Checkpoint Controls and Cancer

Checkpoint Controls and Cancer
Author: Axel H. Schönthal
Publisher: Humana
Total Pages: 358
Release: 2004-06-24
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9781588295002

Intracellular checkpoint controls constitute a network of signal transd- tion pathways that protect cells from external stresses and internal errors. Ext- nal stresses can be generated by the continuous assault of DNA-damaging agents, such as environmental mutagens, ultraviolet (UV) light, ionizing radiation, or the reactive oxygen species that can arise during normal cellular metabolism. In response to any of these assaults on the integrity of the genome, the activation of the network of checkpoint control pathways can lead to diverse cellular responses, such as cell cycle arrest, DNA repair, or elimination of the cell by cell death (apoptosis) if the damage cannot be repaired. Moreover, internal errors can occur during the highly orchestrated replication of the cellular genome and its distribution into daughter cells. Here, the temporal order of these cell cycle events must be strictly enforced—for example, to ensure that DNA replication is c- plete and occurs only once before cell division, or to monitor mitotic spindle assembly, and to prevent exit from mitosis until chromosome segregation has been completed. Thus, well functioning checkpoint mechanisms are central to the maintenance of genomic integrity and the basic viability of cells and, the- fore, are essential for proper development and survival. The importance of proper functioning of checkpoints becomes plainly obvious under conditions in which this control network malfunctions and fails. Depending on the severity and timing, failure of this machinery can lead to embryonic lethality, genetic diseases, and cancer.

Regulation of Cancer Immune Checkpoints

Regulation of Cancer Immune Checkpoints
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 657
Release: 2020
Genre: Cancer
ISBN: 9789811532672

This book systematically reviews the most important findings on cancer immune checkpoints, sharing essential insights into this rapidly evolving yet largely unexplored research topic. The past decade has seen major advances in cancer immune checkpoint therapy, which has demonstrated impressive clinical benefits. The family of checkpoints for mediating cancer immune evasion now includes CTLA-4, PD-1/PD-L1, CD27/CD70, FGL-1/LAG-3, Siglec-15, VISTA (PD-1L)/VSIG3, CD47/SIRPA, APOE/LILRB4, TIGIT, and many others. Despite these strides, most patients do not show lasting remission, and some cancers have been completely resistant to the therapy. The potentially lethal adverse effects of checkpoint blockade represent another major challenge, the mechanisms of which remain poorly understood. Compared to the cancer signaling pathways, such as p53 and Ras, mechanistic studies on immune checkpoint pathways are still in their infancy. To improve the responses to checkpoint blockade therapy and limit the adverse effects, it is essential to understand the molecular regulation of checkpoint molecules in both malignant and healthy cells/tissues. This book begins with an introduction to immune checkpoint therapy and its challenges, and subsequently describes the regulation of checkpoints at different levels. In closing, it discusses recent therapeutic developments based on mechanistic findings, and outlines goals for future translational studies. The book offers a valuable resource for researchers in the cancer immunotherapy field, helping to form a roadmap for checkpoint regulation and develop safer and more effective immunotherapies.

Cell Cycle Regulation

Cell Cycle Regulation
Author: Philipp Kaldis
Publisher: Results and Problems in Cell Differentiation
Total Pages: 400
Release: 2006-06-26
Genre: Medical
ISBN:

This book is a state-of-the-art summary of the latest achievements in cell cycle control research with an outlook on the effect of these findings on cancer research. The chapters are written by internationally leading experts in the field. They provide an updated view on how the cell cycle is regulated in vivo, and about the involvement of cell cycle regulators in cancer.

Systems Biology of Cancer

Systems Biology of Cancer
Author: Sam Thiagalingam
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 597
Release: 2015-04-09
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 0521493390

An overview of the current systems biology-based knowledge and the experimental approaches for deciphering the biological basis of cancer.

Checkpoint Controls and Cancer

Checkpoint Controls and Cancer
Author: Axel H. Schönthal
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2008-02-05
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1592597882

Intracellular checkpoint controls constitute a network of signal transd- tion pathways that protect cells from external stresses and internal errors. Ext- nal stresses can be generated by the continuous assault of DNA-damaging agents, such as environmental mutagens, ultraviolet (UV) light, ionizing radiation, or the reactive oxygen species that can arise during normal cellular metabolism. In response to any of these assaults on the integrity of the genome, the activation of the network of checkpoint control pathways can lead to diverse cellular responses, such as cell cycle arrest, DNA repair, or elimination of the cell by cell death (apoptosis) if the damage cannot be repaired. Moreover, internal errors can occur during the highly orchestrated replication of the cellular genome and its distribution into daughter cells. Here, the temporal order of these cell cycle events must be strictly enforced—for example, to ensure that DNA replication is c- plete and occurs only once before cell division, or to monitor mitotic spindle assembly, and to prevent exit from mitosis until chromosome segregation has been completed. Thus, well functioning checkpoint mechanisms are central to the maintenance of genomic integrity and the basic viability of cells and, the- fore, are essential for proper development and survival. The importance of proper functioning of checkpoints becomes plainly obvious under conditions in which this control network malfunctions and fails. Depending on the severity and timing, failure of this machinery can lead to embryonic lethality, genetic diseases, and cancer.

Biology for AP ® Courses

Biology for AP ® Courses
Author: Julianne Zedalis
Publisher:
Total Pages: 1923
Release: 2017-10-16
Genre: Biology
ISBN: 9781947172401

Biology for AP® courses covers the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester Advanced Placement® biology course. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology for AP® Courses was designed to meet and exceed the requirements of the College Board’s AP® Biology framework while allowing significant flexibility for instructors. Each section of the book includes an introduction based on the AP® curriculum and includes rich features that engage students in scientific practice and AP® test preparation; it also highlights careers and research opportunities in biological sciences.

Microtubule Dynamics

Microtubule Dynamics
Author: Anne Straube
Publisher: Humana Press
Total Pages: 319
Release: 2017-04-30
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9781493961856

Microtubules are at the heart of cellular self-organization, and their dynamic nature allows them to explore the intracellular space and mediate the transport of cargoes from the nucleus to the outer edges of the cell and back. In Microtubule Dynamics: Methods and Protocols, experts in the field provide an up-to-date collection of methods and approaches that are used to investigate microtubule dynamics in vitro and in cells. Beginning with the question of how to analyze microtubule dynamics, the volume continues with detailed descriptions of how to isolate tubulin from different sources and with different posttranslational modifications, methods used to study microtubule dynamics and microtubule interactions in vitro, techniques to investigate the ultrastructure of microtubules and associated proteins, assays to study microtubule nucleation, turnover, and force production in cells, as well as approaches to isolate novel microtubule-associated proteins and their interacting proteins. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular BiologyTM series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Definitive and practical, Microtubule Dynamics: Methods and Protocols provides the key protocols needed by novices and experts on how to perform a broad range of well-established and newly-emerging techniques in this vital field.

Guiding Cancer Control

Guiding Cancer Control
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 175
Release: 2019-08-30
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309492319

Throughout history, perhaps no other disease has generated the level of social, scientific, and political discourse or has had the degree of cultural significance as cancer. A collective in the truest sense of the word, "cancer" is a clustering of different diseases that afflict individuals in different ways. Its burdens are equally broad and diverse, from the physical, financial, and psychological tolls it imposes on individuals to the costs it inflicts upon the nation's clinical care and public health systems, and despite decades of concerted efforts often referred to as the "war on cancer", those costs have only continued to grow over time. The causes and effects of cancer are complexâ€"in part preventable and treatable, but also in part unknown, and perhaps even unknowable. Guiding Cancer Control defines the key principles, attributes, methods, and tools needed to achieve the goal of implementing an effective national cancer control plan. This report describes the current structure of cancer control from a local to global scale, identifies necessary goals for the system, and formulates the path towards integrated disease control systems and a cancer-free future. This framework is a crucial step in establishing an effective, efficient, and accountable system for controlling cancer and other diseases.