anti-tumor Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Roswell Park Researchers Identify Key Link Between Stress and Cancer

AHA Publisher — Mon, 08 Nov 2021 08:00:50 +0000

Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center via Newswise – BUFFALO, N.Y. — Stress can have a significant negative effect on health, but our understanding of how stress impacts the development and progression of cancer is just beginning. A team from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center has identified an important mechanism by which chronic stress weakens immunity and promotes tumor growth. Their findings, just published in Cell Reports, point to the beta-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) as a driver of immune suppression and cancer growth in response to stress, opening the possibility of targeting this receptor in cancer therapy and prevention. Using a preclinical model of triple-negative breast cancer, a research team led by Hemn Mohammadpour, PhD, DVM, a postdoctoral research affiliate in the lab of Elizabeth Repasky, PhD, and Dr. Repasky, who is Co-Leader of the Cell Stress and Biophysical Therapies Program and the Dr. William Huebsch Professor in Immunology at Roswell Park, found that as tumors grow, they become more sensitive to stress signals coming from the nervous system. Specifically, the researchers discovered that a population of immune cells known as myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) show an increase in the expression of β-AR, a molecule that controls the function of key immune cells. The findings will help researchers better understand why prolonged exposure to stress often makes our immune system less effective, and build on Roswell Park’s pioneering research into the relationship between stress and cancer. “This increase in β-AR expression on myeloid-derived suppressor cells allows these cells to be stimulated by the stress hormone norepinephrine, which fosters an immunosuppressed environment that promotes tumor growth by increasing MDSCs’ ability to generate and process energy and suppress anti-tumor immune response,” says Dr. Mohammadpour, the paper’s first author. “This study provides some very important clues that help explain the specific mechanisms by which prolonged stress stimulates tumor growth and decreases lifespan.” While there has been a longstanding recognition that long periods of stress, or chronic activation of nerves, are harmful to overall health, details about how this occurs are unclear, especially in the setting of cancer. A better understanding of the specific ways in which stress influences cancer, particularly in terms of lowering immunity against tumor cells, could be used to design new drugs or therapies that can help to minimize negative effects of chronic stress and boost cancer immunotherapy. Based on these findings, Dr. Repasky’s team is planning new clinical and laboratory studies to identify therapies — including existing therapies already approved for other applications — that can block these harmful stress signals and stop the negative cycle of cancer growth and metastasis. “This is especially important for cancer patients, who frequently endure greatly increased levels of stress after their diagnosis, including anxiety, depression and worry about factors like finances and family interactions,” adds Dr. Mohammadpour. Several clinical trials are planned or underway to investigate which interventions are most effective at mitigating the effects of stress in patients with cancer. Roswell Park is currently studying the effects of combining the β-AR blocker propranolol, which is traditionally used to treat migraine headache and various heart problems, with immunotherapy. The study, “β2-adrenergic receptor signaling regulates metabolic pathways critical to myeloid-derived suppressor cell function within the TME,” was supported by the National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute (grants R01CA205246, R01CA099326, R01CA172105, F32CA239356, K99 HL155792, T32CA085183 and F30CA265127 and P30CA016056, Roswell Park’s core grant from the NCI) and by the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation. Co-authors include Philip McCarthy, MD, Professor of Oncology and Internal Medicine and Director of Roswell Park’s Transplant & Cellular Therapy Center; Scott Abrams, PhD, Co-Leader of Roswell Park’s Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy Program; and Cameron MacDonald, a predoctoral trainee in immunology. To read the original article click here.

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Component Derived from Turmeric Essential Oil Exhibits Neuroprotective Effects

AHA Publisher — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 07:00:47 +0000

Kumamoto University via News-Medical – Researchers from Kumamoto University, Japan have found that a component derived from turmeric essential oil, aromatic turmerone (ar-turmerone), and its derivatives act directly on dopaminergic nerves to create a neuroprotective effect on tissue cultures of a Parkinson’s disease model. This appears to be due to enhanced cellular antioxidant potency from the activation of Nrf2. The researchers believe that the ar-turmerone derivatives identified in this study can be used as new therapeutic agents for Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease caused by the selective death of dopaminergic neurons that transmit information from the substantia nigra of the midbrain to the striatum which results in decreased dopamine production. Symptoms include limb tremors, immobility, muscle rigidity, and other movement disorders. Treatments, such as dopamine supplements, are currently available but there still no way to inhibit dopaminergic neurodegeneration. Previous studies have reported that the inflammatory response caused by the activation of microglia (cells responsible for immune function in the brain) is observed in the substantia nigra of the midbrain of Parkinson’s disease patients. Further experiments designed to mimic the in vivo state of the midbrain (midbrain slice culture) revealed that microglial activation triggers the selective degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, and that nitric oxide (NO) derived from activated microglia was involved in the neurodegeneration. These findings suggest that compounds with anti-inflammatory effects on microglia may suppress dopaminergic degeneration. Thus, researchers analyzed aromatic tumerone (ar-turmerone), a major component of turmeric essential oil that has been reported to exhibit anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory effects on microglia. They used the BV2 microglial cell line and midbrain slice cultures to 1) determine if ar-turmerone suppresses dopaminergic neurodegeneration through its anti-inflammatory effects, and 2) identify structurally similar compounds (derivatives) that might have stronger anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects. Ar-turmerone has an asymmetric carbon (S-Tur) so researchers prepared eight analogues and attempted to identify those with stronger anti-inflammatory effects. They used the inhibitory effects on the inflammatory response as induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated activation of BV2 cells as an indicator. The analogues with stronger anti-inflammatory effects than S-Tur were (R)-ar-turmerone (R-Tur), ar-atlantone (Atl), and analog 2 (A2). To examine whether these compounds, including S-Tur, have an inhibitory effect on dopaminergic degeneration, researchers then observed midbrain slice cultures in which microglial activation was induced by interferon-γ and LPS stimulation (IFN-γ/LPS). All four compounds significantly suppressed a decrease in the number of dopaminergic neurons as induced by IFN-γ/LPS. However, the production of NO, which is released from activated microglia and is involved in dopaminergic neurodegeneration, was not inhibited at all. In addition, three compounds, S-Tur, Atl and A2, inhibited dopaminergic degeneration that is induced by MPP+, a toxin that selectively damages dopaminergic neurons independent of microglial activity. These results indicate that S-Tur and its derivatives, Atl and A2, have a direct effect on dopaminergic neurons and exhibit neuroprotective effects. Furthermore, analysis using dopaminergic progenitor cell lines and midbrain slice cultures revealed that the neuroprotective effects of Atl and A2 are mediated by activation of Nrf2, a transcription factor that enhances the antioxidant potency of cells. “Our study elucidated a new mechanism by which ar-turmerone and its derivatives directly protect mesencephalic slice dopaminergic neurons, independent of their previously reported anti-inflammatory effects on microglia. We showed that two derivatives, Atl and A2, exhibit neuroprotective effects by increasing the expression of antioxidant proteins through the activation of Nrf2. In particular, the analog A2 identified in this study is a potent activator of Nrf2 and is assumed to have a strong antioxidant effect. We think it is possible that this compound may be a new dopaminergic neuroprotective agent for Parkinson’s disease treatment, and it could also be used to treat other diseases caused by oxidative stress, such as liver and kidney diseases.” (Takahiro Seki, Associate Professor, Kumamoto University) This research was posted online in Cells on 3 May 2021. To read the original article click here.

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Blue-Green Spirulina Algae May Prevent Serious Covid-19

AHA Publisher — Fri, 26 Feb 2021 08:00:35 +0000

Abigail Klein Leichman via Israel21c – An extract of Spirulina blue-green algae may help Covid-19 patients avoid getting seriously ill, according to a study by Israeli and Icelandic scientists published in the journal Marine Biotechnology. “The potential health benefits of Spirulina are well documented,” the authors noted. “This blue-green algae contains C-phycocyanin (C-PC), a pigment-binding protein, which enhances antioxidation, anti-inflammation, and anti-tumor activities.” The scientists found that an extract of photosynthetically enhanced Spirulina reduces by 70 percent the release of an immune-system protein that can cause a cytokine storm in the lungs leading to acute respiratory distress and organ damage. It is believed that cytokine storms are responsible for critical cases of Covid-19. The research was conducted at MIGAL Galilee Research Institute in northern Israel using algae grown at a lab in Iceland by Israeli company Vaxa, which received European Union funding to explore natural treatments for Covid-19. “This indicates that the algae extract may be used to prevent cytokine storms if given to patients soon after diagnosis,” said co-lead author Asaf Tzachor, a biotechnology researcher at IDC Herzliya who is currently leading the Food Security and Global Catastrophic Risks Project at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at Cambridge University. The other co-lead author is Or Rozen from MIGAL. Contributing authors include Soliman Khatib and Dorit Avi from MIGAL and Sophie Jensen from MATIS – Food and Biotech Research and Development, Reykjavík. Clinical trials are planned next, with the goal of formulating oral spirulina drops. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Israel21c click here.

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