Integrin alpha 2 beta 1 in tumorigenic human osteosarcoma cell lines regulates cell adhesion, migration, and invasion...

Human osteosarcomas are aggressive bone tumors. Here we propose that their progression requires altered cell interaction with extracellular matrix. Since type I collagen is the main matrix molecule found in bone and thus obligated to interact with tumor cells, we analyzed the expression and function of different integrin-type collagen receptors in tumor cell-collagen interaction by using eight human osteogenic sarcoma (HOS) cell lines. Virally (Kirsten sarcoma virus) transformed derivatives of HOS cells (KHOS-NP) and chemically [N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG)] transformed tumorigenic subclones of human osteogenic sarcoma cells (HOS-MNNG) expressed alpha 2 beta 1 integrin in remarkably larger amounts than the six other nontumorigenic cell lines (HOS, MG-63, Saos-2, KHOS-240, KHOS-312, and G292). Concomitantly, Mg(2+)-dependent adhesion of tumorigenic cells to type I collagen was increased. We also show that the migration of tumorigenic cells on and invasion through type I collagen is faster than that of HOS cells. HOS cells forced to express alpha 2 integrin by cDNA transfections showed increased Mg(2+)-dependent cell adhesion to type I collagen and also accelerated migration and invasion rate, indicating that the overexpression of alpha 2 beta 1 integrin in tumorigenic cells alone explains the altered cell-collagen interaction. Finally, HOS cells forced to express alpha 2 integrin subunit did not grow s.c. in athymic mice, suggesting that overexpression of alpha 2 integrin is not efficient to make these cells tumorigenic.