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Epidermal growth factor receptors and epidermal growth factor-like activity in colorectal mucosa, adenomas and carcinomas

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Summary

The epidermal growth factor (EGF) and alpha-tumor growth factor are mitogenic proteins which bind to the EGF-receptor and may play a role in carcinogenesis or tumor progression. Our study investigated whether colorectal carcinomas and adenomas express altered levels of EGF-receptors or overproduce EGF-like activity by comparing histologically normal mucosa to carcinomas resected from the same patients. EGF-receptors were characterized by radioligand binding studies. Carcinomas contained unchanged or decreased levels of EGF-receptors in 13/16 and moderately increased levels in 3/16 patients as compared to normal mucosa. Adenomas obtained from 2 patients with familial polyposis coli and from a third patient with a coincident carcinoma had similar numbers of EGF-receptors as normal mucosa. EGF-like growth factors, in contrast, were significantly elevated in carcinoma extracts as compared to extracts from normal mucosa of the same patients. Adenomas did not contain elevated levels of EGF-like activity. We conclude that increased expression of EGF-receptors is infrequent in colonic adenocarcinomas. Increased production of EGF-like growth factors may frequently occur but seems to be associated with tumor progression rather than with premalignant lesions as represented by adenomas.

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Abbreviations

EGF:

epidermal growth factor

EGF-R:

EGF-receptor

PMSF:

Phenylmethylsulfonylfluoride

TRIS:

Tris-(hydroxymethyl)-aminomethane

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This work was supported by a grant from the Wilhelm Sander-Stiftung to A.P. Part of the work was performed by E.R. in fulfilment of the requirements for her thesis

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Rothbauer, E., Mann, K., Wiebecke, B. et al. Epidermal growth factor receptors and epidermal growth factor-like activity in colorectal mucosa, adenomas and carcinomas. Klin Wochenschr 67, 518–523 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01719776

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01719776

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