New research could help explain the link between a high-cholesterol diet and an elevated risk for colon cancer.
In a study of mice, scientists discovered that boosting the animals' cholesterol levels spurred intestinal stem cells to divide more quickly, enabling tumors to form 100 times faster. Published in Cell Stem Cell, the study identifies a molecular pathway that could serve as a new drug target for colon cancer treatment.
"We were excited to find that cholesterol influences the growth of stem cells in the intestines, which in turn accelerates the rate of tumor formation by more than 100-fold," said the senior author. "While the connection between dietary cholesterol and colon cancer is well established, no one has previously explained the mechanism behind it."
The scientists increased cholesterol in the intestinal stem cells in some of the mice by introducing more of the substance into their diets. In others, the researchers altered a gene that regulates phospholipids, the primary type of fat in cell membranes, which spurred the cells into producing more cholesterol on their own.
The stem cells' ability to multiply increased in both groups.
As the animals' cholesterol levels rose, their cells divided more rapidly, causing the tissue lining their guts to expand and their intestines to lengthen. These changes significantly sped up the rate of tumor formation in their colons.
The team will explore whether the molecular pathway they discovered plays a similar role in accelerating the growth of other cancers.
http://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/fulltext/S1934-5909(17)30519-2
Latest News
Wiring of the human neocortex
By newseditor
Posted 24 Apr
Abusive drugs hijack natura…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Apr
Mechanism of action of the…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Apr
Role of fat in rare neurolo…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Apr
How protein synthesis in de…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Apr
Other Top Stories
Cell memory loss enables the production of stem cells
Read more
Sepsis: Stem cell therapy to repair muscle long-term impairment
Read more
Accumulation of differentiating intestinal stem cell progenies driv…
Read more
Retinal transplantation in primate models of retinitis pigmentosa
Read more
Regulation of germ layer mesoderm specification
Read more
Protocols
A programmable targeted pro…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Apr
MemPrep, a new technology f…
By newseditor
Posted 08 Apr
A tangible method to assess…
By newseditor
Posted 08 Apr
Stem cell-derived vessels-o…
By newseditor
Posted 06 Apr
Single-cell biclustering fo…
By newseditor
Posted 01 Apr
Publications
Integrative spatial analysi…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Apr
Time-series reconstruction…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Apr
Harnessing gastrointestinal…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Apr
Sex-specific modulation of…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Apr
Exploiting pancreatic cance…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Apr
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