The transcriptional inhibitor Snail is a critical regulator for epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Although low oxygen induces Snail transcription, thereby stimulating EMT, a direct role of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) in this process remains to be demonstrated. Here we show that hypoxia induces the expression of Snail via HIF. In silico analysis identified a potential hypoxia-response ...

An introduced snail, Batillaria attramentaria, has successfully invaded several salt marshes and mud flats in northern California. In these areas populations of the native mud snail, Cerithidea californica, have declined precipitously. Since both species feed on epipelic diatoms, I hypothesized that the decline in Cerithidea was a result of exploitative competition with Batillaria. To test this...

There are limited reports with respect to the study on the epithelium-mesenchymal transformation (EMT) mediated by Snail in the ovarian cancer. This study detected the expression of Snail and related EMT markers in the ovarian cancer tissues, and explored the possible molecular mechanism of EMT mediated by Snail in the metastasis of ovarian cancer. The patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer acc...

The Snail zinc-finger transcription factors trigger epithelial-mesenchymal transitions (EMTs), endowing epithelial cells with migratory and invasive properties during both embryonic development and tumor progression. During EMT, Snail provokes the loss of epithelial markers, as well as changes in cell shape and the expression of mesenchymal markers. Here, we show that in addition to inducing dr...

microRNAs(miRNAs) can regulate epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) through transcription factors, however, little is known whether EMT transcription factors can modulate miRNAs and further induce EMT and cancer metastasis. Here we show that overexpression of Snail and Slug leads to a mesenchymal phenotype and morphology and enhances cell invasion along with stem cell properties in squamous ...

E-cadherin, β-catenin and Snail are important molecules involved in cellular adhesion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Loss of E-cadherin expression, nuclear relocation of β-catenin and high expression of Snail are connected to tumor progression, rapid cell growth and metastasis. The aim of our study was to analyze the immunohistochemical expression of β-catenin, E-cadherin and Snail, dep...

This study aims to identify the landscape ecological determinants related to Oncomelania hupensis distribution, map the potential high risk of O. hupensis habitats at the microscale, and assess the effects of two environmental control strategies. Sampling was performed on 242 snail sites and 726 non-snail sites throughout Qianjiang City, Hubei Province, China. An integrated approach of landscap...

The aim of this study was to investigate the roles of the transcription factor Snail and adhesion factor epithelial-cadherin (E-cadherin) in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CCRCC) and evaluate their correlation with tumor pathological grading, clinical stage, invasion and metastases. The expression of Snail and E-cadherin protein in 69 samples of CCRCC tissue, 58 samples of para-cancerous muco...

PURPOSE To investigate the transcriptional factors associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in choroidal neovascularization (CNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). METHODS Paraffin sections of CNV obtained from patients with AMD (n = 12) were stained for transcriptional factors related to EMT, i.e., Snail, Slug, SIP1, and Twist. As a control, postmortem secti...

The Slug transcription factor plays an important role in ultraviolet radiation (UVR)-induced skin carcinogenesis, particularly in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) occurring during tumor progression. In the present studies, we investigated the role of Slug in two-stage chemical skin carcinogenesis. Slug and the related transcription factor Snail were expressed at high levels in skin t...