Researchers have transformed breast cancer cells into fat cells
An innovative therapy developed by Basel scientists can force aggressive cancer cells to transform into harmless fat cells. The therapy uses a combination of two drugs that have been approved for use in humans by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Food and Drug Administration. This treatment has shown promising results in mouse tests.
Scientists from Switzerland took advantage of the plasticity of someórych cellsótumor cells while metastasizingów. By doing so, they were able to induce the comóbreast cancer cells to transform into comófatty acids.
Comótumor cells can dynamically adapt to changing conditionsów, thanks to its ability to reactivate the process of comórkowe. It allows comócancer cells to break free from the primary tumor and spread throughout the body. For this purpose, the comórks temporarily regress to a more "immature" state. This is a key process for embryonic development and is known as the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).
During EMT the cellsótumor cells are in a highly plastic state, similar to that observed in comóstem cells. This gives a lot of possibilities for therapies targeting the cells of theórki being in this state to force them to transform into a different type of comórecords.
The results of the study appeared in the journal „Cancer Cell”.
To test this hypothesis, researchers led by Professor Gerhard Christofori of the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Basel first created a mouse model of human breast cancer by transplanting human comóre breast cancer to female mice. They then administered two drugs to the mice: rosiglitazone, whichóry is used in humans to treat type 2 diabetes, and trametinib, an anticancer drug thatóry inhibits the growth and spread of cancer cellsócancerous rec.
Rosiglitazone belongs to a group of drugsóIn known as thiazolidinediones, whichóre binds to receptors found in the heads ofównie in adipose tissue and whichóre play a role in many biological processes, including the formation of mature comófatty rec. It is used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes because the receptors with which theyórymi bind, róAlso increase insulin sensitivity.
When mice were given this combination of drugsów, the comórk cancer cells, whichóre released from the primary tumor, turned into comófat cells. The drugs inhibited róAlso, they increased tumor growth and prevented further metastasis.
– In the future, this innovative therapeutic approach can be used in combination with conventional chemotherapy to inhibit zaróThe growth of the primary tumor, as well as the formation of metastasesów – said Professor Gerhard Christofori.
The study is at an early stage and it is unclear whether it will be applicable to humans. The treatment has not transformed all comóof cancerous recs in the comófatty cells, but has stopped the spread of the disease.
– Targeting the comócancer cells in the state EMT is a new and very elegant idea thatórego goal is to transform „bad” w „good” – said Andrei Gudkov of the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, whoóry was not involved in the study. – In this case, the cellócancer cells in an adaptable state were forced into a comófatty cells, whichóre unable to further divideóin comórkowe – added the researcher.
The study used two drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Food and Drugów (FDA), which greatly facilitates the transition to human clinical trials and the further path of the developed therapy. However, just because the combination therapy produced promising results on mice does not mean it will work similarly in humans. However, before human trials occur, researchers want to test the combination therapy along with chemotherapy in further animal studies. They will check róalso howób affects other types of cancerów.
SourceóSource: University of Basel, photo. University of Basel, Department of Biomedicine
