Project description:This clinical trial studies universal screening for deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) mismatch repair deficiency in patients with endometrial cancer, mutations in the genes responsible for Lynch syndrome (inherited forms of endometrial cancers) and other DNA changes that could help guide treatment strategies. Universal tumor DNA sequencing may help doctors better understand how to personalize care, increase length of life, and increase quality of life in patients with endometrial cancer and their relatives.
Project description:Calcium is a critical signaling molecule in many cell types including immune cells. The calcium-release activated calcium channels (CRAC) responsible for store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) in immune cells are gated by STIM family members functioning as sensors of Ca2+ store content in the endoplasmic reticulum. We investigated the effect of SOCE blocker BTP2 on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) stimulated with the mitogen phytohemagglutinin (PHA).
Project description:The mainstay of treatment for hormone responsive breast tumors is chemotherapy, followed by targeted endocrine therapy. The vast majority (80%) of estrogen receptor positive tumors also express wild type p53 protein that is the main determinant of the DNA damage response. Tumors that are ER+ and p53WT respond poorly to chemotherapy, although the underlying mechanisms are not completely understood. We describe a novel link between store independent Ca2+ entry (SICE) and resistance to DNA damaging drugs, mediated by the secretory pathway Ca2+-ATPase, SPCA2. In luminal ER+/PR+ breast cancer subtypes, SPCA2 levels are high and correlate with poor survival prognosis. Independent of ion pump activity, SPCA2 elevates baseline Ca2+ levels through SICE and drives cell proliferation. Attenuation of SPCA2 led to increased mitochondrial ROS production, DNA damage and activation of the ATM/ATR-p53 axis leading to G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Resistance to DNA damaging agents including doxorubicin, carboplatin, and ionizing radiation could be reversed by downregulation of SPCA2 expression using curcumin. In conclusion, elevated SPCA2 drives pro-survival and chemotherapy resistance in ER+ p53WT breast tumors by suppressing the DNA damage response. Attenuation of SPCA2 expression by curcumin may have therapeutic potential in treating receptor positive breast cancer. The goal of this study is to investigate store Independent Ca2+ entry regulation of the DNA Damage Response pathway in breast cancer cells
Project description:Oocytes must accumulate and store maternal factors such as proteins during growth to sustain the first stages of embryonic development. How mammalian oocytes store maternal proteins is not understood. Here, we show that mouse and human oocytes store proteins on cytoplasmic lattices. With super-resolution light microscopy and electron tomography, we demonstrate that cytoplasmic lattices are twisted filament bundles formed by proteins of the subcortical maternal complex, filling the entire ooplasm. The lattices were associated with many proteins that have crucial functions during early embryo development, including proteins controlling genome methylation. Loss of cytoplasmic lattices prevented the accumulation of these proteins and resulted in early embryonic arrest. Thus, cytoplasmic lattices are important for storage of essential maternal proteins and the developmental success of early mammalian embryos.
Project description:Comparison of human embryonic stem cell transcriptome with universal RNA pool (10 human cell lines) to reveal hES cell-specific gene expression. Keywords: cell type comparison