Table 2.
Effects of neurotransmitters on breast cancer in chronic stress.
| Category | Neurotransmitter | Changes in content | Effects on breast cancer cells | Mechanism |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biogenic amines | α-Epinephrine | ΑDR-α1↑ ΑDR-α2↑ |
Proliferation↑, resistance to paclitaxel | Ras/Raf/MAPK; PKA/Src/Erk |
| β-Epinephrine | ADR-β1↑ ADR-β2↑ |
Stem cell-like properties↑, migration↑, invasion↑, resistance to trastuzumab | β2-AR/PKA/Epac; β2-AR/STAT3/muc1; PI3K/Akt/miR-199a/b-3p |
|
| DA | DRD2↑ DRD4↑ |
Apoptosis↑ | — | |
| NE | ↑ | Adhesion↑, proliferation↑, migration↑, invasion↑, angiogenesis↑, lymphangiogenesis↑ | β3-AR/cAMP/Epac/c-Jun; β−2AR/cAMP/Epac/Rap; ADRB2/Src/FAK; β2-AR/PKA/mTOR |
|
| 5-HT | 5-HT3↓ 5-HTR7↓ |
Proliferation↑, Migration↑, Invasion↑ | — | |
| Amino acids | GABA | GABAB1e↑ | Stem cell-like properties↑, migration↑, invasion↑ | Ras/MAPK; PI3K/Akt |
| ACh | α7-nAChR↑ α9-nAChR↑ |
Proliferation↑, migration↑, invasion↑, Angiogenesis↑ | Upregulated phosphorylation level of ERK1/2 | |
| mGluR | ↑ | Proliferation↑, angiogenesis↑ | mGluR1 signaling pathway | |
| HA | ↑ | Migration↑, invasion↑ | TGF-β/Smad | |
| Peptides | NPY | Y5↑ | Proliferation↑, angiogenesis↑ | — |
| NTS | NTSR1↑ | Proliferation↑, migration↑, invasion↑ | NTS/NTSR1; NF-κB/IGF-1R/PI3K/Akt; PKC/MAPK |