Objective: To investigate the impact of intracellular interaction between fibroblasts and colorectal cancer cells on the expression of insulin growth factor binding protein7 (IGFBP7).
Methods: Colorectal cancer cells SW480 were cultured with or without fibroblasts HELF cells in RPMI 1640 medium for 0 h, 48 h, 7 2 h and 96 h, respectively. By RT-PCR and immunohistochemical staining methods,the expression of IGFBP7 was detected in mono-and co-cultured cells.
Result: When SW480 cells were co-cultured with HELF cells, IGFBP7 expression in SW480 cells was significantly upregulated. Furthermore, IGFBP7 was induced in HELF cells both at mRNA and protein levels, which did not express when cells were mono-cultured.
Conclusion: Fibroblasts-colorectal cancer cells interaction induces the expression of IGFBP7, which indicates tumor-stroma interactions may play an important role in colorectal cancer development.