Thaindian News

Washington, Apr 27 (ANI): A team of researchers have discovered new details of how cancer cells escape from tumor suppression mechanisms that normally prevent these damaged cells from multiplying.

James A. DeCaprio, of Dana-Farber and colleagues revealed a previously unrecognized link between two cell-signaling pathways, called Rb and Hippo in scientific shorthand, that help regulate the formation of cells and organs during early development. Both pathways are frequently disrupted in cancer.

The life of a cell is defined by phases in which it grows, creates a duplicate set of chromosomes, and divides into two daughter cells — all governed by external signals such as growth-stimulating factors and internal “checkpoints.”

Cells can also exit the growth cycle in two ways — becoming quiescent or inactive (which most of our cells are most of the time) until they re-enter the growth cycle, or senescent. Cells entering senescence are damaged or nearing the end of their lives, and ultimately die.

Cancer cells survive, in part, by ignoring signals to become senescent and continuing to make copies of themselves at will, or by entering a quiescent state from which they can be re-activated.

“Our study identifies a molecular switch required for entry into quiescence and senescence,” said DeCaprio. (ANI)