2018/08/17
Keio University School of Medicine
Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED)
A research group led by Associate Professor Toshiro Sato of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Keio University School of Medicine, has succeeded in efficiently culturing and propagating 36 human-derived gastric cancer cell samples in vitro. They discovered that the cell proliferation of many gastric cancers is controlled by a growth factor called "Wnt." Furthermore, using animal experimental models, they demonstrated that a therapy targeting Wnt is effective against gastric cancer.
It is known that many cancers become lethal diseases due to abnormal cell proliferation caused by genetic mutations. However, the genetic abnormalities leading to abnormal cell proliferation in gastric cancer had not been fully elucidated.
This research group cultured gastric cancer cells from 36 patients in vitro using a new culture technique and investigated the genetic abnormalities leading to abnormal cell proliferation in gastric cancer. While normal gastric cells control cell proliferation through the coordinated action of two growth factors called Wnt and R-spondin, they discovered that many gastric cancers have acquired the ability to proliferate even without R-spondin. Furthermore, the research group identified genetic mutations characteristic of these gastric cancers and demonstrated that these mutations lead to abnormal proliferation of normal human gastric cells. Interestingly, they found that even though many gastric cancers no longer require R-spondin for their proliferation, they still require Wnt. Based on these results, using a mouse model transplanted with human-derived gastric cancer cells, they showed that a targeted therapeutic drug that inhibits Wnt significantly suppresses the proliferation of gastric cancer.
This study is the first to reveal that many gastric cancers are dependent on the growth factor called Wnt, and it is expected to become a new breakthrough in treatments aiming for a complete cure for gastric cancer in the future.
The results of this research were published in the American scientific journal "Cell" on August 9, 2018 (US Eastern Time).
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