ASBESTOS AND MAPK

Exposure to asbestos has been linked to the development of diverse lung diseases. Experiments by our laboratory have revealed that asbestos fibers, particularly, high iron containing amphiboles, such as crocidolite, interact with the cell surface receptor EGFR to initiate a cell signaling cascade that regulates early gene expression of several proto-oncogenes. EGFR is a critical pathway element in the signaling from G protein coupled receptors, cytokines, RTKs and integrins to a variety of cellular responses such as MAPKs activation,gene transcription and proliferation. Several MAPKinases have been already identified in our laboratory as targets of the asbestos activated EGFR. In this figure we show a general map of possible transactivation pathways involve in the asbestos cell-signaling cascade. The blue boxes represent strongly upregulated kinases by asbestos.