Exposure to cadmium chloride influences astrocyte-elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) expression in MDA-MB231 human breast cancer cells

Abstract It is known that cadmium (Cd) is able to regulate gene expression, drastically affecting the pattern of transcriptional activity and intracellular signalization in normal and pathological human cells. We have already shown that Cd exerts a cytotoxic effect on neoplastic MDA-MB231 cells from the human breast, which is characterized by the onset of a “non-classical” apoptotic kind of death, impairment of mitochondrial activity and drastic changes in gene expression pattern. In the present study, employing a combination of conventional and differential display-PCR techniques, immunocytochemical, ELISA and Western analyses, we extended the knowledge on the transcriptional modulation ex…