Main description:

This book introduces the most important and best studied extracellular and pericellular molecules of the tumor microenvironment. It gives a comprehensive overview of their role in tumor development and cancer progression.

Twelve chapters deal with the biochemical and biophysical background of extracellular matrix (ECM) changes in the tumor stroma compared to the physiological state. The reader learns about the major ECM components that are deregulated during cancer development and how they are associated with cancer progression associated with survival, inflammation process, among others. These are followed by recent data about the cooperative activity of extracellular matrix in tumor metabolism, promoting cancer progression.

Two chapters focus specifically on the critical role of the ECM in tumor angiogenesis, linking this process to cellular infiltration and metastatic behavior of tumors.
The final part describes how the ECM influences the success of immuno- and chemotherapy in cancer patients, its potential as biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic target, as well as the mechanism of resistance-associated changes in the ECM.

This book is an interesting read for anyone who want to know more about ECM and cancer biology. Early career scientists can use it as an introduction to the field, offering an excellent tool for studying ECM. Advanced researchers and clinicians can gain a broader overview of the subject, considering the role of ECM for influencing every cancer hallmark as well as in the response of cancer treatments. The work serves to inspire future research and shows that the ECM should be considered as an important factor in the development of cancer therapeutics.

The series "Biology of Extracellular Matrix" is published in collaboration with the American Society for Matrix Biology and the International Society for Matrix Biology.

Contents:

Table of Contents

Small leucine-rich proteoglycans regulate cancer cell growth, apoptosis-and associated inflammation.

Dragana Nikitovits, George Tzanakakis

The role of decorin in cancer

Kornelia Baghy, Andrea Reszegi, Zsolt Horvath, Ilona Kovalszky

The mystery of syndecan-1 in tumor development and progression

Ilona Kovalszky, Kornelia Baghy, Andrea Reszegi, Peter Hollosi, Anders Hjerpe, Katalin Dobra

Syndecan-2 Biology and its Role in Colorectal CarcinomaEok-Soo Oh and John R. Couchman

Versican in Tumor Progression, Tumor-Host Interactions and Cancer Immunotherapy

Athanasios Papadas, Alexander Cicala, Sean G. Kraus, Garrett Arauz, Gauri Deb, Dustin Deming, and Fotis Asimakopoulos

Circulating proteoglycans/glycosaminoglycans as cancer biomarkers

Antonio Junior Lepedda, Gabriele Nieddu, Nikos Karamanos, Marilena Formato

Hyaluronan in the Extracellular Matrix of hematological and solid tumors. Its biological effects"

Antonella Icardi, Silvina L Lompardia, Daniela L. Papademetrio, Paolo Rosales, Mariangeles Diaz, Matias A. Pibuel Laura Alaniz, Elida Alvarez.

Heparanase: a paramount enzyme for cancer initiation, progression and metastasis

Valentina Masola, Nicola Greco, Giovanni Gambaro, Marco Franchi and Maurizio Onisto

Laminins and matrix metalloproteinases connection: a subtle relationship that can go wrong in a tumor context, particularly if CD44 gets involved

Patricia Rousselle and Konrad Beck

Basement membrane, collagen, and fibronectin: physical interactions with cancer cells.

Franchi Marco, Valentina Masola, Konstantinos-Athanasios Karamanos, Leonardo Franchi, Konstantina Kyriakopoulou, Maurizio Onisto, Concettina Cappadone.

Integrins in cancer: re-focusing on the tumor microenvironment

Cedric Zeltz, Ning Lu, Ritva Heljasvaara and Donald Gullberg

Adipose compounds in breast tumor extracellular matrix

Flavia Piccioni, and Paola De Luca.

Extracellular matrix as a metabolic niche in cancer

Anna Sebestyen, Titanilla Danko, Daniel Sztankovics, Dorottya Moldvai, Ildiko Krencz, Regina Raffay and Gabor Petovari

The role of inflammatory cells in tumor angiogenesis

Roberto Tamma, Tiziana Annese, Domenico Ribatti

Cancer angiogenesis and its master regulator perlecan

Ilona Kovalszky, Lorand Vancza, Peter Tatrai, Kornelia Baghy

The microRNA-extracellular matrix interplay in breast cancer

Zoi Piperigkou, Dimitra Manou, Dimitra Bainantzou, Vasiliki Zolota

fthymia Papakonstantinou4, Achilleas D. Theocharis1, Nikos K. Karamanos

The impact of the extracellular matrix on immunotherapy success

Manglio M Rizzo, Mariel A Fusco and Mariana Malvicini

Exploiting hyaluronan-CD44 network in tumor therapy

Theodoros T. Karalis, Spyros S. Skandalis