Browsing by Subject "Cross-talk"

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    Cancer Associated Fibroblasts: Naughty Neighbors That Drive Ovarian Cancer Progression
    (MDPI, 2018-10-29) Dasari, Subramanyam; Fang, Yiming; Mitra, Anirban K.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy, and patient prognosis has not improved significantly over the last several decades. In order to improve therapeutic approaches and patient outcomes, there is a critical need for focused research towards better understanding of the disease. Recent findings have revealed that the tumor microenvironment plays an essential role in promoting cancer progression and metastasis. The tumor microenvironment consists of cancer cells and several different types of normal cells recruited and reprogrammed by the cancer cells to produce factors beneficial to tumor growth and spread. These normal cells present within the tumor, along with the various extracellular matrix proteins and secreted factors, constitute the tumor stroma and can compose 10⁻60% of the tumor volume. Cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are a major constituent of the tumor microenvironment, and play a critical role in promoting many aspects of tumor function. This review will describe the various hypotheses about the origin of CAFs, their major functions in the tumor microenvironment in ovarian cancer, and will discuss the potential of targeting CAFs as a possible therapeutic approach.
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    Productive Cross-Talk with the Microenvironment: A Critical Step in Ovarian Cancer Metastasis
    (MDPI, 2019-10-21) Abd El Aziz, Mohamed A.; Agarwal, Komal; Dasari, Subramanyam; Mitra, Anirban K.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Most ovarian cancer patients present with disseminated disease at the time of their diagnosis, which is one of the main reasons for their poor prognosis. Metastasis is a multi-step process and a clear understanding of the mechanism of regulation of these steps remains elusive. Productive reciprocal interactions between the metastasizing ovarian cancer cells and the microenvironment of the metastatic site or the tumor microenvironment play an important role in the successful establishment of metastasis. Much progress has been made in the recent past in our understanding of such interactions and the role of the cellular and acellular components of the microenvironment in establishing the metastatic tumors. This review will outline the role of the microenvironmental components of the ovarian cancer metastatic niche and their role in helping establish the metastatic tumors. Special emphasis will be given to the mesothelial cells, which are the first cells encountered by the cancer cells at the site of metastasis.