Esophageal cancer-related gene 4 at the interface of injury, inflammation, infection, and malignancy

• DOI: 10.2147/gictt.s49085
• Publication Date: 2014-10-28T02:32:57Z
• Authors: Andrew Baird; JiSook Lee; Sonia Podvin; Arwa Kurabi; Xitong Dang; Vishal Bansal; Todd Costantini; Brian P Eliceiri; Raul Coimbra
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; ECRG4; Biomedical and Clinical Sciences; tumor suppressor; Oncology and Carcinogenesis; chemokine; 610; Biological Sciences; Article; 3. Good health; 03 medical and health sciences; Rare Diseases; Targets and Therapy [Gastrointestinal Cancer]; Genetics; cytokine; 2.1 Biological and endogenous factors; growth inhibitor; c2orf40; Biochemistry and Cell Biology; Aetiology; Digestive Diseases; Cancer

Abstract: In humans, esophageal cancer-related gene 4 (ECRG4) is encoded by four exons in the c2orf40 locus of chromosome 2. Translation ECRG4 messenger ribonucleic acid produces a 148 amino acid-secreted 17 KDa protein that then processed to 14, ten, eight, six, four, and two peptides, depending on cell which expressed. As hypermethylation at inhibits expression many epithelial cancers, several investigators have speculated candidate tumor suppressor. Indeed, overexpression proliferation vitro, but it also has wide range effects vivo beyond its antitumor activity. affects apoptosis, senescence, migration, inflammation, injury, infection responsiveness. activities depend cellular localization, secretion, post-translational processing. These cytokine/chemokine-like characteristics argue not traditional suppressor gene, as originally predicted downregulation cancer. We review how insights into regulation expression, knowledge primary structure, study emerging physiological functions come together support much more complex role for interface infection, malignancy. Keywords: ECRG4, c2orf40, suppressor, cytokine, chemokine, growth inhibitor