Roles and Regulatory Mechanisms of Extracellular Matrix Remodeling in vivo

RECK最初是作为转化抑制基因分离出来的，它编码一种对小鼠胚胎发生至关重要的膜锚定糖蛋白，并在各种类型的人类癌症中下调。我们在分子、细胞和全动物水平上的研究表明，RECK形成牛铃状二聚体，调节广泛的细胞外金属蛋白酶，并保护细胞表面分子和细胞外基质成分。我们还发现，RECK的表达受多种外部刺激的动态调控，包括生长因子、细胞密度和氧浓度。

RECK, first isolated as a transformation suppressor gene, encodes a membrane-anchored glycoprotein essential for mouse embryogenesis and down-regulated in various type of human cancer. Our studies at the molecular, cellular, and whole animal levels revealed that RECK forms cowbell-shaped dimer, regulates a wide spectrum of extracellular metalloproteases, and protects cell surface molecules as well as extracellular matrix components. We also found that RECK expression is under dynamic regulations by various external stimuli, including growth factors, cell density, and oxygen concentration.