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c-Jun NH₂-Terminal Kinase 1 Is a Critical Regulator for the Development of Gastric Cancer in Mice

¹ Division of Gastroenterology, Institute for Adult Diseases, Asahi Life Foundation, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan; ² Department of Gastroenterology, University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan; and ³ Laboratory of Gene Regulation and Signal Transduction, Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California

Requests for reprints: Shin Maeda, Division of Gastroenterology, Institute for Adult Diseases, Asahi Life Foundation, 1-6-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005. Phone: 81-3-3201-6781; Fax: 81-3-3201-6881; E-mail: shinmaeda2-gi{at}umin.ac.jp.

Key Words: Gastric carcinogenesis • JNK

c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK) links several cellular processes, including proliferation and survival, and is believed to be involved in carcinogenesis. However, the role of JNK in gastric tumorigenesis is unknown. Immunohistochemical analysis reveals that JNK is frequently activated in human gastric cancer tissue. We investigated whether JNK1, a major JNK isozyme, is involved in chemically induced gastric cancer development. Mice lacking JNK1 exhibited a marked decrease in gastric carcinogenesis induced by N-methyl-N-nitrosourea, relative to their wild-type counterparts. Impaired tumor development correlated with decreased tumor initiation, which is associated with the production of reactive oxygen species. We also found that lower levels of tumorigenesis were correlated with the decreased expression of cyclin D and CDK as well as decreased cell proliferation. Taken together, JNK seems to be involved in both tumor initiation and promotion and may be an attractive target for the prevention of gastric carcinogenesis. [Cancer Res 2008;68(13):5031–9]