A survey on Fetuin-A in breast cancer: The mechanism and action

Fetuin-A is a major 63-kDa plasma protein synthesized by liver cells and secreted to plasma. Fetuin-A has been suggested to be an extracellular adhesive molecule.Breast tumor cells in the presence of fetuin-A can join and distribute, but the mechanism is not clear. Fetuin-A mediates adhesion by calcium ions, but integrin mediates adhesion by divalent ion manganese and magnesium.Calcium-mediated adhesion is observed in metastatic or more aggressive breast tumor cell line, but not in benign or normal breast epithelial cells. Adhesion and spreading of tumor cells can be mediated only by cellular exosomes carrying histones and fetuin-A.In this article, fetuin A, its role in apoptosis andbreast cancer will be surveyed.