乳癌におけるエストロゲン合成 : アロマターゼの重要性

概要

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It is well known that estrogens play important roles in growth of breast carcinomas. Recent studies have demonstrated that estrogens are locally produced in breast carcinoma tissues by several steroidogenic enzymes including aromatase, and aromatase inhibitors clinically useful for reducing the progression of breast tumors especially in postmenopausal women. In this review, I summarized results of recent studies on aromatase in breast carcinomas, and discuss the biological andor clinical significance. Aromatase was expressed in various cell types, such as carcinoma cells, intratumoral stromal cells and adipocytes adjacent to the carcinoma, in the breast carcinoma tissue, and aromatase expression in these cells was regulated by various factors such as cell-cell interactions, cytokines and nuclear receptors. Aromatase was involved in not only estrogen production but also inhibition of androgen synthesis in breast carcinoma tissues, and aromatase inhibitors are effective in breast carcinoma patients, possibly due to increasing local androgen with estrogen deprivation. Considering that responsible enzymes in the intratumoral estrogen production are not always the same among breast cancer patients, other estrogen-producing enzymes with an exception of aromatase, may also have important therapeutic potential in breast cancer patients as an endocrine therapy.総説Review Article
東北大学の論文