SummaryA number of growth factors have been implicated in the control of the proliferation of breast cancer cells and some have been reported to mediate the proliferative effects of oestradiol. MCF-7 cells were treated with growth factors in the presence and absence of oestradiol. Oestradiol increased the response of cells to the proliferative effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF), transforming growth factor alpha (TGF-M) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). Platelet derived growth factor (PDGF) and cathepsin D had no effect in the presence or absence of oestradiol while TGF-P slightly reduced the stimulation by oestradiol. In the absence of oestradiol, there was little effect of combinations of growth factors although the effects of bFGF and IGF-I were additive. In the presence of oestradiol, the effects of bFGF and TGF-a were additive whereas bFGF acted as an IGF-I antagonist. Overall, bFGF had the greatest effect on cell proliferation although this was less marked than the previously described effect of the IGFs and insulin. (Lippman et al., 1976;Johnson et al., 1989). They therefore provide useful systems for studying the interactions between various growth factors and for understanding the mechanisms involved in the stimulation of proliferation by oestrogens and the interactions between growth factors and steroids.

Summary The effects of tamoxifen, three of its in vivo metabolites and 3-hydroxytamoxifen on cellular proliferation and the induction of four oestrogen-regulated RNAs (pNR-1, pNR-2, pNR-25 and cathepsin D) have been measured in MCF-7 breast cancer cells in phenol red-free culture medium. Tamoxifen and 3-hydroxytamoxifen acted as partial oestrogens to stimulate cell growth and the levels of the pNR-2 and pNR-25 RNAs. They were full oestrogens for the induction of cathepsin D RNA and induced the pNR-l RNA above the level found in oestrogen-treated cells. N-Desmethyltamoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen behaved like tamoxifen except that N-desmethyltamoxifen did not induce the pNR-2 RNA and was only a partial oestrogen for the induction of cathepsin D RNA, and 4-hydroxytamoxifen did not induce the pNR-2 or pNR-25 RNAs. In the presence of oestradiol, the four anti-oestrogens prevented the stimulation of growth and reduced (pNR-2 and pNR-25) or increased (pNR-1) the RNA levels to those present in MCF-7 cells treated with the anti-oestrogen alone. In contrast, for cathepsin D RNA levels there was a synergistic effect of the anti-oestrogens and oestradiol. The concentration at which each anti-oestrogen was effective was related to its affinity for the oestrogen receptor. Metabolite E was a full oestrogen for the induction of cell proliferation and the oestrogen-regulated RNAs. pNR-25 and pNR-2 RNA levels correlated most closely with effects on cell proliferation. These RNAs are therefore potentially the most useful for predicting the response of breast cancer patients to tamoxifen therapy.

Why Helicobacter pylori colonizes only gastric tissue is unknown. It is found on gastric mucus-secreting cells and in the overlying gastric mucus but not deep in gastric glands. This localization mirrors the expression of trefoil factor 1, TFF1. We hypothesized that H. pylori interacting with TFF1 could explain the tropism of this bacteria for gastric tissue. Recombinant human TFF1 expressed in Escherichia coli was purified by affinity chromatography, ionexchange chromatography, and gel filtration. Binding of H. pylori was assessed by using flow cytometry and the BIAcore system, which allows real-time monitoring of molecular interactions. In flow cytometry, H. pylori bound to the TFF1 dimer, but Campylobacter jejuni strains and the laboratory strain of E. coli, HB101, did not bind. When the BIAcore system was used, H. pylori bound strongly to TFF1-coated dextran chips compared with uncoated chips. Binding was inhibited by a TFF1 monoclonal antibody and by soluble TFF1. H. pylori bound to porcine gastric mucin only if it was pretreated with TFF1. In conclusion, H. pylori interacts avidly with the dimeric form of TFF1, and this interaction enables binding to gastric mucin, suggesting that TFF1 may act as a receptor for the organism in vivo. This interaction may underline the previously unexplained tropism of this organism for gastric tissue and its colocalization with the gastric mucin MUC5AC.

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