Oral cancer is the fourth most common cancer reported nationwide, with an estimated 3000 new cases annually. Chemokines are a group of small (8-14 kDa) pro-inflammatory molecules that can regulate cell trafficking. Stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) is a member of CXC chemokine family and also a potent chemoattractant for hematopoietic cells. Many studies implicated that, in many kinds of cancers, SDF-1 act with its specific receptor CXCR4 may play an important role in tumorigenesis process. Based on this conception, we started to investigate the relationship between SDF-1/CXCR4 and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and also explore what role does SDF-1/CXCR4 signaling route play in the tumorigenesis of OSCC. First, we observed that CXCR4 and SDF-1 proteins are expressed in OSCC tissues of clinical oral cancer patients in a high ratio circumstances through immunohistochemical staining. CXCR4 was also expressed in all six OSCC cell lines we investigated. TW2.6 cell line, which was established from Taiwan, also expressed SDF-1 proteins. SDF-1 treatment not only enhanced the proliferation ability but also increased migration and invasion activities in these OSCC cell lines. Collectively, these results imply that the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis may play important and multiple roles in the tumorigenesis of OSCC. In the future, the tumorigenesis mechanism of SDF-1/CXCR4 in oral cancer will be investigated continually. Furthermore, the CXCR4 antagonist, AMD3100, will be tested whether it has the ability to inhibit the growth and metastasis of tumor cells. It may be considered as a potential strategy of the therapy for OSCC patients.
