Cancer cells can obtain their ability to invade and metastasise by undergoing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Exploiting this mechanism of cellular plasticity, malignant cells can remodel their actin cytoskeleton and down-regulate proteins needed for cell-cell contacts. The mechanisms of cytoskeletal reorganisation resulting in mesenchymal morphology and increased invasive potential...

Cells acquire the invasive and migratory properties necessary for the invasion-metastasis cascade and the establishment of aggressive, metastatic disease by reactivating a latent embryonic programme: epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Herein, we report the development of a new, spontaneous model of EMT which involves four phenotypically distinct clones derived from a primary tumour-der...

An epithelial-mesenchymal cell transformation (EMT) occurs during the development of endocardial cushions in the atrioventricular (AV) canal of the heart. This is a complex developmental process regulated by multiple extracellular signals and signal transduction pathways. It was recently shown that the transcription factor Slug is expressed in the AV canal and is required for initial steps of E...

Recent studies have demonstrated that acquisition of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is associated with drug resistance in pancreatic cancer cells; however, the underlying mechanisms are not fully elucidated. Emerging evidence suggests that microRNAs play a crucial role in controlling EMT. The aims of this study were to explore the potential role of miR-223 in governing EMT in gemcit...

BACKGROUND The sensation of respiratory effort may increase as expiratory muscles become fatigued during expiratory loading. A study was performed to determine whether expiratory muscle training (EMT) affects the sensation of respiratory effort during exercise in healthy subjects. METHODS Six subjects performed EMT for 15 minutes twice daily for four weeks using a pressure threshold device; a...

BACKGROUND Peritoneal dialysis (PD) therapy is known to induce morphological and functional changes in the peritoneal membrane. Long-term exposure to conventional bio-incompatible dialysate and peritonitis is the main etiology of inflammation. Consequently, the peritoneal membrane undergoes structural changes, including angiogenesis, fibrosis, and hyalinizing vasculopathy, which ultimately resu...

Purpose: This study aimed to detect cell-surface vimentin (CSV) on the surface of epithelial–mesenchymal transitioned (EMT) circulating tumor cells (CTC) from blood of patients with epithelial cancers. Experimental Design: In this study, 101 patients undergoing postsurgery adjuvant chemotherapy for metastatic colon cancer were recruited. EMT CTCs were detected from blood of patients using the 8...

Transcription factors of the Snail family are key regulators of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). In many processes during development or disease, cells do not acquire all the characteristics associated with EMT, leading to what we refer to as partial EMT (p-EMT). However, little is known of the implications of the Snail transcription factors in processes that only involve a p-EMT. To as...

Tumor growth and metastatic dissemination rely on cellular plasticity. Among the different phenotypes acquired by cancer cells, epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been extensively illustrated. Indeed, this transition allows an epithelial polarized cell to acquire a more mesenchymal phenotype with increased mobility and invasiveness. The role of EMT is quite clear during developmenta...

Both circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) play an important role in invasion, migration and chemoresistant in tumor development. This study aimed to detect whether EMT occurred in human gastric CTCs and to explore the mechanism of EMT in human gastric CTCs. We analysed epithelial markers (pan-CK, E-cadherin), mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin, vimentin) EMT r...