Reconstitution of microenvironment surrounding pancreatic cancer

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24592025
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Digestive surgery
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: HORI YUICHI 神戸大学, 保健学研究科, 教授 (80248004)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): SHIMIZU Kazuya 神戸大学, 保健学研究科, 保健学研究員 (50335353)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 膵臓がん / がん幹細胞 / がん微小環境

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive malignancy with a dismal prognosis. Pancreatic cancer is also highly resistant to systemic chemotherapy. In this study, we established a novel human pancreatic tumor-initiating cell lines by use of in vitro co-culture with mouse stromal cells. These cell lines required its direct interaction with stromal cells for its in vitro clonogenic growth and maintenance. We found that extracellular matrix, Laminin, possibly involved in this phenomenon. Also, Notch inhibitors inhibited tumor growth in vivo and colony formation in vitro. Next, siRNA inhibition of Notch pathway in stromal cells also inhibited cancer cell growth and colony formation and laminin gene expression in cancer cells. These results indicate that Notch inhibitor might be effect on not only cancer cells itself, but stromal cells to inhibit tumor growth.

Free Research Field

膵臓がん