ArticleOncogene2015
Osteopontin mediates an MZF1-TGF-β1-dependent transformation of mesenchymal stem cells into cancer-associated fibroblasts in breast cancer.
Article in Oncogene, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 146 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
146 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 224 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prognostic significance of osteopontin expression in gastric cancer: a meta-analysis.Oncotarget · 2016Pooled it
- Small Extracellular Vesicles-Derived Circ6718 Unlocks Stromal Remodeling and Serves as a Biomarker in Gastric Cancer.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Bone-derived Osterix+ osteolineage cells are a source of tumor-promoting myofibroblastic cancer-associated fibroblasts in breast cancer.Nature communications · 2026Article
- The exosomal miRNA/FOXN3 axis empowers fibroblasts with tumor-promoting functions via enhanced migration and altered secretome.Journal of nanobiotechnology · 2026Article
- Osteopontin-driven TGF-β1 signaling via integrin αvβ3-NF-κB axis impairs NK cell function in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.Apoptosis : an international journal on programmed cell death · 2026Article
- Nanomaterials targeting cancer-associated fibroblasts to overcome stromal barriers in cancer immunotherapy.Journal of nanobiotechnology · 2026Review
- Cytokines and cancer-associated fibroblasts.Journal of hematology & oncology · 2026Review
- Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts Functions as Multifunctional Architects of the Tumor Stroma and Represent Emerging Therapeutic Vulnerabilities.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Review
- Heterogeneity and plasticity of cancer-associated fibroblasts.Nature cancer · 2026Review
- GALNT1 emerges as a potential therapeutic target in breast cancer.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2026Article
- Cancer-associated fibroblasts as a potential therapeutic target for thyroid cancers.International journal of surgery (London, England) · 2026Review
- Hotspots and frontiers of the relationship between hepatocellular carcinoma and cancer-associated fibroblasts: a bibliometric analysis and review.Discover oncology · 2025Article
- The Multifaceted Role of Osteopontin in Modulating the Tumor Microenvironment.Cancer research · 2025Review
- Role of metabolic reprogramming of cancer‑associated fibroblasts in tumor development and progression (Review).International journal of oncology · 2025Review
- Emerging role of cancer-associated fibroblasts in the premetastatic niche.Molecular cancer · 2025Review
- Review
- Crosstalk between heterogeneous cancer-associated fibroblast subpopulations and the immune system in breast cancer: key players and promising therapeutic targets.Journal of experimental & clinical cancer research : CR · 2025Review
- The Role of Tumor Microenvironment in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer and Its Therapeutic Targeting.Cells · 2025Review
- Tumor-associated mesenchymal stem/stromal cells in tumor microenvironment and carcinogenesis.Experimental hematology & oncology · 2025Review
- Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts: Heterogeneity, Cancer Pathogenesis, and Therapeutic Targets.MedComm · 2025Review
86 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Interactions between tumor cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in the tumor microenvironment significantly influence cancer growth and metastasis. Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) is known to be a critical mediator of the CAF phenotype, and osteopontin (OPN) expression in tumors is associated with more aggressive phenotypes and poor patient outcomes. The potential link between these two pathways has not been previously addressed. Utilizing in vitro studies using human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and MDA-MB231 (OPN+) and MCF7 (OPN-) human breast cancer cell lines, we demonstrate that OPN induces integrin-dependent MSC expression of TGF-β1 to mediate adoption of the CAF phenotype. This OPN-TGF-β1 pathway requires the transcription factor, myeloid zinc finger 1 (MZF1). In vivo studies with xenotransplant models in NOD-scid mice showed that OPN expression increases cancer growth and metastasis by mediating MSC-to-CAF transformation in a process that is MZF1 and TGF-β1 dependent. We conclude that tumor-derived OPN engenders MSC-to-CAF transformation in the microenvironment to promote tumor growth and metastasis via the OPN-MZF1-TGF-β1 pathway.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.