Identification of proteins differentially expressed in gastric cancer cells with high metastatic potential for invasion to lymph nodes.

In a search for proteins involved in cancer metastasis, we analyzed proteomes of the human gastric cancer cell OCUM-2M and its metastatic subline OCUM-2MLN. We observed that aspartate aminotransferase (AAT), D-site binding protein (DBP), and anterior gradient protein 2 (AGR2) are differentially expressed in metastatic OCUM-2MLN cells. Measurement of protein expression in clinical samples indicated that DBP and AAT are also down-regulated in metastatic adenocarcinoma. Additionally, urokinase-type tissue plasminogen activator is up-regulated in OCUM-2MLN cells and also in metastatic gastric cancer samples. Collectively, these results raise a possibility that AAT, DBP and AGR2 are functionally implicated in the invasiveness of gastric cancer cells.