Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41952334›Full record

ArticleCancer medicine2026

Transgelin Expression in Activated Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts Regulates Stromal Contractility and Promotes Colon Cancer Progression.

Ryuji Okamoto, Tetsuro Hiroi, Yuka Nakamura, Hiroko Hashimoto, Shingo Sakashita, Naoya Sakamoto, Shumpei Ishikawa, Horacio Cabral, Triantafyllos Stylianopoulos, Yuichiro Tsukada and 5 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cancer medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Ryuji OkamotoDepartment of Pathology and Clinical Laboratories, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0005-3422-9676
Tetsuro HiroiDepartment of Pathology and Clinical Laboratories, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.
Yuka NakamuraDivision of Innovative Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, National Cancer Center Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center, Kashiwa, Japan.
Hiroko HashimotoDivision of Innovative Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, National Cancer Center Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center, Kashiwa, Japan.
Shingo SakashitaDivision of Innovative Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, National Cancer Center Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center, Kashiwa, Japan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1133-3313
Naoya SakamotoDivision of Innovative Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, National Cancer Center Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center, Kashiwa, Japan.
Shumpei IshikawaDivision of Innovative Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, National Cancer Center Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center, Kashiwa, Japan.
Horacio CabralDepartment of Bioengineering, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Triantafyllos StylianopoulosCancer Biophysics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus.
Yuichiro TsukadaDepartment of Colorectal Surgery, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.
Atsushi OchiaiResearch Institute for Biomedical Sciences, Tokyo University of Science, Tokyo, Japan.
Tomonori YanoDepartment of Gastroenterology and Endoscopy, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.
Masaaki ItoDepartment of Colorectal Surgery, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1101-2707
Genichiro IshiiDepartment of Pathology and Clinical Laboratories, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8637-3323
Motohiro KojimaDepartment of Pathology and Clinical Laboratories, National Cancer Center Hospital East, Kashiwa, Japan.

Funding

Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 18007279Japan Society for the Promotion of Science JP23725350
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Transgelin is an actin-binding protein that promotes cancer progression via activation of cancer-associated fibroblasts and has been identified as a prognostic marker. However, its distribution and functional role in colon cancer remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the mechanistic role of transgelin in colon cancer progression by focusing on its functional impact in cancer-associated fibroblasts. Tissue microarrays from 359 human colon cancer tissues were investigated to elucidate the clinical importance of transgelin expression in cancer stroma. We focused on transgelin in fibroblasts and investigated its functional role in stromal activation using in vitro knockdown experiments and in vivo co-transplantation models. Primary cultures of human colon fibroblasts were evaluated for their biological function. Our data showed that transgelin expression is predominant in activated cancer-associated fibroblasts in colon cancer tissues. Stimulation by cancer-cell-conditioned medium (CM) significantly upregulated transgelin, ACTA2, COL1A1, and TNC expression in colonic fibroblasts. Additionally, transgelin knockdown (KD) in fibroblasts did not influence the upregulation except for transgelin itself. Transgelin KD in fibroblasts did not result in drastic alterations in gene expression profiles. Transgelin KD suppressed collagen gel contractility. Furthermore, co-transplantation experiments of cancer cells and colonic fibroblasts into immunodeficient mice revealed that transgelin KD inhibited tumor growth in fibroblasts. In conclusion, stromal transgelin expression in colon cancer strongly correlated with distant metastasis and served as a prognostic factor for colon cancer. Mechanistically, transgelin in cancer-associated fibroblasts promotes tumor growth by regulating stromal contractility, suggesting transgelin as a potential therapeutic target.

Indexed as

Cancer-Associated FibroblastsColonic NeoplasmsMicrofilament ProteinsMuscle ProteinsAnimalsCell Line, TumorDisease ProgressionFemaleGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticGene Knockdown TechniquesHumansMaleMiceStromal CellsMicrofilament ProteinsMuscle Proteinstransgelincolon cancerfibroblaststransgelin

Identifiers

PMID41952334
PMCPMC13062257

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.