MicroRNAs as tumor suppressorsApril 16, 2007In the May 1st issue of G&D, Drs. Yong Sun Lee and Anindya Dutta (UVA) reveal that microRNAs can function as tumor suppressors in vitro. "Overexpression of HMGA2 is an important feature of many medically important tumors like uterine fibroids," explains Dr. Dutta. "It is very exciting to realize that microRNAs have an important role in suppressing the overexpression of HMGA2, and so may have a role in the causation and perhaps the cure of a disease that is responsible for the vast majority of hysterectomies in the Western world." Studying chromosomal HMGA2 translocations that are associated with human tumors, the researchers found that in normal cells, a microRNA called let-7 binds to the 3' end of the HMGA2 mRNA transcript and suppresses its expression in the cell cytosol. However, chromosomal breaks that shorten the 3' end of the HMGA2 transcript, and prevent let-7 binding, result in aberrantly high levels of HMGA2 expression and tumorigenesis. This paper establishes that HMGA2 is a target of let-7, and that the let-7 microRNA functions as a tumor suppressor to prevent cancer formation in healthy cells. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Tumor Suppressor Current Events and Tumor Suppressor News Articles Discovery in worms by Queen's researchers points to more targeted cancer treatment Researchers at Queen's University have found a link between two genes involved in cancer formation in humans, by examining the genes in worms. The groundbreaking discovery provides a foundation for how tumor-forming genes interact, and may offer a drug target for cancer treatment. Loss of tumor supressor gene essential to transforming benign nerve tumors into cancers Researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center showed for the first time that the loss or decreased expression of the tumor suppressor gene PTEN plays a central role in the malignant transformation of benign nerve tumors called neurofibromas into a malignant and extremely deadly form of sarcoma. KEAP1 Keeps major cancer-promoting protein at bay A tumor-suppressing protein snatches up an important cancer-promoting enzyme and tags it with molecules that condemn it to destruction, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reports this week in the journal Molecular Cell. Genes signal late-stage laryngeal cancer, poorer outcome Researchers at Henry Ford Hospital have identified tumor-suppressing genes that may provide a more accurate diagnosis of disease stage and survival for laryngeal cancer patients than current standards. New study resolves the mysterious origin of Merkel cells A new study resolves a 130-year-old mystery over the developmental origin of specialized skin cells involved in touch sensation. Natural compounds, chemotherapeutic drugs may become partners in cancer therapy Research in the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University suggests that some natural food compounds, which previously have been studied for their ability to prevent cancer, may be able to play a more significant role in treating it - working side-by-side with the conventional drugs that are now used in chemotherapy. Tumor suppressor pulls double shift as reprogramming watchdog A collaborative study by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies uncovered that the tumor suppressor p53, which made its name as "guardian of the genome", not only stops cells that could become cancerous in their tracks but also controls somatic cell reprogramming. Researchers uncover potential mechanisms to protect against genetic alterations, diseases Peering into the DNA of tiny yeast, researchers at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego and the San Diego Branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have pinpointed a large number of genes that can prevent a type of genetic rearrangement that may lead to cancer and other diseases. Tumor mutations can predict chemo success New work by MIT cancer biologists shows that the interplay between two key genes that are often defective in tumors determines how cancer cells respond to chemotherapy. Unraveling how cells respond to low oxygen Gary Chiang, Ph.D., and colleagues at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have elucidated how the stability of the REDD1 protein is regulated. More Tumor Suppressor Current Events and Tumor Suppressor News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||