Antitumor effects of 4-Methylumbelliferone, a hyaluronan synthesis inhibitor, on malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K19992
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Orthopaedic surgery
• Research Institution: Nagoya University
• Principal Investigator: Ikuta Kunihiro 名古屋大学, 医学部附属病院, 医員 (40732657)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: MPNST / ヒアルロン酸

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Hyaluronan (HA) has been shown to play important roles in the growth, invasion, and metastasis of malignant tumors. Our previous study showing that high HA expression in malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNST) is predictive of poor patient prognosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the antitumor effects of 4-Methylumbelliferone (MU), an HA synthesis inhibitor, on human MPNST cells and tissues.MU significantly inhibited cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in both MPNST cell lines. HABP staining, particle exclusion assay, and quantification of HA revealed that MU significantly decreased HA accumulation in the cytoplasms and pericellular matrices in both MPNST cell lines.MU administration significantly inhibited the tumor growth in the mouse xenograft model. Our results suggest that MU may be a promising agent with novel antitumor mechanisms for MPNST.

Free Research Field

骨軟部腫瘍