Publications by authors named "Carter Somerville"

Metastasis is driven by extensive cooperation between a tumor and its microenvironment, resulting in the adaptation of molecular mechanisms that evade the immune system and enable pre-metastatic niche (PMN) formation. Little is known of the tumor-intrinsic factors that regulate these mechanisms. Here we show that expression of the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) in osteosarcoma (OS) and breast carcinoma (BC) clinically correlates with prolonged survival and decreased secretion of tumor-derived extracellular vesicles (t-dEVs).

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Article Synopsis
  • Cancer-testis (CT) genes are typically only found in the testis but can be expressed in tumors, making them potential targets for cancer immunotherapy.
  • A new bioinformatics pipeline was created to identify these CT genes and their expression levels in tumors, along with a scoring system to assess their relevance to clinical outcomes.
  • The study tested a synthetic peptide vaccine targeting CT genes in a mouse model of triple-negative breast cancer, demonstrating its potential to provoke strong immune responses and limit tumor growth.
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Article Synopsis
  • Breast cancer continues to be the second leading cause of death among women in the US, despite advances in understanding its mechanisms and predicting progression.
  • Research indicates that the loss of interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) is linked to increased metastasis and poorer survival rates in breast cancer patients.
  • The study reveals that IRF5 plays a critical role in regulating ribosomal biogenesis and that restoring its function in certain cancer models can inhibit tumor growth and spread by enhancing immune cell activity and altering protein synthesis.
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Background: Cancer-testis (CT) genes are targets for tumor antigen-specific immunotherapy given that their expression is normally restricted to the immune-privileged testis in healthy individuals with aberrant expression in tumor tissues. While they represent targetable germ-tissue antigens and play important functional roles in tumorigenesis, there is currently no standardized approach for identifying clinically relevant CT genes. Optimized algorithms and validated methods for accurate prediction of reliable CT antigens with high immunogenicity are also lacking.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted routine medical care due to uncertainty regarding the risk of viral spread. One major concern for viral transmission to both patients and providers is performing aerosol-generating procedures such as endoscopy. As such, we performed a prospective study to examine the extent of viral contamination present in the local environment before and after endoscopic procedures on COVID-19 positive patients.

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Cytokines are soluble factors that play vital roles in systemic function due to their ability to initiate and mediate cell-to-cell communication. Another important mechanism of intercellular communication that has gained significant attention in the past 10 years is the release of extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs are released by all cells during normal physiology, in states of resting and activation, as well as during disease.

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