The most deadly aspect of breast cancer is metastasis. It spreads cancer cells throughout the body. Researchers have now discovered a substance that suppresses the formation of metastases. In the journal Cell, the team of molecular biologists, computational biologists, and clinicians have identified a drug that suppresses the spread of malignant cancer cells and their metastasis-seeding ability.
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are cancer cells that leave a primary tumor and enter the bloodstream, on their way to seeding distant metastases. These so-called CTCs can be found in the blood of patients as single cells or cell clusters. CTC clusters are the precursors of metastases. The research team has discovered that CTC cluster formation leads to key epigenetic changes that facilitate metastasis seeding.
The authors profiled DNA methylation landscape of single CTCs and CTC clusters from breast cancer patients and mouse models on a genome-wide scale. They found that binding sites for stemness- and proliferation-associated transcription factors are specifically hypomethylated in CTC clusters, including binding sites for OCT4, NANOG, SOX2, and SIN3A, paralleling embryonic stem cell biology.These changes enable CTC clusters to mimic some properties of embryonic stem cells, including their ability to proliferate while retaining tissue-forming capabilities. The scientists have also shown that these epigenetic changes are fully reversible upon the dissociation of CTC clusters.
In their search for a substance that suppresses metastasis development, the research team tested 2486 FDA-approved compounds used for a number of different indications. They found Na +/K + ATPase inhibitors with the unexpected ability to dissociate patient-derived CTC clusters. This drug-based dissociation of CTC clusters into individual cells also resulted into epigenetic remodeling and prevented the formation of new metastases.
https://www.unibas.ch/de/Aktuell/News/Uni-Research/Basler-Forschende-identifizieren-Medikament-gegen-Metastasenbildung.html
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(18)31571-X?_
Disrupting circulating tumor clusters prevents metastasis
- 1,225 views
- Added
Edited
Latest News
A new brain circuit in mice…
By newseditor
Posted 08 May
Mechanism of choline entry…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Link between UTI and breast…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Sleep resets brain connections
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Interplay of various enzyme…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Other Top Stories
Shorter version Abeta (Abeta-38) protects against Alzheimer's
Read more
Caffeine consumed during pregnancy can change brain pathways in baby
Read more
IGF2 rescues growth phenotypes in two mouse models
Read more
Brain receptor controls obesity and energy metabolism
Read more
Circadian clock and body homeostasis
Read more
Protocols
Single-cell adhesive profil…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Parasympathetic neurons der…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Non-invasive measurements o…
By newseditor
Posted 05 May
A validation strategy to as…
By newseditor
Posted 04 May
Generation of rat forebrain…
By newseditor
Posted 03 May
Publications
A body-brain circuit that r…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Host response during unreso…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Sleep pressure modulates si…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Reactive oxygen species pro…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Mannose controls mesoderm s…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Presentations
Hydrogels in Drug Delivery
By newseditor
Posted 12 Apr
Lipids
By newseditor
Posted 31 Dec
Cell biology of carbohydrat…
By newseditor
Posted 29 Nov
RNA interference (RNAi)
By newseditor
Posted 23 Oct
RNA structure and functions
By newseditor
Posted 19 Oct
Posters
A chemical biology/modular…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Aug
Single-molecule covalent ma…
By newseditor
Posted 04 Jul
ASCO-2020-HEALTH SERVICES R…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-HEAD AND NECK CANCER
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-GENITOURINARY CAN…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar