Summary
Published in Frontiers in Oncology (2022), this peer-reviewed study used 3D Petri Dish® micro-molds to form scaffold-free 3D microtissues. Full citation: Rappu, Pekka, et al. Inflammation-related citrullination of matrisome proteins in human cancer
Inflammation-related citrullination of matrisome proteins in human cancer
Research Overview
Protein arginine deiminases are intracellular enzymes that, particularly in disease, can also citrullinate extracellular substrates including structural matrix proteins. They are abundantly expressed in human cancer cells, and citrullination of matrisome proteins has been reported in colon cancer — but never studied systematically.
The authors analyzed cancer proteomics data across three public databases for citrullinated matrisome proteins, and complemented this with 3D co-cultures of fibroblasts and cancer cells to examine citrullination of the matrix directly. The analysis indicates that extracellular matrix citrullination does occur in human cancer, with significant variation between tumors.
Key Discoveries
- Three public cancer proteomics databases mined for citrullinated matrisome proteins
- 3D fibroblast-cancer cell co-cultures used to examine ECM citrullination directly
- ECM citrullination confirmed in human cancer, with significant tumor-to-tumor variation
