• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Thursday, August 21, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Health

Breaking down AGEs: Insight into how lifestyle drives ER-positive breast cancer

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
December 27, 2018
in Health
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

Medical University of South Carolina researchers tie higher levels of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) to estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer; their findings also suggest that AGEs could hamper response to tamoxifen therapy

IMAGE

Credit: Illustration by Emma Vought, Medical University of South Carolina


Poor diet and lack of exercise are associated with cancer development, but the underlying biology is not well understood. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) could offer a biological link to help us understand how certain lifestyle behaviors increase cancer risk or lessen the likelihood that an anti-cancer therapy will be effective.

AGE accumulation is the natural and unavoidable result of the breakdown of nutrients, sugars and fats. AGE levels, however, can be increased by the consumption of processed foods high in sugar and fat. Certain cooking techniques, such as grilling, searing and frying, also increase AGE formation.

High AGE levels could prevent patients with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer from responding to tamoxifen therapy, suggest preclinical findings reported by researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in a recent issue of Breast Cancer Research and Treatment. The MUSC team was led by David P. Turner, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the MUSC College of Medicine and a member of the Hollings Cancer Center, who is one of the two corresponding authors on the article. Marvella E. Ford, Ph.D., a professor in the MUSC College of Medicine and associate director of Cancer Disparities at Hollings Cancer Center, is the other corresponding author.

“By showing that AGEs in the diet may impact how well breast cancer patients respond to therapy we can make breast cancer patients aware of their existence,” says Turner. “And we can design lifestyle interventions aimed at reducing AGE intake.”

AGEs cause an imbalance between molecules called free radicals and antioxidants, leading to chronic inflammation that can promote the development of a variety of chronic diseases. Furthermore, as AGEs accumulate in our organs, they cause damage that is associated with diseases such as diabetes, Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disease, arthritis and cancer. However, AGEs have not been studied in depth in the context of cancer.

The publication by Turner, Ford and colleagues shows that elevated AGE levels lead to continual activation of pathways that promote cancer cell growth. A key molecule turned on by those pathways is important in the context of ER-positive and -negative breast cancer. This led the MUSC team to explore how AGE might affect cancer cell signaling in ER-positive breast cancer.

The MUSC team found that AGEs actually increase the phosphorylation (a process that turns on a biological pathway) of a protein called estrogen receptor alpha in a breast cancer cell line model. Adding tamoxifen to the cancer cells prevented their growth. However, adding AGEs caused them to grow once again. This could mean that patients with high AGEs are less likely to respond to tamoxifen treatment.

Turner’s team also found that a defined lifestyle intervention of exercise and dietary counseling lowered systemic levels of AGEs in overweight women with non-metastatic ER-positive breast cancer.

Next steps are to expand the published study to determine the effects of the intervention on a larger scale, while also further exploring the biological pathways in animal models. Together, they should shed light on how lifestyle interventions can beneficially affect cancer treatments by reducing AGE levels.

###

About MUSC

Founded in 1824 in Charleston, The Medical University of South Carolina is the oldest medical school in the South. Today, MUSC continues the tradition of excellence in education, research, and patient care. MUSC educates and trains more than 3,000 students and residents, and has nearly 13,000 employees, including approximately 1,500 faculty members. As the largest non-federal employer in Charleston, the university and its affiliates have collective annual budgets in excess of $2.2 billion. MUSC operates a 700-bed medical center, which includes a nationally recognized Children’s Hospital, the Ashley River Tower (cardiovascular, digestive disease, and surgical oncology), Hollings Cancer Center (a National Cancer Institute-designated center) Level I Trauma Center, and Institute of Psychiatry. For more information on academic programs or clinical services, visit musc.edu. For more information on hospital patient services, visit muschealth.org.

About Hollings Cancer Center

The Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina is a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center and the largest academic-based cancer research program in South Carolina. The cancer center comprises more than 100 faculty cancer scientists and 20 academic departments. It has an annual research funding portfolio of more than $40 million and a dedication to reducing the cancer burden in South Carolina. Hollings offers state-of-the-art diagnostic capabilities, therapies and surgical techniques within multidisciplinary clinics that include surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation therapists, radiologists, pathologists, psychologists and other specialists equipped for the full range of cancer care, including more than 200 clinical trials. For more information, visit http://www.hollingscancercenter.org

Media Contact
Heather Woolwine
[email protected]
843-792-7669

Related Journal Article

http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10549-018-4992-7

Tags: Breast CancercancerCarcinogensCell BiologyDiet/Body WeightExerciseMedicine/HealthNutrition/Nutrients
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

Iran’s Parkinson’s Disease Registry: Key Findings Revealed

Iran’s Parkinson’s Disease Registry: Key Findings Revealed

August 21, 2025
blank

Amputation Doesn’t Alter the Brain’s Body Map: Memories of the Lost Persist

August 21, 2025

New Bacterial Protein Drives Nitrous Oxide Reduction

August 21, 2025

Stable Cortical Body Maps Persist After Arm Amputation

August 21, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • blank

    Molecules in Focus: Capturing the Timeless Dance of Particles

    141 shares
    Share 56 Tweet 35
  • Neuropsychiatric Risks Linked to COVID-19 Revealed

    81 shares
    Share 32 Tweet 20
  • Modified DASH Diet Reduces Blood Sugar Levels in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes, Clinical Trial Finds

    60 shares
    Share 24 Tweet 15
  • Predicting Colorectal Cancer Using Lifestyle Factors

    47 shares
    Share 19 Tweet 12

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Circulating miRNAs: Liquid Biomarkers for Pediatric Gliomas

Iran’s Parkinson’s Disease Registry: Key Findings Revealed

SLAS Technology Introduces AI-Enhanced Diagnostics and Advanced Laboratory Innovations

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.