M.J. Elices, L. Osborn, Y. Takada, C. Crouse, et al., "VCAM-1 on activated endothelium interacts with the leukocyte integrin VLA-4 at a site distinct from the VLA-4/fibronectin binding site," Cell, 6:577-84, 1990.
Mariano J. Elices (Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston): "The ability of leukocytes to migrate through the body is an essential underpinning for normal immune surveillance and relies on a dynamic interaction between circulating leukocytes and the endothelium. The leukocyte integrin VLA-4 acts as a cell-surface receptor for the endothelial cell adhesion molecule VCAM-1, which becomes expressed in response to inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor a. Consequently, mononuclear leukocytes are normally recruited in large numbers to sites of `activated' endothelium during inflammation, and abnormally in certain diseases. Other investigators have shown that VLA-4/VCAM-1 may contribute to the extravasation of some blood-borne tumor cells prior to metastasis. In addition, eosinophil infiltration may involve binding of eosinophil VLA-4 ...
