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Researchers have discovered that a protein that transports sodium,potassium and chloride may hold clues to how glioblastoma, the mostcommon and deadliest type of brain cancer , moves and invades nearby healthy brain tissue. The findings,reported in the online, open-access journal PLoS Biology, also suggest that a cheap FDA-approved drug already on the marketcould slow movement of glioblastoma cells. "The biggest challenge in brain cancer is the migration of cancercells. We can't control it," says study leader AlfredoQuinones-Hinojosa, M.D., an associate professor of neurosurgery andoncology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "If wecould catch these cells before they take off into other parts ofthe brain, we could make malignant tumors more manageable, andimprove life expectancy and quality of life. This discovery givesus hope and brings us closer to a cure." Glioblastoma, which is diagnosed in roughly 10,000 Americans eachyear, is so aggressive that the average life expectancy afterdiagnosis is just 15 months, Quinones says. The cancer spreads tohealthy brain tissue so quickly and completely that surgical curesare virtually impossible and advances in radiation and chemotherapyhave been slow in coming. In a search for ways to prevent or limit the spread, and stoplethal recurrence of the tumor, the researchers focused on aprotein called NKCC1 in human tumor cells in the laboratory andalso in tumor cells injected into mice. NKCC1 exchanges sodium,potassium and chloride ions, together with water and regulates cellvolume. Quinones-Hinojosa and his team found that cells with more NKCC1appear to move farther because the protein made it easier for tumorcells to propel themselves through tissue. The more of this proteinin the tumor cell, they discovered, the faster the glioblastomacells were able to travel. When NKCC1 was absent, they noted thatthe cells had larger focal adhesions, which allow the cells toattach to surrounding cells. Larger adhesions, he says, appear tokeep the cells more anchored in place, while smaller ones madecells more mobile and allowed for more migration. In their experiments, the researchers blocked the protein and wereable to slow the migration of the tumor cells. Less mobility,Quinones-Hinojosa says, means less invasion of surrounding tissue. To block the channel, the team used the diuretic bumetanide, asimple water pill routinely used to reduce swelling and fluid retention . Added to either tumor cells in the laboratory, or to human tumorcells in mice, the drug blocked the NKCC transporter and slowed thepace of cell movement. If the cells were made less invasive,Quinones notes, tumors would be easier to surgically remove. The researchers were also able to correlate human tumor grade withlevels of NKCC1. The less aggressive the tumor, they discovered,the smaller the amount of the protein present in the cells. Thissuggests that NKCC1 may not only contribute to the increasedinvasiveness of tumors, but also serve as a potential marker fordiagnosis. Additional References Citations. I am an expert from shineder-lace.com, while we provides the quality product, such as China Eyelet Lace , Eyelash Lace Trim Manufacturer, Brushed Lace,and more.
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