Building a foundation for radiation sensitization strategy for oral cancer targeting cancer stem cells

2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K24086
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: 0907:Oral science and related fields
• Research Institution: Tokyo Medical and Dental University
• Principal Investigator: Onozato Yusuke 東京医科歯科大学, 大学院医歯学総合研究科, 非常勤講師 (10844300)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-08-30 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: 口腔癌 / がん幹細胞 / 放射線感受性

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In recent years, it has been reported that the expression of psf1 is enhanced in cancer stem cells (CSC), and it has come to be used as a CSC marker. Therefore, the reporter introduced a fusion protein (psf1pro-GFP) in which GFP was linked to the psf1 promoter into the oral cancer cell line SAS. Spheroid models and nude mouse xenografted models were examined, but no increase in psf1-positive cells was clearly observed in areas where many psf1-positive cells were predicted to be present, such as in the outer layer of Spheroid and peri-blood vessels of the tumor.
These results suggest that psf1 may not be a CSC marker which present peri-blood vessels in oral cancer.

Free Research Field

放射線生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

様々なタンパク質が様々な癌種でがん幹細胞(CSC)マーカーとして報告されている。本研究ではpsf1が口腔癌細胞についてCSCマーカーとなり得るか、また放射線感受性に影響を与えるかどうかを検証した。結論として口腔癌では、psf1が血管近傍に存在するがん幹細胞のマーカーにはならない可能性と、放射線感受性には影響を及ぼさない可能性が示唆され、さらなるCSCマーカーの検討の必要性を再認識した。