Spontaneous metastasis in matrix metalloproteinase 3-deficient mice.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) have been linked to the metastatic potential of tumor cells due to their ability to degrade the extracellular matrix. MMP-3 (stromelysin-1) is upregulated in a wide variety of human tumors. We used the MMTV-PyMT breast cancer model to determine if MMP-3 is involved in tumorigenesis and metastatic growth. In this model the stromal expression of MMP-3 mRNA resembles the predominant MMP-3 expression pattern observed in human ductal breast carcinomas. We studied a cohort of 63 PyMT transgenic mice, either deficient for MMP-3 or wild-type controls. The degree of metastasis did not differ significantly between the two groups of mice, although the median lung metastasis volume was more than threefold increased in MMTV-PyMT mice deficient in MMP-3. Likewise, primary tumor growth rate and lymph node metastasis were not significantly affected by MMP-3-deficiency. By comparing mRNA levels in MMP-3-deficient PyMT tumors with PyMT wild-type tumors we excluded compensatory transcriptional changes of other MMPs or their specific inhibitors. Thus, we conclude that genetic ablation of MMP-3 does not significantly affect tumor growth and metastasis in the MMTV-PyMT model.