Cancer is a complex disease process that spans multiple scales in space and time. Driven by cutting-edge mathematical and computational techniques, in silico biology provides powerful tools to investigate the mechanistic relationships of genes, cells, and tissues. It enables the creation of experimentally testable hypotheses, the integration of dat
In the recent years, a significant amount of research has emerged connecting the link between alcohol and cancer. The field has rapidly advanced, especially since the complex connection between alcohol and cancer has several unique sub areas that are being investigated. This proceedings volume will contain chapters based upon the presentation of the 2nd International Conference on Alcohol and Cancer in Colorado, 2013. The various topics explore the affects of alcohol on: liver and breast cancer; cell signaling and cancer; stem cells; biomarkers and metabolomics; aerodigestive cancers; cancer and the immune system and more.
In Volume I, Analysis of Cells and Tissues, we presented a range of protocols aimed at mapping and analyzing the expression of various molecules of pot- tial interest in metastasis research and for examining their production at the genetic level. In this second volume of metastasis research protocols, we move to the level of living cells and tissues and present methodologies applicable to examining metastatic behavior in vitro and in whole animal models. The methods described in the first section of this volume concentrate on the separation of cell lines with high and low metastatic potential, including the genetic modification of cell lines. The assay systems to test defined aspects of the metastatic cascade are then described in Part II and include cell migration assays, assays for matrix degrading enzymes, basement membrane degrading assays, adhesion assays, and assays of angiogenesis. The role of the specific elements of the metastatic cascade assayed in each of these systems in turn must of course be put into perspective relative to their roles in entire living organisms.
This book is a compilation of the bench experience of leading experts from various research labs involved in the cutting edge area of research. The authors describe the use of stem cells both as part of the combinatorial therapeutic intervention approach and as tools (disease model) during drug development, highlighting the shift from a conventional symptomatic treatment strategy to addressing the root cause of the disease process. The book is a continuum of the previously published book entitled "Stem Cells: from Drug to Drug Discovery" which was published in 2017.
Following the Third Alcohol and Cancer Conference, this volume compiles the most up-to-date research on the role of alcohol consumption in carcinogenesis, from epidemiology to pathology metabolism and stem cells. More specifically, it delves into the effects of alcohol consumption and thyroid cancer, CD133+ progenitor cells, carcinogenic iron accumulation, developmental morphogens, and cancer-inducing epigenetic changes. Alcohol and Cancer: Proceedings of the Third International Conference is a timely update to Biological Basis of Alcohol-Induced Cancer, which followed the Second Alcohol and Cancer Conference, compiling cutting-edge research from graduate students, young scientists, and researchers. It is ideal for graduate students and researchers in oncology, hepatology, epigenetics, and alcohol consumption.
Recent years have witnessed an increasing number of theoretical and experimental contributions to cancer research from different fields of physics, from biomechanics and soft-condensed matter physics to the statistical mechanics of complex systems. Reviewing these contributions and providing a sophisticated overview of the topic, this is the first book devoted to the emerging interdisciplinary field of cancer physics. Systematically integrating approaches from physics and biology, it includes topics such as cancer initiation and progression, metastasis, angiogenesis, cancer stem cells, tumor immunology, cancer cell mechanics and migration. Biological hallmarks of cancer are presented in an intuitive yet comprehensive way, providing graduate-level students and researchers in physics with a thorough introduction to this important subject. The impact of the physical mechanisms of cancer are explained through analytical and computational models, making this an essential reference for cancer biologists interested in cutting-edge quantitative tools and approaches coming from physics.
This book highlights the importance of phytochemicals and mitochondria in cancer prevention and therapy. Recent scientific discoveries have identified that naturally occurring biologically active compounds (i.e. phytochemicals) target multiple steps of tumorigenesis leading to the inhibition or delay in cancer progression. Mitochondria, organelles within a cell, are a critical target for phytochemicals in regulating the initiation, promotion, and progression of cancer. The book is divided into three parts to better communicate the important findings related to phytochemicals and mitochondria in cancer research. The first part describes updates on environmental and genetic factors causing cancer initiation and progression, the role of mitochondria function in regulating the process of tumorigenesis, and the role of mitochondria in regulating cell death such as apoptosis, autophagy, and necroptosis. The second part focuses on the elucidation of key target proteins that could be exploited for cancer prevention, an the role of phytochemicals in cancer prevention, updates on basic research related to phytochemicals action critical for cancer prevention, and updates on translational knowledge on cancer prevention by phytochemicals. The third part provides updates on phytochemicals targeting mitochondria for cancer therapy, an overview of action of phytochemicals on cancer stem cells, updates on the role of microRNA in phytochemicals-based therapy of cancer, and updates on phytochemicals-based translation research on therapy for metastatic cancer.
Of the many markers for cancer stem cells (CSCs) in lung cancer reported to date, the cell surface antigen CD133, nuclear ß-catenin accumulation, the side population phenotype, and high aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity seem to be most reliable. This book reviews the results of studies on lung CSCs and discusses the significance of these markers from a biological, pathological, and clinical viewpoint. Twenty-seven lung cancer cell lines (nine small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) cell lines and eighteen non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) cell lines) were examined for mRNA and protein expression and fractions of cells with activity.
The Cancer Stem Cell Niche, Volume Five in the Advances in Stem Cells and their Niches series, highlights new advances in the field, with this new volume presenting interesting chapters on a variety of timely topics, including Acute lymphoblastic leukemia and the bone marrow microenvironment, Stem cell niches in bone and their roles in cancer metastasis, The role of vasculature in cancer stem cell niches, The lung cancer stem cell niche, The prostate cancer stem cell niche: Genetic drivers and therapeutic approaches, Impact of prostate cancer stem cell niches on prostate cancer tumorigenesis and progression, The testicular cancer stem cell niche. Provides the authority and expertise of leading contributors from an international board of authors Presents the latest release in the Advances in Stem Cells and their Niches series Includes the latest information on the Cancer Stem Cell Niche