ALCAM explained

CD166 antigen is a 100-105 kD typeI transmembrane glycoprotein that is a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily of proteins. In humans it is encoded by the ALCAM gene.^{[1] [2]} It is also called CD166 (cluster of differentiation 166), MEMD, SC-1/DM-GRASP/BEN in the chicken, and KG-CAM in the rat.

Some literature sources have also cited it as the CD6 ligand (CD6L). It is expressed on activated T cells, activated monocytes, epithelial cells, fibroblasts, neurons, melanoma cells, and also in sweat and sebaceous glands. CD166 protein expression is reported to be upregulated in a cell line deriving from a metastasizing melanom--a.^[3] CD166 plays an important role in mediating adhesion interactions between thymic epithelial cells and CD6+ cells during intrathymic T cell development.

Recently, CD166 has also been used as a potential cancer stem cell marker.

See also

• List of intestinal stem cell marker genes

Further reading

• Whitney GS, Starling GC, Bowen MA . The membrane-proximal scavenger receptor cysteine-rich domain of CD6 contains the activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule binding site. . J. Biol. Chem. . 270 . 31 . 18187–90 . 1995 . 7543097 . 10.1074/jbc.270.31.18187 . etal. free .
• Bajorath J, Bowen MA, Aruffo A . Molecular model of the N-terminal receptor-binding domain of the human CD6 ligand ALCAM. . Protein Sci. . 4 . 8 . 1644–7 . 1996 . 8520490 . 10.1002/pro.5560040822 . 2143187 .
• Skonier JE, Bowen MA, Emswiler J . Recognition of diverse proteins by members of the immunoglobulin superfamily: delineation of the receptor binding site in the human CD6 ligand ALCAM. . Biochemistry . 35 . 38 . 12287–91 . 1996 . 8823162 . 10.1021/bi961038k . etal.
• Singer NG, Mitra R, Lialios F . CD6 dependent interactions of T cells and keratinocytes: functional evidence for a second CD6 ligand on gamma-interferon activated keratinocytes. . Immunol. Lett. . 58 . 1 . 9–14 . 1998 . 9436462 . 10.1016/S0165-2478(97)02707-7 . etal.
• Degen WG, van Kempen LC, Gijzen EG . MEMD, a new cell adhesion molecule in metastasizing human melanoma cell lines, is identical to ALCAM (activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule). . Am. J. Pathol. . 152 . 3 . 805–13 . 1998 . 9502422 . 1858405 . etal.
• Cortés F, Deschaseaux F, Uchida N . HCA, an immunoglobulin-like adhesion molecule present on the earliest human hematopoietic precursor cells, is also expressed by stromal cells in blood-forming tissues. . Blood . 93 . 3 . 826–37 . 1999 . 9920831 . 10.1182/blood.V93.3.826. etal.
• Tomita K, van Bokhoven A, Jansen CF . Coordinate recruitment of E-cadherin and ALCAM to cell-cell contacts by alpha-catenin. . Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. . 267 . 3 . 870–4 . 2000 . 10673383 . 10.1006/bbrc.1999.2040 . etal.
• van Kempen LC, Nelissen JM, Degen WG . Molecular basis for the homophilic activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM)-ALCAM interaction. . J. Biol. Chem. . 276 . 28 . 25783–90 . 2001 . 11306570 . 10.1074/jbc.M011272200 . etal. free . 2066/143807 . free .
• Strausberg RL, Feingold EA, Grouse LH . Generation and initial analysis of more than 15,000 full-length human and mouse cDNA sequences. . Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. . 99 . 26 . 16899–903 . 2003 . 12477932 . 10.1073/pnas.242603899 . 139241 . 2002PNAS...9916899M . etal. free .
• Kristiansen G, Pilarsky C, Wissmann C . ALCAM/CD166 is up-regulated in low-grade prostate cancer and progressively lost in high-grade lesions. . Prostate . 54 . 1 . 34–43 . 2003 . 12481253 . 10.1002/pros.10161 . 22749852 . etal.
• Zhang H, Li XJ, Martin DB, Aebersold R . Identification and quantification of N-linked glycoproteins using hydrazide chemistry, stable isotope labeling and mass spectrometry. . Nat. Biotechnol. . 21 . 6 . 660–6 . 2003 . 12754519 . 10.1038/nbt827 . 581283 .
• Fujiwara H, Tatsumi K, Kosaka K . Human blastocysts and endometrial epithelial cells express activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM/CD166). . J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. . 88 . 7 . 3437–43 . 2003 . 12843199 . 10.1210/jc.2002-021888 . etal. free .
• Ota T, Suzuki Y, Nishikawa T . Complete sequencing and characterization of 21,243 full-length human cDNAs. . Nat. Genet. . 36 . 1 . 40–5 . 2004 . 14702039 . 10.1038/ng1285 . etal. free .
• van Kempen LC, Meier F, Egeblad M . Truncation of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule: a gateway to melanoma metastasis. . J. Invest. Dermatol. . 122 . 5 . 1293–301 . 2004 . 15140234 . 10.1111/j.0022-202X.2004.22531.x . etal. free .
• Zimmerman AW, Nelissen JM, van Emst-de Vries SE . Cytoskeletal restraints regulate homotypic ALCAM-mediated adhesion through PKCalpha independently of Rho-like GTPases. . J. Cell Sci. . 117 . Pt 13 . 2841–52 . 2005 . 15169840 . 10.1242/jcs.01139 . etal. free . 2066/57147 . free .
• Ikeda K, Quertermous T . Molecular isolation and characterization of a soluble isoform of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule that modulates endothelial cell function. . J. Biol. Chem. . 279 . 53 . 55315–23 . 2005 . 15496415 . 10.1074/jbc.M407776200 . free .
• Verma A, Shukla NK, Deo SV . MEMD/ALCAM: a potential marker for tumor invasion and nodal metastasis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. . Oncology . 68 . 4–6 . 462–70 . 2005 . 16024937 . 10.1159/000086989 . 25355369 . etal.
• Lunter PC, van Kilsdonk JW, van Beek H . Activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM/CD166/MEMD), a novel actor in invasive growth, controls matrix metalloproteinase activity . Cancer Res. . 65 . 19 . 8801–8 . 2005 . 16204050 . 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-05-0378 . etal. free .
• Liu T, Qian WJ, Gritsenko MA . Human plasma N-glycoproteome analysis by immunoaffinity subtraction, hydrazide chemistry, and mass spectrometry . J. Proteome Res. . 4 . 6 . 2070–80 . 2006 . 16335952 . 10.1021/pr0502065 . 1850943 . etal.

Notes and References

1. Bowen MA, Patel DD, Li X, Modrell B, Malacko AR, Wang WC, Marquardt H, Neubauer M, Pesando JM, Francke U . Cloning, mapping, and characterization of activated leukocyte-cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM), a CD6 ligand . J Exp Med . 181 . 6 . 2213–20 . Jun 1995 . 7760007 . 2192054 . 10.1084/jem.181.6.2213 . etal.
2. Web site: Entrez Gene: ALCAM activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule.
3. Degen WG, van Kempen LC, Gijzen EG . MEMD, a new cell adhesion molecule in metastasizing human melanoma cell lines, is identical to ALCAM (activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule). . Am. J. Pathol. . 152 . 3 . 805–13 . 1998 . 9502422 . 1858405 . etal .