Connexin: a new perspective of tumor therapy / 中国生化药物杂志

Connexin (Cx) is the main component of gap junction channels, which is essential for intercellular communication between adjacent cells.Cx plays an important role in regulation of the growth, differentiation and apoptosis of cells and is closely related to tumor formation and development.The expression of Cx appears to be different in different stages of tumor development, and the regulatory mechanism of Cx is also involved in many aspects.In this paper, recent advances in the studies on Cx are reviewed, including the relationship between Cx and development of tumor, the basic mechanism of Cx, as well as its applications in antitumor-drug screening and tumor therapy.