Radiation resistance, invasiveness and metastasis are inflammatory events that could be suppressed by lipoxin A₄

Abstract 

Radiation induces overexpression and activity of the MET oncogene that, in turn, enhances the production of prostaglandin E₂, a pro-inflammatory molecule. Prostaglandin E₂ promotes tumor cell invasion, prevents apoptosis, enhances their metastasis and causes radioresistance. It is proposed that lipoxin A₄, a potent endogenous anti-inflammatory molecule, opposes the actions of prostaglandin E₂ and thus, could promote radiosensitivity, suppress tumor cell proliferation, invasiveness and suppress metastasis. Thus, methods designed to enhance endogenous lipoxin A₄ formation or its synthetic analogs may be useful in the management of cancer.

Keywords: Prostaglandins, Polyunsaturated fatty acids, Lipoxin A₄, Radiation, Drug resistance, Metastasis, Cancer