Nasopharyngeal carcinogenesis elucidated by cell competition for cells expressing LMP1 of EB virus oncoprotein.

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K18320
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 56050:Otorhinolaryngology-related
• Research Institution: Fukushima Medical University
• Principal Investigator: Ikeda Masakazu 福島県立医科大学, 医学部, 講師 (40707486)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 上咽頭癌 / LMP1

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Nasopharyngeal carcinogenesis is assumed to begin when a single EB virus-infected cell becomes cancerous, but the mechanism by which a single EB virus-infected cell that has become cancerous proliferates and transforms into nasopharyngeal carcinogenesis has not been elucidated. We generated LMP1BEAS2B cells by transfecting BEAS2B cells, which mimic normal nasopharyngeal epithelial cells, with latent membrane protein 1 (LMP-1), an EB virus oncoprotein, and co-cultured BEAS2B cells with LMP1BEAS2B cells at a 98:2 cell number ratio, LMP1BEAS2B cells were surrounded by BEAS2B cells, which clustered and proliferated in places.

Free Research Field

耳鼻咽喉科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

BEAS2B細胞とLMP1BEAS2B細胞を共培養を行うことで、LMP1BEAS2B細胞が集簇して増殖していたことは癌細胞同士が近接して存在する場合に細胞競合によって癌細胞が増殖できる条件であると予想される。上咽頭癌発癌の初期のメカニズム解明につながる可能性が期待される結果であり、さらに癌細胞が増殖する条件を検証することによって上咽頭癌発癌のメカニズム解明に寄与できる可能性がある。