GPC1 inhibition also resulted in decreased tumor growth and angiogenesis, according to study published in JCI.
Scientists at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center say that they have generated new data that establishes the role of glypican-1 (GPC1) as a driver of growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis of human pancreatic cancer cell lines.
The prognosis for individuals with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is poor, largely because diagnosis often comes after the tumor has spread to other tissues, according to the researchers.
In the study, human pancreatic cancer cell lines in which expression of GPC1 was downregulated showed reduced tumor growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis when transplanted into immunocompromised mice. The scientists also found that transplanting human pancreatic cancer cell lines expressing normal levels of GPC1 into immunocompromised mice lacking GPC1 resulted in decreased tumor growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis.
In addition, fewer metastases were detected following the transplantation of a mouse skin cancer cell line into immunocompromised mice lacking GPC1. This indicates that the importance of GPC1 to tumor metastasis is not restricted to PDAC, report the investigators.
The research is published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
