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. 2011 Dec 16;31(2):254–256. doi: 10.1038/emboj.2011.469

Figure 1.

Figure 1

(A) The ECM components periostin and TNC in the metastatic niche help activate developmental pathways for the viability of metastasis-initiating cells in the lungs. (B) In the pulmonary parenchyma, TGF-β3 stimulates myofibroblasts to produce periostin, which binds stromal Wnt factors for presentation to stem-like metastasis-initiating cells (Malanchi et al, 2011). Myofibroblasts and the cancer cells themselves also produce TNC, which promotes the intracellular functioning of the Wnt and Notch pathways (Oskarsson et al, 2011). A direct biochemical connection between these functions is likely, as periostin binds TNC and anchors it to ECM components including fibronectin and type I collagen (Kii et al, 2010).