TMEM230 promotes vascular mimicry by inducing cancer cells to generate vessel like structures.
Source: Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO)
Precise levels of TMEM230 determine normal blood vessel homeostasis and blood vessel formation in early development or normal wound healing. Aberrantly elevated expression levels of TMEM230 result in cells developing aggressive tumor properties associated with a tumor angiogenic switch that may lead to metastasis. The identified cell function is supported by gene expression analyses of patient derived glial tumors, performed by Dr. Edoardo Abeni of the ITB-CNR.
Dr. Valerio Magnaghi of the Department of Pharmacological and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Milan, Italy, who studies glial cells, states that our data supports that progression from low grade glioma to glioblastoma is regulated in part by TMEM230.
Insight into the various diverse roles that TMEM230 plays are being identified using an animal model system in the lab of Dr. Daniela Marazziti from the Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at the CNR in Monterotondo, Rome.
“We believe TMEM230 has clinical therapeutic applications both in vascular disease and regenerative medicine,” say the clinician collaborating authors working in Italy and Germany, Dr. Daniela Mazzaccaro and Prof. Giovanni Nano of the Operative Unit of Vascular Surgery at the IRCCS Policlinico of San Donato, and Dr. Martin Götte and Dr. Mira Palizban of the Klinik für Frauenheilkunde und Geburtshilfe, Universitätsklinikum Münster.
Dr. James Kehler, SVP of Translational Research at Mirimus Inc. in Brooklyn, believes TMEM230 has all the properties of a master regulator in normal and disease blood vessel development. Dr. Ileana Zucchi, of the ITB-CNR, emphasizes that glioblastoma is the most aggressive tumor originating in the brain and as abnormal blood vessels contribute to the inability to direct therapeutic agents to tumor cells, TMEM230 therefore is an attractive therapeutic target. Identification of novel native targets remains an important goal for effective treatment of highly vascularized tumors such as GBM, as inhibition of endogenous gene expression may be less toxic and less likely to lead to drug resistance than small molecule or antibody-based therapies.
Funding of the research was provided by the “Progetto di Eccellenza” from the Ministry of Research to Dr. Valerio Magnaghi and by CNR-MIUR Flag Projects Epigen and Interomics to Drs. Ileana Zucchi and Rolland Reinbold.
Professor Antonio Giordano MD, PhD, President of the Sbarro Institute for Research and Molecular Medicine, highlights the importance of the collaborations between USA, Italy and Germany to identify new potential molecular targets for understanding the mechanisms of very aggressive cancer types. Director of the ITB-CNR, Dr. Gianluca De Bellis emphasizes that a major aim of the ITB-CNR, Milan Italy is to foster international collaborations in clinical medicine and biotechnology.
Source: Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO)
Source: Healthcare in Europe
