CD44 and neoplasm: Elevated HOXD3 reduces the expression of TGF-β-independent tumor-suppressing genes (desmoglein, desmoplakin, and plakoglobin) and upregulates the expression of TGF-β induced tumor-related genes such as MMP2, syndecan-1 (SDC1), and CD44. Thus, HOXD3 promotes the invasive and metastatic potential of cancer cells through the TGF-β-dependent and TGF-β-independent pathways (Miyazaki et al. 2002).