Objective To investigate the role of T cell factor-4 (TCF-4) in the carcinogenesis of colorectal cancer. Methods Relevant references about TCF-4 and the carcinogenesis of colorectal cancer, which were published recently domestic and abroad, were collected and reviewed. Results For TCF-4 gene, multiple isoforms are generated by way of alternative splicing, which encode different proteins. TCF-4 protein is sequence-specific DNA binding protein and is incapable of activating or repressing transcription independently, but it can interact with distinct partners to lead to different effects through multiple domains. Conclusion TCF-4 might be viewed as nuclear vehicles targeting other auxiliary proteins to a specific set of promoters and functions as molecular switch during the carcinogenesis of colorectal cancer.
