Project description:A part of current research has intensively been focused on the proliferation and metabolic processes governing biological systems. Since the advent of high throughput methodologies like microarrays, the load of genomic data has increased geometrically and along with that the need for computational methods which will interpret these data. In the present work we study in vitro the common proliferation and metabolic processes, which are combined to the common oncogenic pathways, as far as gene expression is concerned, between the T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (CCRF-CEM) and the rhabdomyosarcoma (TE-671) cell lines. We present a computational approach, using cDNA microarrays, in order to identify commonalities between diverse biological systems. Our analysis predicted that JAK1, STAT1, PIAS2 and CDK4 are the driving forces in the two cell lines. This type of analysis can lead to the understanding of the common mechanisms that transform physiological cells to malignant, as well as it reveals a new holistic way to understandthe the dynamics of tumor onset as well as the mechanistics of oncogenic drivers. The present work is concerned with the common expressional profile of two cell lines: the T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (CCRF-CEM) and the rhabdomyosarcoma (TE-671) cell lines. Our investigation was focused on the identification of genes that share a common expression profile between the two cell lines. Both cell lines are characterized by the fact that their differentiation has stopped at an early stage, before they mature to their final cell type. Normally, these cells would have matured and progressed into differentiated cells, constituting blood and muscle cells, respectively. At some unknown point, normal differentiation ceased for these cells and they became malignant. From that point on, to the first manifestation of symptoms of malignancy, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the mechanisms underlying oncogenesis. From these observations, the question whether two distinct cell types destined to fulfill different functions, manifest similar mechanisms of growth and progression due to their malignant character, arises. The present study was focused on the identification of the differential expression profiles underlying the two cell lines. A previous report studied the expression profile of seven ARMS cell lines possessing the PAX3-FKHR fusion gene, along with other cell lines of different tumor types (22). To our knowledge, this is the first time that a comparison between two totally different types of neoplasia, such as the CCRF-CEM and TE-671 cell lines, is attempted. These mechanisms are examined with purpose to identify common drivers that lead to the progression of tumor cells. We hereby propose a new computational approach for the investigation of common oncogenic drivers.
Project description:A part of current research has intensively been focused on the proliferation and metabolic processes governing biological systems. Since the advent of high throughput methodologies like microarrays, the load of genomic data has increased geometrically and along with that the need for computational methods which will interpret these data. In the present work we study in vitro the common proliferation and metabolic processes, which are combined to the common oncogenic pathways, as far as gene expression is concerned, between the T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (CCRF-CEM) and the rhabdomyosarcoma (TE-671) cell lines. We present a computational approach, using cDNA microarrays, in order to identify commonalities between diverse biological systems. Our analysis predicted that JAK1, STAT1, PIAS2 and CDK4 are the driving forces in the two cell lines. This type of analysis can lead to the understanding of the common mechanisms that transform physiological cells to malignant, as well as it reveals a new holistic way to understandthe the dynamics of tumor onset as well as the mechanistics of oncogenic drivers.
Project description:Progastrin is a pro-hormone that, in physiological conditions, is maturated in gastrin in G cells of the stomach. The role of the gastrin is to stimulate the secretion of gastric acids during digestion. It is also important for the regulation of cell growth of the gastric mucosal.
In a healthy person, progastrin is not detectable in the peripheral blood. However, progastrin is abnormally released in the blood of patients with different cancers (colorectal, gastric, ovarian, breast, cervix uterus, melanoma...) The gene GAST coding for progastrin is a direct target gene of the WNT/ß-catenin oncogenic pathway. The activation of this oncogenic pathway is an early event in cancer development.
Chronic activation of the WNT/ß-catenin oncogenic pathway occurs in almost all human solid tumors and is a central mechanism in cancer biology that induces cellular proliferation, blocking of differentiation leading to primary tumor growth and metastasis formation.
Progastrin measured in the peripheral blood of patients on treatments, could be a new powerful marker for diagnosis and prognosis at different stages.
Project description:Crosstalk and complexity within signaling pathways has limited our ability to devise rational strategies for using network biology to treat human disease. This is particularly problematic in cancer where oncogenes that drive or maintain the tumorigenic state alter the normal flow of molecular information within signaling networks that control growth, survival and death. Understanding the architecture of oncogenic signaling pathways, and how these networks are re-wired by ligands or drugs, could provide opportunities for the specific targeting of oncogene-driven tumors. Here we use a systems biology-based approach to explore synergistic therapeutic strategies to optimize the killing of triple negative breast cancer cells, an incompletely understood tumor type with a poor treatment outcome. Using targeted inhibition of oncogenic signaling pathways combined with DNA damaging chemotherapy, we report the surprising finding that time-staggered EGFR inhibition, but not simultaneous co-administration, can dramatically sensitize the apoptotic response of a subset of triple-negative cells to conventional DNA damaging agents. A systematic analysis of the order and timing of inhibitor/genotoxin presentation—using a combination of high-density time-dependent activity measurements of signaling networks, gene expression profiles, cell phenotypic responses, and mathematical modeling—revealed an approach for altering the intrinsic oncogenic state of the cell through dynamic re-wiring of oncogenic signaling pathways. This process converts these cells to a less tumorigenic state that is more susceptible to DNA damage-induced cell death, through re-activation of an extrinsic apoptotic pathway whose function is suppressed in the oncogene-addicted state. Three or 4 replicates of 3 different cell lines at time points 0minutes, 30minutes, 6 hours and 1 day after EGFR inhibition with erlotinib
Project description:Mutant KRAS and c-MYC are oncogenic drivers and rational therapeutic targets for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. While tumor growth and homeostasis is largely dependent on these oncogenes, a few residual cancer cells are able to survive the ablation of mutant KRAS and c-MYC. By performing a genome-wide gene expression analysis of in vivo-derived bulk tumor cells and residual cancer cells lacking the expression of mutant KRAS or c-MYC, we have identified an increase in autocrine IGF1/AKT signaling as a common survival mechanism in dormant cancer cells. The pharmacological inhibition of IGF-1R reduced residual disease burden and cancer recurrence, suggesting this molecular pathway is crucial for the survival of cancer cells in the absence of the primary oncogenic drivers.
Project description:De- and re-differentiation represent phenotypic transitions that may contribute to loss of function in ageing musculoskeletal tissues. Applying a systems biology network analysis approach to global gene expression profiles derived from common in vitro culture systems (monolayer and three-dimensional cultures) this study demonstrates common regulatory mechanisms governing de- and re-differentiation transitions in cartilage and tendon cells. Furthermore, evidence of convergence of gene expression profiles during monolayer expansion, and the expression of key developmental markers, challenges the physiological relevance of this culture system.
Project description:All cells and organisms exhibit stress-coping mechanisms toensure survival. Cytoplasmic protein-RNA assemblies termedstress granules are increasingly recognized to promote cellularsurvival under stress. Thus, they might represent tumor vul-nerabilities that are currently poorly explored. The translation-inhibitory eIF2αkinases are established as main drivers ofstress granule assembly. Using a systems approach, we identifythe translation enhancers PI3K and MAPK/p38 as pro-stress-granule-kinases. They act through the metabolic master regu-lator mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) topromote stress granule assembly. When highly active, PI3K is themain driver of stress granules; however, the impact of p38becomes apparent as PI3K activity declines. PI3K and p38 thusact in a hierarchical manner to drive mTORC1 activity and stressgranule assembly. Of note, this signaling hierarchy is also presentin human breast cancer tissue. Importantly, only the recognition ofthe PI3K-p38 hierarchy under stress enabled the discovery of p38’srole in stress granule formation. In summary, we assign a new pro-survival function to the key oncogenic kinases PI3K and p38, as theyhierarchically promote stress granule formation
Project description:Metabolic alterations can serve as targets for diagnosis and therapy of cancer. Due to the highly complex regulation of cellular metabolism, definite identification of metabolic pathway alterations remains challenging and requires sophisticated experimentation. Here, we applied a comprehensive kinetic model of the central carbon metabolism (CCM) to characterize metabolic reprogramming in murine liver cancer. We show that relative differences of protein abundances of metabolic enzymes obtained by mass spectrometry can be used to scale maximal enzyme capacities. Model simulations predicted tumor-specific alterations of various components of the CCM, a selected number of which were subsequently verified by in vitro and in vivo experiments. Furthermore, we demonstrate the ability of the kinetic model to identify metabolic pathways whose inhibition results in selective tumor cell killing. Our systems biology approach establishes that combining cellular experimentation with computer simulations of physiology-based metabolic models enables a comprehensive understanding of deregulated energetics in cancer.
Project description:All cells and organisms exhibit stress-coping mechanisms to ensure survival. Cytoplasmic protein-RNA assemblies termed stress granules are increasingly recognized to promote cellular survival under stress. Thus, they might represent tumor vulnerabilities that are currently poorly explored. The translation-inhibitory eIF2α kinases are established as main drivers of stress granule assembly. Using a systems approach, we identify the translation enhancers PI3K and MAPK/p38 as pro-stress-granule-kinases. They act through the metabolic master regulator mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) to promote stress granule assembly. When highly active, PI3K is the main driver of stress granules; however, the impact of p38 becomes apparent as PI3K activity declines. PI3K and p38 thus act in a hierarchical manner to drive mTORC1 activity and stress granule assembly. Of note, this signaling hierarchy is also present in human breast cancer tissue. Importantly, only the recognition of the PI3K-p38 hierarchy under stress enabled the discovery of p38’s role in stress granule formation. In summary, we assign a new pro-survival function to the key oncogenic kinases PI3K and p38, as they hierarchically promote stress granule formation.