• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
Friday, September 22, 2023
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
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News

Metabolite that promotes cancer cell transformation and colorectal cancer spread identified

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
December 1, 2016
in Science News
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram
IMAGE

Credit: Osaka University

A metabolite is found to make the colorectal cancer cells more invasive and increase likelihood of more tumors spreading to distant organs; this makes the metabolite a promising target for future cancer therapies

Osaka, Japan – Cancer cells exhibit a range of properties that diverge from those of their normal healthy counterparts, including levels of various metabolites. However, it has been difficult to determine whether such altered levels is a cause or a consequence of the cancerous growth.

In a breakthrough that offers hope for improved treatment of colorectal cancer, Osaka University researchers have identified a metabolite that causes cancer cells to develop more dangerous properties and increases the likelihood that cancer will spread in colorectal cancer patients.

The team examined different varieties of cancer cells and cells from normal tissues and revealed high levels of D-2-hydroxyglutarate (D-2HG) in colorectal cancer cells. They then administered either D-2HG into cancer cells and found it induced the cells to undergo transformation. This transformation involved the cells adhering less strongly to each other and migrating more easily. These properties in the body are associated with cancer progression and spread.

"When we grew the cells with D-2HG on plates and measured their movement, they migrated further than untreated cells" lead author Hugh Colvin says. "Using a Matrigel assay that models the ability of cancer cells to enter local tissue, the D-2HG treated cells were also more invasive."

The researchers showed that D-2HG acts by increasing the expression of a gene called ZEB1, which promotes this cell transformation. They also obtained specimens from 28 human colorectal cancer patients and divided them into two groups with low or high levels of D-2HG. The patients' records showed that the high group had more often suffered cancer spread to distant organs, which suggested the importance of D-2HG in patient prognosis.

"When cancer cells initially emerge, it can be difficult for them to survive and multiply because of the local conditions," coauthor Hideshi Ishii says. "D-2HG makes cancer cell survival more likely by causing them to transform from epithelial to mesenchymal cells, meaning that they can invade local tissue, enter the blood, and be transported elsewhere to establish a new tumor."

With the importance of this molecule in cancer progression and prognosis revealed, it can be focused on as a promising target for colorectal cancer treatments.

###

Media Contact

Saori Obayashi
[email protected]
81-661-055-886
@osaka_univ_e

http://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/en

############

Story Source: Materials provided by Scienmag

Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

inside cover image

One-stop implementation from signal detection to processing

September 22, 2023
Immune Cells

Australian research leads to clinical trial for rare women’s cancers

September 22, 2023

Ochsner offers tuition assistance to aspiring nurses and doctors

September 22, 2023

Peru’s Operation Mercury stopped most illegal gold mining in one biodiversity hotspot in the Amazon. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

September 21, 2023
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • blank

    Microbe Computers

    58 shares
    Share 23 Tweet 15
  • University of South Florida scientist: Barnacles may help reveal location of lost Malaysia Airlines flight MH370

    46 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 12
  • Lithuanian invention at the forefront of solar technology breakthrough

    41 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • A pioneering study from Politecnico di Milano sheds light on one of the still poorly understood aspects of cancer

    34 shares
    Share 14 Tweet 9

About

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

Follow us

Recent News

One-stop implementation from signal detection to processing

Australian research leads to clinical trial for rare women’s cancers

Ochsner offers tuition assistance to aspiring nurses and doctors

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 57 other subscribers
  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

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.

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