The role of gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) disorders in experimental and human carcinogenesis

There is a growing body of evidence supporting the etiologic implication of gap junctional intercellular communication disorders in carcinogenesis. Substantial progress has recently been made both in molecular biology of gap junction and in the field of cancer research. They provide new insights and conceptions of gap junctional disorders in tumor pathology. Modern understanding of the structure, function and regulation of gap junctions, as well as putative mechanisms of its disorders in human and experimental carcinogenesis are discussed in this review with particular emphasis on fast-moving aspects of this problem.