Don't forget to take out the trash
There are many methods of treating tumors aimed at destroying atypical cells. The resulting detritus (a mass that consists of dead cells and their parts) causes an inflammatory process and provokes tumor growth. These are the results of a study conducted by scientists from the Women's Hospital. Brigham's. They proved that resolvin molecules are able to stop an undesirable inflammatory reaction. The results demonstrate a new way to increase the effectiveness of antitumor therapy and prevent cancer recurrence.
Traditional cancer treatments, such as chemo and radiation therapy, cause the death of tumor cells, but they also stimulate the synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines. It has already been proven that these signaling molecules provoke tumor growth.
Dead and dying cancer cells are an important and underappreciated component of the tumor microenvironment that can support its growth.
The researchers exposed cultured cancer cells to chemotherapy drugs and collected the resulting cellular detritus. A small amount of non-growing cancer cells was added to the resulting mass and injected into mice. This caused the tumor to grow.
A similar experiment, but with the formation of detritus in vivo (mice with a tumor were injected with the chemotherapeutic drugs cisplatin and vincristine), gave the same result: detritus helped cancer cells survive and continue to grow.
The researchers concluded that the lipid phosphatidylserine stimulates immune cells to launch a "cytokine storm" as a reaction to cancer cells. This leads to the growth of the tumor.
There was an assumption that if cellular "garbage" increases tumor growth, then its "cleaning" will help to stop it. To test this hypothesis, the researchers focused on the resolvin molecules produced in the body from omega-3 fatty acids and stop inflammation. Resolvin counteracts pro-inflammatory cytokines and stimulates the immune system, primarily by activating macrophages ("big eaters") that purify tissues from detritus.
Treatment of mice with small doses of resolvin suppressed tumor growth caused by the influence of cellular residues of cancer cells and inhibited the spread of the tumor. Resolvin increased the effectiveness of cytostatic therapy of tumors of various localization.
Currently, resolvins are used in the clinical development of treatments for certain inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases.
The authors believe that the "cleaning of cellular debris" with the help of resolvin is a promising method for the treatment of tumor diseases.
The article by Megan L. Sulciner et al., Resolvins suppress tumor growth and enhance cancer therapy is published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Aminat Adzhieva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on EurekAlert: Removing cancer cell debris improves conventional cancer treatments.