Mammary-derived growth inhibitor (MDGI) interacts with integrin α-subunits and suppresses integrin activity and invasion

The majority of mortality associated with cancer is due to formation of metastases from the primary tumor. Adhesion mediated by different integrin heterodimers has an important role during cell migration and invasion. Protein interactions with the β1-integrin cytoplasmic tail are known to influence integrin affinity for extracellular ligands, but regulating binding partners for the α-subunit cytoplasmic tails have remained elusive. In this study, we show that mammary-derived growth inhibitor (MDGI) (also known as FABP-3 or H-FABP) binds directly to the cytoplasmic tail of integrin α-subunits and its expression inhibits integrin activity. In breast cancer cell lines, MDGI expression correlat…