Publications by authors named "Francoise Degoul"

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men. Metastasis is the leading cause of death in prostate cancer patients. One of the crucial processes involved in metastatic spread is the "epithelial-mesenchymal transition" (EMT), which allows cells to acquire the ability to invade distant organs.

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Increasing evidence points towards a causal link between exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) with increased incidence and aggressivity of various cancers. Among these POPs, dioxin and PCB-153 are widely found in our environment and represent a significant source of contamination. Dioxin exposure has already been linked to cancer such as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, but remains to be more extensively investigated in other cancers.

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The use of radiolabeled non-natural amino acids can provide high contrast SPECT/PET metabolic imaging of solid tumors. Among them, radiohalogenated tyrosine analogs (i.e.

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The specific irradiation of tumors with selective radiolabeled antibodies constitutes an attractive therapeutic approach. Consequent preclinical research has been conducted by both biologists to identify pertinent targets and to select corresponding antibodies (mAb) and by radiochemists to radiolabel mAbs. These numerous preclinical investigations have ascertained the therapeutic interest of radioimmunotherapy (RIT) protocols in mice models.

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Over the last decade, upconversion nanoparticles (UCNP) have been widely investigated in nanomedicine due to their high potential as imaging agents in the near-infrared (NIR) optical window of biological tissues. Here, we successfully develop active targeted UCNP as potential probes for dual NIR-NIR fluorescence and radioactive-guided surgery of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)(+) prostate cancers. We designed a one-pot thermolysis synthesis method to obtain oleic acid-coated spherical NaYF:Yb,Tm@NaYF core/shell UCNP with narrow particle size distribution (30.

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ANXA1, first described in the context of inflammation, appears to be deregulated in many cancers and increased in melanomas compared with melanocytes. To date, few studies have investigated the role of ANXA1 in melanoma progression. Furthermore, this protein is expressed by various cell types, including immune and endothelial cells.

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Purpose: To assess the efficiency of targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT), alone or in combination with MEK inhibitors (MEKi), in melanomas harboring constitutive MAPK/ERK activation responsible for tumor radioresistance.

Methods: For TRT, we used a melanin radiotracer ([I]ICF01012) currently in phase 1 clinical trial (NCT03784625). TRT alone or combined with MEKi was evaluated in three-dimensional melanoma spheroid models of human BRAF SK-MEL-3, murine NRAS 1007, and WT B16F10 melanomas.

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Cutaneous melanoma arises from proliferating melanocytes, cells specialized in the production of melanin. This property means melanin can be considered as a target for monitoring melanoma patients using nuclear imaging or targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT). Since the 1970s, many researchers have shown that specific molecules can interfere with melanin.

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Currently, there is no gold standard treatment for Extraskeletal Myxoid Chondrosarcomas (EMC) making wide margin surgical resection the most effective alternative treatment. Nevertheless, in previous preclinical studies our lab demonstrated the potential of the hypoxia-activated prodrug (HAP) ICF05016 on EMC murine model inoculated with the H-EMC-SS human cell line. The aim of this study was to assess, in vivo, the relevance of the combination of this HAP with External Beam Radiotherapy (EBR).

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The antibody pretargeting approach for radioimmunotherapy (RIT) using inverse electron demand Diels-Alder cycloaddition (IEDDA) constitutes an emerging theranostic approach for solid cancers. However, IEDDA pretargeting has not reached clinical trial. The major limitation of the IEDDA strategy depends largely on trans-cyclooctene (TCO) stability.

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Melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer with an extremely challenging therapy. The dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ) degradation and subsequent dermal invasion are the earliest steps of melanoma dissemination, but the mechanisms remain elusive. We previously identified Tspan8 as a key actor in melanoma invasiveness.

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In line with the ongoing phase I trial (NCT03784625) dedicated to melanoma targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT), we explore the interplay between immune system and the melanin ligand [I]ICF01012 alone or combined with immunotherapy (immune checkpoint inhibitors, ICI) in preclinical models. Here we demonstrate that [I]ICF01012 induces immunogenic cell death, characterized by a significant increase in cell surface-exposed annexin A1 and calreticulin. Additionally, [I]ICF01012 increases survival in immunocompetent mice, compared to immunocompromised (29 vs.

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Bioorthogonal click chemistry-employing antibody-conjugated -cyclooctenes (TCO) and tetrazine (Tz)-based radioligands able to covalently bind -appeared recently as a potential alternative to circumvent the hematotoxicity induced by radioimmunotherapy of solid tumors. This Review focuses on the recent advances concerning TCO/Tz pretargeting in both cancer imaging and targeted-radionuclide therapy for prospective clinical transfer. We exhaustively identified 25 PubMed publications reporting preclinical imaging and 5 therapy studies with full mAbs as targeting vectors, since its first application in 2010.

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: Pretargeted radioimmunotherapy (PRIT) based upon bioorthogonal click chemistry has been investigated for the first time in the context of peritoneal carcinomatosis using a CEA-targeting 35A7 mAb bearing -cyclooctene (TCO) moieties and several Lu-labeled tetrazine (Tz) radioligands. Starting from three Tz probes containing PEG linkers of varying lengths between the DOTA and Tz groups (. PEG = 3, 7, or 11, respectively, for Tz-, Tz-, and Tz-), we selected [Lu]Lu-Tz as the most appropriate for pretargeted SPECT imaging and demonstrated its efficacy in tumor growth control.

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Melanin-radiolabeled molecules for targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT) provide a promising approach for the treatment of pigmented melanoma. Among these radiolabeled molecules, the iodinated melanin-specific binding molecule ([I]ICF01012) has shown a significant antitumor effect on metastatic melanoma preclinical models. We report herein that [I]ICF01012 decreases the epithelial-mesenshymal transition-like (EMT-like) markers in both in vivo and in vitro three-dimensional (3D) melanoma spheroid models.

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Determination of eumelanin and pheomelanin in melanomas that exhibit different pigmentation was carried using a solid-phase extraction (SPE) preparation method based on weak anion exchange chemistry. This extraction significantly enhanced the chromatographic profile obtained by reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection (RP-HPLC-DAD). The SPE method was developed using aqueous standards of melanin markers: thiazole-2,4,5-tricarboxylic acid (TTCA), thiazole-4,5-dicarboxylic acid (TDCA), pyrrole-2,3-dicarboxylic acid (PDCA) and pyrrole-2,3,5-tricarboxylic acid (PTCA) and non-pigmented cell lines spiked with those markers.

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Tetraspanins are exposed at the surface of cellular membranes, which allows for the fixation of cognate antibodies. Developing specific antibodies in conjunction with genetic data would largely contribute to deciphering their biological behavior. In this short review, we summarize the main functions of Tspan8/Co-029 and its role in the biology of tumor cells.

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Aim: The acetyltransferase TIP60 is reported to be downregulated in several cancers, in particular breast cancer, but the molecular mechanisms resulting from its alteration are still unclear.

Materials & Methods: In breast tumors, H3K4ac enrichment and its link with TIP60 were evaluated by chromatin immunoprecipitation-qPCR and re-chromatin immunoprecipitation techniques. To assess the biological roles of TIP60 in breast cancer, two cell lines of breast cancer, MDA-MB-231 (ER-) and MCF-7 (ER+) were transfected with shRNA specifically targeting TIP60 and injected to athymic Balb-c mice.

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Purpose: Dosimetry for melanoma-targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT) with [ I]ICF01012, a melanin ligand, has been previously evaluated in mice bearing melanomas. In this study, activity distribution and dosimetry are performed on healthy rabbits (Fauve de Bourgogne) using SPECT-CT imaging and ex vivo measurements.

Material And Methods: Ex vivo biodistribution (i.

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Due to its abundant chondrogenic matrix and hypoxic tissue, chondrosarcoma is chemo- and radio-resistant. Our group has developed a proteoglycan targeting strategy by using a quaternary ammonium (QA) function as a carrier of DNA alkylating agents to chondrosarcoma environment. Here, we assessed the relevance of this strategy applied to hypoxia-activated prodrugs, by conjugating a QA to 2-nitroimidazole phosphoramidate.

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Bioorthogonal chemistry represents a challenging approach in pretargeted radioimmunotherapy (PRIT). We focus here on mAb modifications by grafting an increase amount of trans-cyclooctene (TCO) derivatives (0 to 30 equivalents with respect to mAb) bearing different polyethylene glycol (PEG) linkers between mAb and TCO (i.e.

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Purpose: This study was conducted during the development of innovative treatment targeting the microenvironment of chondrosarcoma. In this context, MMP inhibitors were conjugated with a quaternary ammonium (QA) function as a targeting ligand to proteoglycans of chondrosarcoma extracellular matrix. Here we report the proof of concept of this strategy applied to the MMP13 inhibitor, doxycycline (Dox).

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It has been suggested that chemoresistance of chondrosarcoma (CHS), the cartilage tumor, is caused by the phenotypic microenvironmental features of the tumor tissue, mainly the chondrogenic extracellular matrix (ECM), and hypoxia. We developed and characterized a multicellular tumor spheroid (MCTS) of human chondrosarcoma HEMC-SS cells to gain insight into tumor cell biology and drug response. At Day 7, HEMC-SS spheroids exhibited a homogeneous distribution of proliferative Ki-67 positive cells, whereas in larger spheroids (Day 14 and Day 20), proliferation was mainly localized in the periphery.

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