Here, we examined human pancreatic cancer specimens for the expression of total TNC (TNC-ALL) and TNC-L in the stroma and annexin A2 (ANXA2), a cell surface receptor for TNC, and evaluated their significance as prognostic markers for pancreatic cancer.
Although cell surface localization of ANXA2 has been reported to have a critical role in the progression and metastasis of a variety of tumors, including pancreatic cancer, the biological role of intracellular ANXA2 is not fully understood.
In the pancreatic cancer cell culture system in vitro, it was proved that exogenous recombinant TNfnA-D combined with the cell surface ANXA2 specifically and their interaction suppressed gemcitabine-induced cytotoxicity on pancreatic cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner.
Loss of annexin II heavy chain appears to be specific for prostate cancer since overexpression of annexin II is observed in a majority of human cancers, including pancreatic cancer, breast cancer and brain tumors.