Redox regulation in tumor cell epithelial–mesenchymal transition: molecular basis and therapeutic strategy

Therapeutic targeting of reactive oxygen species could help prevent the cellular transition that makes cancers more aggressive. In a review article, Canhua Huang from Sichuan University, Chengdu, China, and colleagues discuss the emerging body of evidence linking reactive oxygens — free radicals, ions or molecules containing oxygen that are generated as by-products of metabolism — to the epithelialߝmesenchymal transition (EMT) that cancer cells undergo when they gain migratory and invasive properties, changes that often lead to cancer recurrence, drug resistance, metastasis and ultimately patient death. These reactive oxygens are produced in abundance by various tumors, which have elevated metabolic rates. They fuel the EMT by remodeling the cell’s cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix, loosening adhesion between cells and enabling cell mobility. Ridding them from cancer cells could forestall this cellular transformation and curtail the spread of tumors.