ILEI is a family of proteins found in vertebrates. It is heavily involved in the process of the transition from epithelial to mesenchymal tissue - EMT - during all of embryonic development, cancer progression, metastasis, and chronic inflammation/fibrosis. ILEI is upregulated exclusively at the level of translation, and abnormal ILEI expression, ie cytoplasmic over-expression instead of vesicular localisation, is associated with EMT in human cancerous tissue [1]. In order to induce and maintain the EMT of hepatocytes in a TGF-beta-independent fashion ILEI needs the cooperation of oncogenic Ras [2].

1: ILEI: a cytokine essential for EMT, tumor formation, and late events in metastasis in epithelial cells. Waerner T, Alacakaptan M, Tamir I, Oberauer R, Gal A, Brabletz T, Schreiber M, Jechlinger M, Beug H; Cancer Cell. 2006;10:227-239. PMID:16959614

2: ILEI requires oncogenic Ras for the epithelial to mesenchymal transition of hepatocytes and liver carcinoma progression. Lahsnig C, Mikula M, Petz M, Zulehner G, Schneller D, van Zijl F, Huber H, Csiszar A, Beug H, Mikulits W; Oncogene. 2009;28:638-650. PMID:19015638