Mast Cells and Tumours

Introduction.- 1. The mast cell.- 1.1. A historical overview.- 1.2. Biology of mast cells.- 2. Mast cell mediators.- 2.1. Granule composition.- 2.2. Histamine and serotonin.- 2.3. Proteases.- 2.4. Lipid mediators.- 2.5. Cytokines and growth factors.- 2.6. Chemokines.- 3. The tumour cell.- 3.1. Biology of tumour cell.- 3.2. The importance of microenvironment in tumor metastasis.- 3.3. The "seed and soil" theory.- 4. Tumour angiogenesis.- 4.1. The angiogenic switch.- 4.2. Phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of tumor vessels and genetic evidence that tumours are angiogenesis-dependent.- 4.3. What is the evidence that genetic instability promotes the angiogenic switch?.- 4.4. Hypoxic regulation of tumour angiogenesis.- 4.5. The role of pericytes in tumour angiogenesis.- 4.6. The role of inflammatory cells in tumour angiogenesis.- 4.7. Participation of hematopoietic cells and endothelial precursor cells to tumour angiogenesis.- 4.8. Alternative mechanisms of tumour angiogenesis.- 4.9. Vascular cooption.- 4.10. The prognostic significance of tumour angiogenesis.- 4.11. Angiogenesis is not necessarily involved in tumour progression.- 5. Mast cells and tumours.- 5.1. Mast cells and tumour growth in humans: pro and contra.- 6. Mast cells and tumour angiogenesis.- 6.1. Mast cell-induced angiogenesis studied by means of in vitro and in vivo assays.- 6.2. Mast cell-induced angiogenesis studied by means of experimental carcinogenesis.- 6.3. Angiogenic factors stored in mast cells.- 6.4. Mast cells and angiogenesis in human solid tumours.- 6.5. Mast cells and angiogenesis in human hematological tumours.- 7. Mast cells and tumour lymphangiogenesis.- 8. Drug affecting mast cells.- Concluding remarks and perspectives.- References.