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Review
. 2009 May 1;69(9):3727-30.
doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-08-4289. Epub 2009 Apr 21.

Catecholamines regulate tumor angiogenesis

Debanjan Chakroborty  1 , Chandrani Sarkar, Biswarup Basu, Partha Sarathi Dasgupta, Sujit Basu
Affiliations
Review

Catecholamines regulate tumor angiogenesis

Debanjan Chakroborty et al. Cancer Res. .

Abstract

Among the regulators of angiogenesis, catecholamine neurotransmitters are of recent interest because of their opposite roles in the regulation of tumor neovascularization. Norepinephrine and epinephrine by acting through specific adrenoceptors increase the synthesis of proangiogenic factors, and thereby, promote tumor growth. In contrast, dopamine acting via its specific D(2) receptors inhibits tumor growth by suppressing the actions of vascular permeability factor/vascular endothelial growth factor-A on both tumor endothelial and bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells. These reports identify novel endogenous regulators of tumor angiogenesis and also indicate a new and an inexpensive class of antiangiogenic drugs for the treatment of cancer.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest

No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Schematic diagram of norepinephrine- and dopamine-mediated signaling pathways in tumor cells, endothelial cells, and endothelial progenitor cells that regulate tumor angiogenesis. A, norepinephrine acting through β adrenoceptors in ovarian carcinoma cells induces synthesis and release of proangiogenic molecules, IL-6, and VEGF by these cells. B, dopamine acting through D2 receptors in tumor endothelial cells inhibits proliferation of these cells by inhibiting phosphorylation of VEGFR-2, MAPK, and FAK. C, dopamine acting through D2 receptors decreases ERK1/ERK2-mediated MMP-9 release by endothelial progenitor cells and thereby inhibits their mobilization from the bone marrow and thus prevents their participation in tumor neovascularization. βAR, βadrenergic receptor; EC, endothelial cell; EPC, endothelial progenitor cell; BM, bone marrow; VEGFR-2, vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2; MAPK, MAP kinase; FAK, focal adhesion kinase; MMP-9, matrix metalloproteinase-9.
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