Stromal fibroblasts are suggested to be a key determinant in the malignant progression of breast cancer. To find an in vitro culture model that best mimics the in vivo tumor microenvironment so we can study the effects of stromal fibroblasts on breast cancer progression, we evaluated several three-dimensional (3D) co-culture models in order to identify the most suitable culture model for our st...

BACKGROUND Resistance of tumors to cell death signals poses a complex clinical problem. We explored the therapeutic potential and in vivo toxicity of a combination of bortezomib, a proteasome inhibitor, and MD5-1, a tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) receptor (DR5) agonist monoclonal antibody, in mouse carcinomas. METHODS; Mice bearing Renca-FLAG (renal) or 4T1 (mam...

Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGFb) and activin A (actA) are members of the TGFb superfamily and display overlapping biological activities, including the ability to promote the conversion of conventional CD4 T cells to regulatory T cells (Tregs). We have recently shown that in situ vaccination by local tumor irradiation is hindered by activation of latent TGFb (Vanpouille-Box et al., Cancer ...

The human breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-436 and MDA-MB-231, the murine breast cancer cell line 4T1-luc (4T1 cells stably expressing firefly luciferase) and murine Lewis lung carcinoma cells (LLC) were cultivated according to supplier’s instructions (ATCC). The primary low passaged colon cancer cell lines COGA2 and COGA10 were characterized by Vecsey-Semjen et al. and cultured as previously de...

Porphyra dentata, an edible red macroalgae, is used as a folk medicine in Asia. This study evaluated in vitro and in vivo the protective effect of a sterol fraction from P. dentata against breast cancer linked to tumor-induced myeloid derived-suppressor cells (MDSCs). A sterol fraction containing cholesterol, β -sitosterol, and campesterol was prepared by solvent fractionation of methanol extra...

The 25-kDa heat shock protein (Hsp25) is associated with various malignancies and is expressed at high levels in biopsies as well as circulating in the serum of breast cancer patients. In this study, we used RNA interference technology to silence the hsp25 gene in 4T1 breast adenocarcinoma cells, known as a poorly immunogenic, highly metastatic cell line. We demonstrate that transfection of 4T1...

Dendritic cell (DC)-based vaccines have exhibited minimal effectiveness in treating established tumors, likely because of factors present in the tumor microenvironment. One such factor is transforming growth factor (TGF), a cytokine that is produced by numerous tumor types and has been demonstrated to impair DC functions in vitro. We have evaluated the effect of TGFon the immunostimulatory acti...

Housing temperature has been shown to influence thermoregulation and behavior of preclinical cancer models; and anti-cancer drugs typically reduce peripheral blood flow and body temperature. In the present study, the effects of paclitaxel (PTX)-induced reduction of body temperature and peripheral blood flow on metastatic 4T1 breast cancer was investigated in a mouse model and the modification o...

Activin A is a member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGFb) superfamily and a pleiotropic cytokine that regulates many processes, from reproduction and development to cancer and immunity. Activin A shares the smad2/3 signal transduction pathway with TGFb and displays overlapping biological activities with the latter, including the ability to promote the differentiation of CD4 T cells to...

Purpose Transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) promotes cell survival by endorsing DNA damage repair and mediates an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Thus, TGFβ activation in response to radiation therapy is potentially targetable because it opposes therapeutic control. Strategies assess this potential the clinic are needed. Methods Materials We evaluated positron emission tomography (PET...