of Health Biosciences, University of Tokushima Graduate School, Tokushima, Japan.

Cancer Science
|August 20, 2025
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Growth factors enhance cancer cell motility via reactive oxygen species (ROS) and PKCζ/Rho GTPase signaling. Inhibiting PKCζ blocks this, suggesting it as a therapeutic target for metastasis.

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Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Research
  • Cell Signaling

Background:

  • Bioactive molecules like growth factors are crucial for cancer invasion and metastasis.
  • The precise molecular mechanisms driving this cell motility enhancement are not fully understood.
  • Understanding these pathways is key to developing anti-metastatic therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which growth factors enhance cancer cell motility.
  • To investigate the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the PKCζ/Rho GTPase pathway.
  • To evaluate PKCζ as a potential therapeutic target for inhibiting cancer metastasis.

Main Methods:

  • Cell motility assays including phagokinetic track, Transwell, and scratch assays.
  • Treatment with growth factors (HGF, EGF, TGF-β, estradiol) and inhibitors (SOD, NAC, DPI, MyrPKCζ).
  • In vivo studies using NOD-SCID mice to assess peritoneal invasion and pulmonary metastasis.

Main Results:

  • Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) significantly increased HepG2 cell motility, mediated by ROS and PKCζ/Rho GTPase activation.
  • Inhibition of ROS or PKCζ suppressed motility enhancement across multiple cancer cell lines (HepG2, HCT116, MDA-MB-231-luc) and stimuli.
  • PKCζ inhibition and knockdown suppressed cancer cell invasion and metastasis in vivo.

Conclusions:

  • The ROS/PKCζ/Rho GTPase signaling cascade is a critical regulator of cancer cell motility.
  • PKCζ plays a pivotal role in mediating growth factor-induced cell motility and cancer metastasis.
  • PKCζ represents a promising therapeutic target for preventing cancer invasion and metastasis.