{"id":26397,"date":"2020-09-24T07:01:14","date_gmt":"2020-09-24T07:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/?p=17966"},"modified":"2024-11-03T15:16:17","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T15:16:17","slug":"the-team-of-over-60-scientists-investigating-the-age-old-mystery-of-inflammation-and-cancer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/the-team-of-over-60-scientists-investigating-the-age-old-mystery-of-inflammation-and-cancer\/","title":{"rendered":"The team of over 60 scientists investigating the age-old mystery of inflammation and cancer"},"content":{"rendered":"
Group of people on video call.<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/WCRD_Hero-300×168.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/WCRD_Hero.jpg”><\/p>

Members of the STORMing Cancer team on a Zoom video call.<\/p><\/div>

People throw around the old saying \u201cteamwork makes the dream work\u201d. As cheesy as it may sound, it\u2019s <\/span>a fitting tribute<\/span> <\/span>for our Cancer Grand Challenges <\/span>STORMing<\/span> <\/span>Cancer <\/span><\/a>team<\/a>. <\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

As a team <\/span>of<\/span> over 60<\/span> <\/span>scientists<\/span> working <\/span>across<\/span> <\/span>4 continents<\/span>, they understand the importance of teamwork to ensure their research<\/span> \u2013 <\/span>investigat<\/span>ing<\/span> the role of inflammation <\/span>in driving<\/span> cancer<\/span> \u2013<\/span> runs smoothly. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

With up to 1 in 4 cancers linked to chronic inflammation around the world, the age-old mystery of the link between inflammation and cancer had stumped scientists for 150 years. But Professor Thea Tlsty was ready to tackle the challenge head on.<\/p>\n

In 2019, she brought together over 60 researchers to make up the STORMing Cancer team, and was awarded \u00a320 million as part of our Cancer Grand Challenges<\/a>, which aims to unite researchers from around the world to tackle cancer\u2019s greatest challenges<\/p>\n

To celebrate World Cancer Research Day, we spoke to 3 members of the STORMing Cancer team \u2013 based in Canada, the US and UK \u2013 about how they\u2019re teaming up to solve the mystery.<\/p>\n

The lifecycle of a sample<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

Led by early results, the<\/span> team<\/span> <\/span>is <\/span>zooming in on <\/span>the <\/span>environment surrounding <\/span>the tumour \u2013 a supportive web of cells and proteins called the stroma.<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe try to understand the interaction of stroma and epithelial components in order to understand the mechanisms that lead to cancer progressions, especially for chronic inflammation associated cancer,\u201d explains Dr Deng Pan, a scientist from the STORMing Cancer team based at the University of California, San Francisco. \u201cOne of the important components of stroma is a cellular structure called the ECM, the extracellular matrix.\u201d<\/p>\n

CRUK funded researcher<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Deng_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Deng_cropped.jpg” class=”size-full wp-image-17968″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Deng_cropped.jpg” alt width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Deng_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Deng_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Deng Pan is part of the STORMing Cancer team, based at the University of California, San Francisco.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

With such a diverse team of <\/span>scientis<\/span>ts, <\/span>STORMing<\/span> <\/span>Cancer <\/span>utilises the <\/span>individual skills and <\/span>expertise of those involved. <\/span>And d<\/span>espite the distance, the team works together <\/span>like a well-oiled machine. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Th<\/span>e<\/span> <\/span>p<\/span>rocess <\/span>begins in a hospital<\/span> <\/span>tucked into the southern border of Canada<\/span>,<\/span> where the <\/span>samples, mainly taken from <\/span>patients with bowel<\/span>, <\/span>stomach<\/span>, <\/span>lung and oesophageal cancer, are collected<\/span> <\/span>by<\/span> the team<\/span> surgeon in Montreal<\/span>, Dr Lorenzo Ferri<\/span>. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

T<\/span>he samples are sent on to<\/span> <\/span>Pan in the <\/span>Golden Gate city of San Fran<\/span>c<\/span>isco<\/span>, where he meticulously isolates the ECM from the rest of the sample<\/span>. By the time it arrives<\/span>,<\/span> the tissue is <\/span>just <\/span>1<\/span> day<\/span> old<\/span>. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

After being purified, the samples are sent <\/span>on <\/span>to the Buck Ins<\/span>titute<\/span>. Here, at <\/span>a<\/span> research centre nestled just a stone\u2019s throw from San Fran<\/span>c<\/span>isco<\/span> Bay<\/span>, Sam<\/span>ah<\/span> Shah prepares the sample<\/span>s<\/span> to be analysed. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Shah uses a process known as <\/span>m<\/span>ass <\/span>s<\/span>pectrometry, a technique commonly used to <\/span>detect and categorise <\/span>protein content. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMainly we\u2019re looking at changes in protein abundances,\u201d Shah<\/span> expands. \u201cSo we\u2019ll look at what proteins are present in the tumour sample and what proteins are present in the healthy tissue and look at the changes. Especially in relation to the ECM.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

CRUK funded scientist <\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Sam_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Sam_cropped.jpg” class=”size-full wp-image-17969″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Sam_cropped.jpg” alt width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Sam_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Sam_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Sam Shah is based at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, California.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Shah and Pan had never met before <\/span>the <\/span>STORMing<\/span> Cancer effort<\/span>, but th<\/span>e<\/span>ir work is now intricately intertwined. They<\/span> constantly update each other on their progress as they coordinate the delicate task of sending the samples, and the results of the analysis, <\/span>back and forth <\/span>between the two institutes<\/span>, before sharing them with other <\/span>team <\/span>members across the globe<\/span>. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll let us know as soon as they receive tissue samples and are in the process of preparing them<\/span>,\u201d says Shah.<\/span> <\/span>\u201c<\/span>And then when we prepare them<\/span> for the mass spec and perform our analysis, then we immediately send our analyses back<\/span>. And then Deng gives us some insight on what we can look into further and then there\u2019s constant back and forth.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

As well as this protein analysis, samples are sent to various locations across North America, from Seattle to Boston, and examined using other state of the art techniques to find out as much as possible about the ECM and the stromal cells, and the crucial role they play in inflammation and cancer. <\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile<\/span>, on the other side of the Atlantic, in <\/span>a <\/span>famous university town <\/span>in the South of <\/span>England<\/span>,<\/span> a team is working on putting <\/span>the analytic results<\/span> into practice, searching for<\/span> <\/span>t<\/span>argets for inflammation<\/span>\u2013<\/span>associated cancer <\/span>in <\/span>mice.<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Elisa <\/span>Moutin<\/span> works <\/span>with <\/span>t<\/span>he Winton<\/span> group<\/span>, based at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute,<\/span> <\/span>who are <\/span>focus<\/span>ing<\/span> their studies on<\/span> a type of<\/span> chronic inflammation of the colon<\/span>, colitis<\/span>. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCurrently, we\u2019re <\/span>optimising <\/span>a process for decellularization. So only keeping the stromal part of the colon. And this is in order to find targets in the extracellular matrix that are modified in colitis and in <\/span>colitis-associated-<\/span>cancer,\u201d explains <\/span>Moutin<\/span>.<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDeng has already been putting that in place in his Institute<\/span> to process human sample. <\/span>So<\/span> we are in correspondence with him to find ways to implement his protocol in mouse tissue<\/span>.\u201d <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

STORMing ahead.<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s early days<\/span>,<\/span> but<\/span> the <\/span>international <\/span>team <\/span>is <\/span>making great progress<\/span>,<\/span> <\/span>finding out more and more about<\/span> the<\/span> role of the ECM<\/span>.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>We\u2019ve seen that there are huge changes as the tissue progresses from normal to tumorous tissue,\u201d explains Shah. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>W<\/span>e look at the proteins that are most robustly changing<\/span> and then we can look into their functions and the <\/span>biological <\/span>pathways they\u2019re involved in.\u201d <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

And what\u2019s possibly most <\/span>promis<\/span>ing <\/span>are<\/span>the<\/span> remarkable similarities the <\/span>team are seeing between tumour samples from different patients.<\/span> <\/span>They\u2019re able to spot<\/span> clear signatures <\/span>of proteins<\/span> that<\/span> are driving the breakdown in the ECM<\/span> in <\/span>chronic <\/span>inflammation<\/span>\u2013<\/span>associated cancer<\/span>s<\/span>.<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

They\u2019ve begun to identify patterns present for particular cancer types, but they\u2019re also found that certain signatures hold up across different cancer types, suggesting a common process underlying the progression of these cancers.<\/p>\n

These key proteins hold the key to the next step in the STORMing Cancer project. They could be used as biomarkers to help diagnose or monitor the progression or of an inflammatory cancer, or even as a target for treatment.<\/p>\n

Collaboration is key <\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

The <\/span>STORMing<\/span> <\/span>Cancer <\/span>project is<\/span> unlike other research projects, not merely because of its size, but because each<\/span> institute and<\/span> team member <\/span>involved, is high<\/span>ly<\/span> specialised.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

CRUK funded researcher<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Elisa_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Elisa_cropped.jpg” class=”size-full wp-image-17970″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Elisa_cropped.jpg” alt width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Elisa_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Elisa_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Elisa Moutin is working on colitis-associated-cancer with the Winton group, based in Cambridge.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Shah says the different skills <\/span>are<\/span> put to good use, <\/span>with each lab <\/span>bringing their own <\/span>expertise to the project. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, Deng has this established protocol <\/span>for<\/span> how to isolate the ECM from the sample, and then he would send it to us because we\u2019re specialised in <\/span>m<\/span>ass <\/span>s<\/span>pectrometry.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>But that\u2019s definitely not how it would work in another project. They would just send <\/span>the tissue sample<\/span> our way and we would do everything from beginning to end.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

For Pan, <\/span>w<\/span>orking in this unique wa<\/span>y<\/span> <\/span>can <\/span>bring<\/span> new perspective on <\/span>the<\/span> research<\/span> of the tissue<\/span> <\/span>microenvironment<\/span>.<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>I<\/span>t\u2019s very useful to have insight<\/span>s<\/span> coming from someone who has a<\/span> scientific background not necessarily in your specific subject. <\/span>I<\/span>t\u2019s really nice to have someone\u2019s opinion that\u2019s kind of outside the box and makes you think in a different way,\u201d Moutin adds.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Organising such a large team<\/span> <\/span>across <\/span>multiple <\/span>time zones<\/span> is no mean feat, <\/span>particularly with the added challenge of a global pandemic<\/span>. But with scientists in 4 continents, the team <\/span>had a head start when it comes to <\/span>navigat<\/span>ing<\/span> online meeting<\/span>s<\/span>. <\/span>The <\/span>entire<\/span> <\/span>STORMing<\/span> <\/span>C<\/span>ancer <\/span>team have <\/span>weekly<\/span> calls<\/span>,<\/span> <\/span>involving individuals from <\/span>multiple <\/span>areas of the project, where <\/span>they discuss results<\/span> and ideas<\/span>. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>I<\/span>t\u2019s<\/span> a really great way to collaborate with each other because we can constantly find new avenues to explore through our research<\/span>,\u201d <\/span>Shah comments.<\/span> <\/span>\u201c<\/span>And as we progress and the knowledge base becomes deeper and all these different teams working on different parts of the project, there are more opportunities to make connections.<\/span>\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Connections that Shah believes will link up the many pieces of the STORMing Cancer project, as groups around the world use different lenses to uncover more indispensable information about inflammation and cancer. And with 4 years of the STORMing Cancer effort left, Shah is excited for what\u2019s to come.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been really rewarding to be a part of this project, especially as a young scientist, I feel really honoured to be able to contribute.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Lilly <\/em><\/p>\n

More on this topic<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Deng Pan is part of the STORMing Cancer team, based at the University of California, San Francisco. With such a diverse team of scientists, STORMing Cancer utilises the individual skills and expertise of those involved. And despite the distance, the team works together like a well-oiled machine.   The process begins in a hospital tucked into the southern border of Canada, where the samples, mainly taken from patients with bowel, stomach, lung […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5137],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26397","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26397"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26397\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44142,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26397\/revisions\/44142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}