Project description:Cancer resistance is a major cause for longevity of the naked mole-rat. Recent liver transcriptome analysis in this animal compared to wild-derived mice revealed higher expression of alpha2-macroglobulin (A2M) and cell adhesion molecules, which contribute to the naked mole-rat’s cancer resistance. Notably, A2M is known to dramatically decrease with age in humans. We hypothesize that this might facilitate tumor development. Here we found that A2M modulates tumor cell adhesion, migration and growth by inhibition of tumor promoting signalling pathways, e.g. PI3K / AKT, SMAD and up-regulated PTEN via down-regulation of miR-21, in vitro and in tumor xenografts. A2M increases the expression of CD29 and CD44 but did not evoke EMT. Transcriptome analysis of A2M-treated tumor cells, xenografts and mouse liver demonstrated a multifaceted regulation of tumor promoting signalling pathways indicating a less tumorigenic environment mediated by A2M. By virtue of these multiple actions the naturally occurring A2M has strong potential as a novel therapeutic agent.
Project description:Cancer resistance is a major cause for longevity of the naked mole-rat. Recent liver transcriptome analysis in this animal compared to wild-derived mice revealed higher expression of alpha2-macroglobulin (A2M) and cell adhesion molecules, which contribute to the naked mole-rat’s cancer resistance. Notably, A2M is known to dramatically decrease with age in humans. We hypothesize that this might facilitate tumour development. Here we found that A2M modulates tumour cell adhesion, migration and growth by inhibition of tumour promoting signalling pathways, e.g. PI3K / AKT, SMAD and up-regulated PTEN via down-regulation of miR-21, in vitro and in tumour xenografts. A2M increases the expression of CD29 and CD44 but did not evoke EMT. Transcriptome analysis of A2M-treated tumour cells, xenografts and mouse liver demonstrated a multifaceted regulation of tumour promoting signalling pathways indicating a less tumorigenic environment mediated by A2M. By virtue of these multiple actions the naturally occurring A2M has strong potential as a novel therapeutic agent.
Project description:MicroRNA (miRNA) expression profiles for prostate cancers were examined to investigate the miRNA involvement in prostate carcinogenesis. miRNA microarray analysis identified statistical unique profiles, which could discriminate prostate cancers from noncancerous prostate tissues.
Project description:Prostate cancer is the second most occurring cancer in men worldwide, and with the advances made with screening for prostate-specific antigen, it has been prone to early diagnosis and over-treatment. To better understand the mechanisms of tumorigenesis and possible treatment responses, we developed a mathematical model of prostate cancer which considers the major signalling pathways known to be deregulated. The model includes pathways such as androgen receptor, MAPK, Wnt, NFkB, PI3K/AKT, MAPK, mTOR, SHH, the cell cycle, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), apoptosis and DNA damage pathways. The final model accounts for 133 nodes and 449 edges. We applied a methodology to personalise this Boolean model to molecular data to reflect the heterogeneity and specific response to perturbations of cancer patients, using TCGA and GDSC datasets.
Project description:Background: Prostate cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in males in the United States and amongst the leading causes of cancer related deaths. A particularly virulent form of this disease is castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), where patients no longer respond to medical or surgical castration. CRPC is a complex, multifaceted and heterogeneous malady with limited standard treatment options.Results: The growth and progression of prostate cancer is a complicated process that involves multiple pathways. The signaling network comprising the integral constituents of the signature pathways involved in the development and progression of prostate cancer is modeled as a combinatorial circuit. The failures in the gene regulatory network that lead to cancer are abstracted as faults in the equivalent circuit and the Boolean circuit model is then used to design therapies tailored to counteract the effect of each molecular abnormality and to propose potentially efficacious combinatorial therapy regimens. Furthermore, stochastic computational modeling is utilized to identify potentially vulnerable components in the network that may serve as viable candidates for drug development. Conclusion: The results presented herein can aid in the design of scientifically well-grounded targeted therapies that can be employed for the treatment of prostate cancer patients.