Characterization of islet-derived pancreatic cancer

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 22K19421
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 49:Pathology, infection/immunology, and related fields
• Research Institution: Gunma University
• Principal Investigator: FUJITANI Yoshio 群馬大学, 生体調節研究所, 教授 (30433783)
• Project Period (FY): 2022-06-30 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 膵島 / PP細胞 / 膵がん / 内分泌細胞

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer is extremely low compared to other types of cancer such as stomach cancer. This is due to the difficulty in diagnosing the disease at an early stage. When the disease is diagnosed, it is often in an advanced stage, making the development of early diagnosis techniques and treatment methods an urgent issue. The origin of pancreatic cancer has conventionally been thought to be exocrine cells, which are mainly responsible for the production of digestive enzymes. In this study, we focused on PP cells, one of the endocrine cells in the pancreatic islets. Using genetically-modified mice, the researchers found that activation of oncogenes in these cells resulted in the extremely early development of pancreatic cancer. It is expected that the detailed characteristics of pancreatic cancer that develops from PP cells will be clarified in the future, leading to the development of therapeutic methods.

Free Research Field

内分泌代謝学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

膵臓がんの５年生存率は、胃がんなど他のがん種に比べて極端に低い。早期の診断が難しいのが原因で、診断されたときは病気が進んでいることが多く、早期診断技術と治療法の開発が喫緊の課題となっている。膵臓がんの起源は従来、主に消化酵素の生成を担う外分泌細胞と考えられてきた。本研究では膵島内の内分泌細胞の一つ、PP細胞に着目。遺伝子組み換えマウスを使い、この細胞において、がん遺伝子を活性化させると膵臓がんが極めて早期に発症する結果が得られた。今後、PP細胞から発症する膵臓がんの詳しい特徴が明らかにされることにより、治療法の開発につながることが期待される。