TM4SF3 promotes esophageal carcinoma metastasis via upregulating ADAM12m expression.

Esophageal cancer is characterized by rapid clinical progression and poor prognosis due to adjacent tissue invasion and distant organs metastasis at a very early stage. TM4SF3 (transmembrane 4 superfamily 3), a member of tetraspanin family, has been reported as a metastasis associated gene in many types of tumors. Herein, we described new properties of TM4SF3 in tumor metastasis, which suggested that this gene might be involved in esophageal carcinoma metastasis.