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Estrogen regulation of mammary gland development and breast cancer: amphiregulin takes center stage
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* Corresponding author: Jeffrey M Rosen jrosen@bcm.edu
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
Breast Cancer Research 2007, 9:304 doi:10.1186/bcr1740
Published: 20 July 2007Abstract
Estrogen-mediated proliferation is fundamental to normal mammary gland development. Recent studies have demonstrated that amphiregulin is a critical paracrine regulator of estrogen action during ductal morphogenesis. These studies implicate a critical role for amphiregulin in mammary stem cell differentiation as well as breast cancer initiation and progression.