Purpose: Integrin-Linked Kinase (ILK) is associated with integrin and growth factor receptor signalling. As both signalling pathways contribute to cancer cell resistance, ILK seems well suited as a promising tumour target.
Material and methods: Data were obtained by performing a PubMed database search and summarised with a focus on the function of ILK in cancer biology.
Results: The findings on the catalytic function of ILK, on the putative substrates of ILK and on the expression of ILK in tumour and normal tissues are heterogeneous. In the context of cancer, two of these issues might be of importance. First, a variety of reports indicate a lack of ILK overexpression in tumours. Second, wild-type or overexpression of ILK has been found to considerably sensitise tumour cells to ionising irradiation as compared to ILK knockout or ILK knockdown conditions. In contrast, wild-type or overexpression of ILK has been shown to protect tumour cells from chemotherapy-induced cell death.
Conclusions: Due to these conflicting data, it is difficult to evaluate if therapeutic targeting of ILK is a reasonable strategy in cancer therapy. A more comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms controlled by ILK may help to answer this question.