The role of Notch signaling in gastric carcinoma: molecular pathogenesis and novel therapeutic targets

// Yizheng Yao 1 , Ying Ni 1 , Jiawen Zhang 1 , Hua Wang 1 and Shihe Shao 1 1 Institute of Laboratory Medicine, School of medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, China Correspondence to: Hua Wang, email: wangjiahan1979@163.com Shihe Shao, email: shaoshihe2006@163.com Keywords: Notch signaling, gastric cancer, stemness, therapeutic targets Received: December 23, 2016     Accepted: April 17, 2017     Published: May 11, 2017 ABSTRACT Notch signaling, an evolutionarily conserved signaling cascade system, is involved in promoting the progression of different types of cancers. Within the past decades, the Notch signaling pathway has increasingly been shown to have a primary role in deciding the fate of cancer cells and cancer stem cells in the stomach. Most components of Notch signaling are strongly expressed at different levels in gastric carcinoma tissue samples and are associated with a considerable number of clinical parameters. Moreover, crosstalk signaling between the Notch pathway and the Wnt, Ras, and NF-κB pathways promotes the process of gastric carcinogenesis. Consequently, this increases proliferation and prevents apoptosis in gastric cancer cells, and it contributes to the induction of angiogenesis and accelerates the progression of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Although the Notch signaling pathway presents novel therapeutic targets for cancer therapeutic intervention, there is still a dearth of in-depth understanding of the molecular mechanisms of Notch signaling in gastric carcinoma. In this review, we summarize the landscape of the Notch signaling pathway and recent findings on Notch signaling in gastric cancer. Furthermore, advanced studies and clinical treatments targeting the Notch signaling pathway arediscussed.