Abstract: Mitogen-activated protein kinases （MAPK） signal transduction pathway is a class of serine/threonine protein kinase existed broadly in mammalian cells. It is closely related to cell proliferation and apoptosis. In recent years it is mostly studied in signal transduction research. Studies show that they play an important role in occurrence, invasion, metastasis and chemoresistance of tumor cells. It is proved that MAPK signal transduction pathway significantly increased in ovarian cancer cells, and participated in ovarian cancer chemoresistance. At this stage many experiments are basic researches, and its clinical research need further progress. Those reseaching progresses will provide new treating targets for ovarian cancer treatment. This review summarizes the current status of research on MAPK signal transduction pathway, emphatically on the relationship between MAPK signal transduction and ovarian cancer and the chemotherapy-resistant mechanism. There is also a discussion about the use of MAPK pathway inhibitors in cancer prevention and treatment in this review.

Key words: Mitogen-activated protein kinase, Signal pathway, Ovarian cancer