Changes in protein expression in two cholangiocarcinoma cell lines undergoing formation of multicellular tumor spheroids in vitro.

Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) is relevant in malignant growth and frequently correlates with worsening disease progression due to its implications in metastases and resistance to therapeutic interventions. Although EMT is known to occur in several types of solid tumors, the information concerning tumors arising from the epithelia of the bile tract is still limited. In order to approach the problem of EMT in cholangiocarcinoma, we decided to investigate the changes in protein expression occurring in two cell lines under conditions leading to growth as adherent monolayers or to formation of multicellular tumor spheroids (MCTS), which are considered culture models that better mimic the growth characteristics of in-vivo solid tumors.

Comparative proteomic analysis of ductal breast carcinoma demonstrates an altered expression of chaperonins and cytoskeletal proteins.

The aim of the present study was to analyze the protein composition of ductal breast carcinoma and the surrounding normal tissue in individual patients using comparative 2D proteomics and mass spectrometry to detect candidate disease biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis. Samples of normal and cancerous tissue obtained form 28 patients were analyzed. Chaperonins and cytoskeletal proteins predominated among the 11 proteins for which major changes in abundance were detected.

Antiangiogenic drugs for chemotherapy of bladder tumours.

Background: Bladder cancers have different angiogenic pathways distinguishing not only papillary from solid tumours, but even papillary superficial from papillary invasive ones, thus representing selective targets for antiangiogenic drugs.

Methods: The bacterial wall component tecogalan, inhibiting basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), the fumagillin derivative TNP-470, inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), the distamycin A derivative PNU153429, and the tetracycline minocycline were administered to nude mice injected with the human bladder cancer cell lines 639V, causing bFGF-expressing papillary superficial tumours, or T24, causing VEGF-expressing papillary invasive tumours.

Results: Tecogalan had no effect even on 639V tumour growth, where bFGF was unaffected.

Tumor and metastasis suppression by the human RNASET2 gene.

The region 6q27 from human chromosome 6 has been reported to contain one or more tumor suppressor genes on the basis of cytogenetic, molecular and functional studies. We have recently carried out a detailed analysis of a candidate gene from 6q27 to evaluate its putative role as a tumor suppressor gene involved in ovarian cancer pathogenesis. The RNASET2 gene was shown to behave as a class II tumor suppressor and abolish the tumorigenic potential of an ovarian cancer-derived cell line.