Nodal是转化生长因子β超家族成员,胚胎形成的重要调节因子。由于其表达仅限于在胚胎组织、人类胚胎干细胞和肿瘤细胞中,近年来受到了越来越广泛的关注,特别是在肿瘤治疗领域。研究发现,Nodal与肿瘤形成具有一定的联系,但其具体机制尚不甚明了。研究Nodal在肿瘤组织中表达及其在肿瘤发生过程中的作用机制,可能会对肿瘤的诊治具有一定的价值。
Nodal is an important embryonic morphogenic factor belonging to TGF-β superfamily.In recent years,it has been increasingly of interests especially in the field of tumor treatment because cancer genome project shows that the expression of Nodal is restricted to embryonic tissues,hESCs,and cancer cells.It has been found that nodal and tumor formation has a certain relationship,but the specific mechanism is not clear yet.The study on the role of Nodal signaling in the pathogenesis of tumor will be helpful for the diagnosis and treatment of tumor.