Cell migration and metastasis markers as targets of environmental pollutants and the Aryl hydrocarbon receptor

Robert Barouki (1, 2) , Xavier Coumoul (3)

1 UMRS 747
2 AP-HP - Assistance publique - Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP)
3 UPCité - Université Paris Cité

During the last few years, several studies have pointed to a surprising link between environmental pollutants cellular signaling and important cell functions such as plasticity, adhesion and migration. This unexpected link could be related to endogenous functions of pollutants receptors that may be disrupted by environmental factors, which is supported by observations in invertebrate species. It could also reveal novel toxic end-points and mechanisms of those pollutants, such as teratogenesis and cancer metastasis that are highly relevant from a public health point of view. In the present short article, we will review our recent observations on the aryl hydrocarbon receptor and its new molecular and cellular targets. We identified HEF1/NEDD9/CAS-L, a multifunctional protein involved in integrin-based signaling as a transcriptional target of the receptor, and showed that its induction was critical for cell plasticity mediated by environmental pollutants. We will put our studies in perspective with other observations made by several groups.

Mots clés: aromatic hydrocarbons; dioxins; environmental pollutants; dissemin; Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor; toxicity; Hef1/Nedd9/Cas-L; tumor progression; cell migration; development

Domaines: Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]

Robert Barouki, Xavier Coumoul. Cell migration and metastasis markers as targets of environmental pollutants and the Aryl hydrocarbon receptor. Cell Adhesion & Migration, 2010, 4 (1), pp.72-76. ⟨10.4161/cam.4.1.10313⟩. ⟨hal-02190044⟩