TNF-α is a key regulator of MUC1, an anti-inflammatory molecule, during airway Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection.

Muc1 is a heterodimeric mucin that is expressed on the apical surface of airway epithelial cells as well as hematopoietic cells. Both in vivo and in vitro studies revealed that Muc1 suppresses inflammatory responses induced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA). In this study, we sought to determine, using intact animals (C57BL/6 mice), whether the expression of Muc1 is important during airway PA infection, and how Muc1 levels are controlled during inflammation.

CD155/PVR enhances glioma cell dispersal by regulating adhesion signaling and focal adhesion dynamics.

We recently identified the immunoglobulin-CAM CD155/PVR (the poliovirus receptor) as a regulator of cancer invasiveness and glioma migration, but the mechanism through which CD155/PVR controls these processes is unknown. Here, we show that expression of CD155/PVR in rat glioma cells that normally lack this protein enhances their dispersal both in vitro and on primary brain tissue. CD155/PVR expression also reduced substrate adhesion, cell spreading, focal adhesion density, and the number of actin stress fibers in a substrate-dependent manner.