Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) are a heterogeneous cell population within the tumor microenvironment,and play an important role in tumor development. By regulating the heterogeneity of CAF, transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) influences tumor development. Here, we explored oncogenes regulated by TGFβ1 that are also involved in signaling pathways and interactions within the tumor microenvironment. We analyzed sequencing data of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and our own previously established RNA microarray data (GSE53625), as well as esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cell lines with or without TGFβ1 stimulation. We then focused on laminin subunit gamma 1 (LAMC1), which was overexpressed in ESCC cells, affecting patient prognosis, which could be upregulated by TGFβ1 through the synergistic activation of SMAD family member 4 (SMAD4) and SP1. LAMC1 directly promoted the proliferation and migration of tumor cells, mainly via Akt-NFκB-MMP9/14 signaling. Additionally, LAMC1 promoted CXCL1 secretion, which stimulated the formation of inflammatory CAF (iCAF) through CXCR2-pSTAT3. Inflammatory CAF promoted tumor progression. In summary, we identified the dual mechanism by which the upregulation of LAMC1 by TGFβ in tumor cells not only promotes ESCC proliferation and migration, but also indirectly induces carcinogenesis by stimulating CXCL1 secretion to promote the formation of iCAF. This finding suggests that LAMC1 could be a potential therapeutic target and prognostic marker for ESCC.
Keywords: CAF; CXCL1; ESCC; LAMC1; heterogeneity; transforming growth factor β.
© 2021 The Authors. Published by FEBS Press and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.