(Press-News.org) ORLANDO, FL (April 5, 2011) – Cancer risk increases with age, and scientists have long perceived a possible evolutionary tradeoff between longer lifespan and greater risk of cancer. Now, researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center find direct evidence for that tradeoff in new data showing that expression of a key tumor suppressor protein induces premature aging in mice.
Greg H. Enders, MD, PhD, associate professor in the Epigenetics and Progenitor Cell Program at Fox Chase, will present the results at the AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011 on Tuesday, April 5.
"I didn't anticipate that increased production of the p16 tumor suppressor protein would so readily promote aging," says Enders, who led the study. "The p16 protein has been previously associated with aging, and we know its expression increases during late stages of aging. But the idea that its expression would be sufficient to generate features of aging was surprising."
Although scientists know that loss of p16 is associated with numerous human tumors, they know much less about the function of p16 in normal cells and tissues. To explore this, Enders' team engineered a strain of mice that enables them to control p16 expression in various tissues and at various times in an animal's lifespan. They quickly found that turning on p16 blocked cell proliferation in normal tissues.
The implications of blocked cell proliferation emerged when they expressed p16 in animals that were not yet fully mature. "They developed features of premature aging," Enders says. "To my knowledge, this is the first model that induces striking characteristics of premature aging where there is no macromolecular damage. The premature aging appears to be the result of blocking cell proliferation."
Previous work showed that p16 accumulates in tissues as they age, but these new data suggest that p16 is not just associated with aging. Instead, the protein may be playing a more causal role. "What this suggests to us is that p16 may be an effector of aging — not just a marker of aging tissues."
Remarkably, the team also has preliminary evidence that they may be able to reverse the features of early aging in the immature mice by turning off p16.
The experiments also provide insight into how p16 suppresses tumor formation. Looking closely at the intestines of wild-type and engineered mice, the researchers saw that the p16 protein accumulates in the stem cells of the tissue and prevents them from dividing. Additionally, p16 expression reduced tumor formation in a mouse model of intestinal cancer. Putting those two observations together, Enders and colleagues think that p16 suppresses tumor formation by restraining proliferation of pre-cancerous stem cells, as well as tumor cells. They are currently testing that hypothesis.
###
Amelie Boquoi, Tina Chen, and Sam Litwin from Fox Chase are co-authors on the study.
Fox Chase Cancer Center is one of the leading cancer research and treatments centers in the United States. Founded in 1904 in Philadelphia as one of the nation's first cancer hospitals, Fox Chase was also among the first institutions to be designated a National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center in 1974. Fox Chase researchers have won the highest awards in their fields, including two Nobel Prizes. Fox Chase physicians are also routinely recognized in national rankings, and the Center's nursing program has received the Magnet status for excellence three consecutive times. Today, Fox Chase conducts a broad array of nationally competitive basic, translational, and clinical research, with special programs in cancer prevention, detection, survivorship, and community outreach. For more information, call 1-888-FOX-CHASE or 1-888-369-2427.
Fox Chase scientists report interplay between cancer and aging in mice
Data suggest aging due to reduction in cell proliferation, not molecular damage
2011-04-06
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Genomic signature in post-menopausal women may explain why pregnancy reduces breast cancer risk
2011-04-06
ORLANDO, FL (April 5, 2011) – Women who have children, particularly early in life, have a lower lifetime risk of breast cancer compared with women who do not. Now, Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers have identified a gene expression pattern in breast tissue that differs between post-menopausal women who had children and post-menopausal women who did not. The results will help scientists understand why pregnancy reduces breast cancer risk and may help them develop chemopreventive strategies that can provide similar protection for women who did not have children.
Pregnancy ...
BALAM Dance Theatre Launches Spring 2011 Season with "BALAM Dance Theatre: From Bali to the Bronx"
2011-04-06
BALAM Dance Theatre: From Bali to the Bronx commences BALAM Dance Theatre's (BALAM) spring 2011 season with a FREE performance on Thursday, April 28, 12:30-1:45 p.m., at Lehman College's Lovinger Theatre, 250 Bedford Park Boulevard, Bronx, New York. BALAM is a New York City-based company that offers a new vision of contemporary dance by fusing ballet, modern and diverse cultural dance styles with Balinese theatre.
BALAM Dance Theatre: From Bali to the Bronx celebrates the arrival of spring and the company's recent successful tour of Bali, Indonesia by creating a new ...
Fox Chase researchers develop a screen for identifying new anticancer drug targets
2011-04-06
ORLANDO, FL (April 5, 2011) –Tumor suppressor genes normally control the growth of cells, but cancer can spring up when these genes are silenced by certain chemical reactions that modify chromosomes. Among the most common culprits responsible for inactivating these genes are histone deacetylases, a class of enzymes that remove acetyl groups from DNA-scaffolding proteins, and DNA methyltransferases, a family of enzymes that add methyl groups to DNA.
Drugs that counteract these enzymes, and thus reactivate tumor suppressor genes, are promising cancer therapies. For example, ...
Emergency department CT exams of children have increased substantially
2011-04-06
OAK BROOK, Ill. – Computed tomography examinations of children in hospital emergency departments increased substantially from 1995 to 2008, according to a new study published online and in the June print edition of Radiology. Researchers said the findings underscore the need for collaboration among medical professionals to ensure that pediatric CT is appropriately ordered, performed and interpreted.
"We need to think creatively about how to partner with each other, with ordering clinicians and with CT manufacturers to ensure that all children are scanned only when it ...
Writing Workshops Opens At The Mary Pickford Studio In Los Angeles
2011-04-06
Your Plot Thickens http://www.yourplotthickens.com Published writer and former magazine editor, Lara Sterling, announces that Your Plot Thickens, a writing school based in the South Bay of Los Angeles, has joined forces with the Mary Pickford Institute in Los Angeles to develop the Mary Pickford Studio.
The Mary Pickford Institute functions to cultivate awareness of film pioneer Mary Pickford's life while also providing outreach to at-risk youth through a Mobile Classroom, which is, in essence, a digital production and editing suite on wheels.
The Mary Pickford Studio ...
Research discovers how marijuana affects the way the brain processes emotional information
2011-04-06
VIDEO:
Neuroscientist Steven Laviolette of the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Western Ontario has identified the brain pathway responsible for the effects of drugs like marijuana...
Click here for more information.
Drugs like marijuana act on naturally occurring receptors in the brain called cannabinoid receptors. However, the mechanisms by which these drugs produce their sensory and mood altering effects within the brain are largely unknown. ...
It’s not over when it's over: Storing sounds in the inner ear
2011-04-06
Research shows that vibrations in the inner ear continue even after a sound has ended, perhaps serving as a kind of mechanical memory of recent sounds. In addition to contributing to the understanding of the complex process of sound perception, the results may shed light on other fascinating aspects of the auditory system, such as why some gaps between sounds are too brief to be perceived by the human ear. The study is published by Cell Press in the April 5th issue of Biophysical Journal.
The inner ear contains a structure called the cochlea that serves as the organ ...
Practicing YOGA in the KITCHEN
2011-04-06
Yoga studios of every style are filling their boutiques with the latest additions to this already fun collection of yoga shaped cookie cutter kits. Expanding the collection this season, The Kitchen Yogi's (http://thekitchenyogi.com) number one sellers are "Yogi Mommy", "Warrior I", and "Crow Pose."
These cookie cutter kits are bringing smiles to yogi worldwide! Who wouldn't want to eat a cookie in the shape of Warrior I? Each kit includes an asana cookie cutter, delicious cookie recipe and how-to yoga instructions.
These yoga products are available for wholesale ...
Large weight gain raises risk for recurrence among breast cancer survivors
2011-04-06
Oakland, Calif., April 5, 2011 — Breast cancer survivors who experience large weight gain have an increased risk of death after diagnosis, according to research scientists at the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, Calif.
Breast cancer survivors who experienced large weight gain (10 percent or more over their pre-diagnosis weight) were 14 percent more likely to experience a cancer recurrence compared to women whose weight remained stable (within 5 percent of pre-diagnosis weight) following diagnosis.
The study results are being presented at the American ...
Demystifying meditation -- brain imaging illustrates how meditation reduces pain
2011-04-06
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – April 5, 2011 – Meditation produces powerful pain-relieving effects in the brain, according to new research published in the April 6 edition of the Journal of Neuroscience.
"This is the first study to show that only a little over an hour of meditation training can dramatically reduce both the experience of pain and pain-related brain activation," said Fadel Zeidan, Ph.D., lead author of the study and post-doctoral research fellow at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
"We found a big effect – about a 40 percent reduction in pain intensity and ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
University of Oklahoma researcher awarded funding to bridge gap between molecular data and tissue architecture
Nationally-recognized pathologist Paul N. Staats, MD, named Chair of Pathology at University of Maryland School of Medicine
The world’s snow leopards are very similar genetically. That doesn’t bode well for their future
Researchers find key to stopping deadly infection
Leafcutter ants have blind spots, just like truck drivers
Tayac receives funding for community engagement project
Parker receives funding for Elementary Education Program Professional Development School (PDS)
Physicists uncork a message in a bottle from another star
Sanders receives funding for project aimed at enabling prostheses for children with lower extremity amputation
Engineers develop solid lubricant to replace toxic materials in farming
Repurposing gemstone polishing waste to create smart cement
Patient-physician messaging by race, ethnicity, insurance type, and preferred language
Unrecognized motor difficulties and developmental coordination disorder in preschool children
Background genetic variants influence clinical features in complex disorders
Smarter battery tech knows whether your EV will make it home
Overactive microRNAs block fat cell development in progeria
Crosswalk confusion: MA drivers flummoxed by pedestrian hybrid beacons, find UMass Amherst researchers
Study shows heart disease mortality disproportionately burdens low-income communities in California
Intracardiac echocardiography recognized as ‘transformative’ imaging modality in new SCAI position statement
Study finds ‘man’s best friend’ slows cellular aging in female veterans
To get representative health data, researchers hand out fitbits
Hiring in high-growth firms: new study explores the timing of organizational changes
Boosting work engagement through a simple smartphone diary
Climate change may create ‘ecological trap’ for species who can’t adapt
Scientists create ChatGPT-like AI model for neuroscience to build one of the most detailed mouse brain maps to date
AI and omics unlock personalized drugs and RNA therapies for heart disease
2023 ocean heatwave ‘unprecedented but not unexpected’
Johns Hopkins researchers develop AI to predict risk of US car crashes
New drug combination offers hope for men with advanced prostate cancer
New discovery finds gene converts insulin-producing cells into blood-sugar boosters
[Press-News.org] Fox Chase scientists report interplay between cancer and aging in miceData suggest aging due to reduction in cell proliferation, not molecular damage