Establishment of patient-derived cell lines and exploration of novel therapeutic targets in adenoid cystic carcinoma

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K07789
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 50020:Tumor diagnostics and therapeutics-related
• Research Institution: Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research
• Principal Investigator: TOGASHI Yuki 公益財団法人がん研究会, がん研究所 分子標的病理プロジェクト, 研究員 (00648016)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 唾液腺型腫瘍 / 融合遺伝子

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a rare salivary gland-type tumor with poor long-term prognosis. Establishment of practical therapies using effective inhibitors has been desired in clinical settings, as managing the characteristic frequent local recurrence and distal metastasis of ACC is challenging. However, due to the lack of valuable insights, no effective systemic therapies are available still now. Not only the rarity of ACC and difficulty in diagnosis, but also the lack of useful experimental models to evaluate the effect of inhibitors and to perform detailed molecular biological analyses would lead the tough situation. In the present study, we developed experimental models using surgical specimens of ACC and SDC (salivary duct carcinoma), which is also a rare salivary gland-type tumor with extremely poor prognosis and for which standard therapies are not well established yet.

Free Research Field

唾液腺型腫瘍

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

唾液腺型腫瘍に分類されるACCおよびSDCは、いずれも稀少癌であり、有効な治療法の確立が求められている。本研究では、患者検体より実験モデルの構築を行い、実際の患者検体と組織像および遺伝子の構造異常、mRNA発現、タンパク発現などの分子生物学的特徴を詳細に比較検討することで、患者検体の性質を保持したモデルであることを担保した。有用な実験モデルの樹立は、今後のACCおよびSDCの治療標的の発見および有効な治療法の確立に資するものと考えられる。