Because IGF-I is a paracrine/endocrine hormone that has been associated with increased risk for several types of cancer, these results suggest a novel interrelationship between oncogenic conversion of a cellular gene such as HRAS, and IGF-I produced locally for normal tissue homeostasis.
A 'Mendelian randomization' approach based on large-scale gene association and prospective observational studies might help determine the possible causal role of IGF-I and its binding proteins in the aetiology of type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease and cancer.
Genetic variants affecting the release or biological action of growth hormone (GH), the main stimulator of IGF-I production, may predict circulating levels of IGF-I and have an effect on cancer risk.
These findings suggest that PTEN suppresses the cell growth through modulation of IGF system and sensitizing cancer cells to cell death by anticancer drugs.
Polymorphisms of the IGF1 gene and of genes encoding for the major IGF-I carriers may predict circulating levels of IGF-I and have an impact on cancer risk.
Polymorphisms in IRS1 and IGF1 were also associated with an approximately two-fold increased risk of specific TP53 mutations relative to controls without cancer.
Activation of the type I insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-IR) regulates several aspects of the malignant phenotype, including cancer cell proliferation and metastasis.
Here, we discuss the influence of low-penetrance polymorphisms in the genes along the GH1/IGF-1 axis and their impact on hormone levels and cancer risk, especially breast cancer.
Type I insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-IR), which is frequently overexpressed in a variety of human cancers including lung cancer, mediates cancer cell proliferation and tumor growth.
Here, we review the contribution of IGF-I in developmental processes with a focus on the development of the inner ear, as well as pathological implications resulting from IGF-I deregulation during cancer.
Insulin-like growth factor type I receptor (IGF-IR) plays critical roles in epithelial cancer cell development, proliferation, motility, and survival, and new therapeutic agents targeting IGF-IR are in development.
The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor (type 1 IGF receptor or IGF1R) have played an important role in the growth and apoptosis of cancer.
Both overexpression and down-regulation of EGF, IGF-1 and FGF2 was demonstrated in endometrial cancer compared to the adjacent normal specimens; however the main features of cancer were IGF-1 and EGF down-regulation and FGF2 up-regulation.
A (CA)19 repeat polymorphism in the promoter region of IGF-I gene that may affect transcription activity has been implicated as a risk factor for cancer, but individual studies have been inconclusive or controversial.