Characteristics of Cancer Cells

• Obituary brings to light the tragedy of one local

family (at ALE section of Website)
Characteristics of Cancer Cells…
1. Have lost the genetic ability to stop dividing
 Cancer is heritable—Cancer cells give rise to cancer
cells
2. Immortal
3. Not subject to contact inhibition
4. Metastasize: Spread into other tissues
5. Are Dedifferentiated
 less specialized than the cell it came from)
 The eukaryotic cell cycle is regulated by a
molecular control system
• The frequency of cell division varies with the type
of cell
• These differences result from regulation at the
molecular level
• Cancer cells manage to escape the usual controls
on the cell cycle

© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Evidence that Cytoplasmic Signals Control the cell Cycle

EXPERIMENT

RESULTS

Figure 12.14
 Cytokinesis:
The Cell Cycle division of
Mitosis: cytoplasm
division of
M-phase Daughter
cells
the nucleus

G2-phase Cells G1-phase

divide
Prep.
for division: Cell growth +
organelles normal cell
duplicate activities

Synthesis of DNA
(chromosomes replicate)

Interphase = S-phase
G1, S, G2
 The Cell Cycle Control System
• is like to clock
• regulated by both
internal and external
controls
• has specific
checkpoints where
the cell cycle stops
until a go-ahead
signal is received

Figure 12.15
 The Cell Cycle Control System
• For many cells, the G1 checkpoint is the most
important
• If a cell receives a go-ahead signal at the G1
checkpoint, it will usually complete the S, G2, and M
phases and divide
• If the cell does not receive the go-ahead signal, it will
exit the cycle, switching into a nondividing state
called the G0 phase

© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Regulation of Cell Division
 What evidence in your own life do you have
that cell division is regulated
by your body?
» Left ear is about same size as right ear.
» A cut your finger heals, but the skin doesn't just
keep growing!
 What normally controls cell division?
Stop and Go Signs:
Internal and External Signals at the Checkpoints

• Examples of internal signals

– Errors in S-phase
• molecular signal sent that prevents cell from leaving G2
– Kinetochore does not attach to Spindle Fiber:
• molecular signal sent that delays anaphase
• An Example of an External Signal
– Growth Factors
• proteins released by certain cells that stimulate other
cells to divide
 External Signals at the Checkpoints
• Density-dependent inhibition
– crowded cells stop dividing
– Also known as contact inhibition
• Anchorage dependence
– Most cells must be attached to a substratum in order
to divide
• Cancer cells
– exhibit neither density-dependent inhibition nor
anchorage dependence

© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Anchorage dependence

Density-dependent inhibition (Contact Inhibition)

Density-dependent inhibition

20 m 20 m
(a) Normal mammalian cells (b) Cancer cells

Figure 12.19
 Contact Inhibition
 Cells do not normally grow or divide when in
contact w/ other Cells
 E.g. Cultured cells in a petri dish
» will divide until they form a layer one cell thick
and then stop when make contact w/ other cells.
» Called contact inhibition of cell growth.
 Cells can migrate in culture
» Stop moving when touch other cells due to contact
inhibition of cell movement.
 Contact inhibition
does not occur in Cancerous Cells
 Cancerous cells continue growing and
moving when they touch other cells.
» They pile up and they migrate to other parts of
the body -- the cancer spreads.
 Growth Factors
» made of protein
» Chemical messages that control the cell cycle
» How do we know the cell cycle is under genetic
control?
 1. Normal cell growth 2. Basal cell carcinoma

One
daughter
differentiat
es

Only one daughter Both daughter

Cell divides Actively dividing cells cells divide
(basal cells)
 Role of Growth Factors in Normal Cells
Signaling cell
Growth factor

Growth factor binds to receptor

Receptor sets off a signal

cascade to nucleus

target cell enters

S-phase and divides,
target cell eventually repairing
wound

Nucleus
 Several ways to get faulty growth control in a cancer cell

2. Mutant receptor might turn

on even without
binding growth factor
1. Cell might
produce
its own 3. Signal cascade might
growth occur even without trigger
factor from receptor

In each case, cancer cell

enters S phase and
divides inappropriately,
causing a tumor
 Growth Factors
Stimulate Cell Division
 Diffuse through the body making contact
with many different cells
 Bind to Membrane Receptors, like a key
fitting into a lock.
» stimulate a pathway inside cell that leads to cell
division.
 Each receptor binds to a different growth
factor.
 Different cell types are stimulated by
different growth factors.
 Cancer: It’s all in the Genes
 Proto-oncogenes:
» Genes that code for growth factors
» Active in actively dividing tissues (e.g. skin)
» Sometimes mutate into......
 Oncogenes:
» genes that cause cancer
» produce too much growth factor
– Over stimulate mitosis

 Oncogenes are rarely inherited.....Why?

 Tumor Suppressor Genes
 Tumor Suppressor Genes
» Code for Proteins that turn off cell division
e.g. p53 gene
 p53 Gene
» Codes for a protein that stops the cell cycle
after G1
» Half of all cancers involve p53
 Onemutant Tumor Suppressor Gene
does not cause cancer....Why?
 p53: A Tumor Suppresser Gene
 How many p53 genes did you inherit? Why?

 How many p53 genes need to mutate before a

cell becomes cancerous? Why?
 BRCA 1:
Breast Cancer Susceptibility Gene
 BRCA 1 is a Tumor Suppresser gene
 If a women inherits BRCA 1 she has a
» 80 to 90% chance of developing breast cancer
» 40 to 50% chance of ovarian cancer.
» Why aren’t the percentages 100%?

 Why are the percentages much lower for the

average woman?
The growth and metastasis of a malignant breast tumor

Lymph
vessel
Tumor
Blood
vessel

Glandular Cancer
tissue cell
Metastatic
tumor
1 A tumor grows 2 Cancer 3 Cancer cells spread 4 Cancer cells
from a single cells invade through lymph and may survive
cancer cell. neighboring blood vessels to and establish
tissue. other parts of the a new tumor
body. in another part
of the body.
Figure 12.20
 The Role of the
Environment in Causing Cancer
 Certain Viruses, toxins, or Radiation may lead
to a p53 mutation
 A 2nd p53 mutation may lead to one of the
following cancers
» Cancer of the....
» Bladder, blood, brain, breast, colon, esophagus,
liver, lung, spleen, thyroid, etc.
 Therapeutic Strategies for
Treating Cancer
 Slash – Burn – Poison!!
 Since cancer is uncontrolled cell division, all
chemotherapeutic treatments involve the cell
cycle.
» Phase-specific chemotherapies
– Prevent cells from entering S-phase
– Block the S-phase
– Block the M-phase (mitosis)
 Phase-specific Chemotherapies
1. Prevent cells from entering the S-phase
» Block Growth factor receptors on cell membrane
with antibody (e.g. Herceptin)
2. Block the S phase
» Thioguanine and Methotrexate and other
chemotherapeutic drugs block DNA synthesis
3. Block or stop mitosis
» Taxol: interferes with the movement of the
chromosomes along spindle fibers
 Cells Affected by Chemotherapy
 Chemo may affect all dividing cells
 Which cells divide rapidly?
» Hair follicle cells
» Skin cells
» Cells lining digestive tract
» Blood stem cells
– Divide to produce???
 So.... what would be the side effects?
 Side Effects of Chemotherapy
 Baldness
 Cuts and wounds heal slowly
 Destroy lining of digestive tract
» nausea and severe bacterial infection
 Decrease Blood cell Production
» RBC’s  Anemia
» WBC’s  decreased ability to fight infections and
kill cancer cells
 How to
Lower your Cancer Risks
 Eat plenty of fiber
» Fiber speeds passage through digestive tract
 Do not smoke
 Drink alcohol in moderation or not at all
 Exercise regularly
 Do not become overweight
 Limit dietary fat
 Limit sun exposure or use sunscreen (SPF 30)
 Learn to recognize the warning signs of cancer
Common Warning Signs of Cancer:
C.A.U.T.I.O.N.
C - change in bowel or bladder habits
A - a sore that does not heal
U - unusual bleeding or discharge
T - thickening or lump in the breast or any part
of the body
I - indigestion or difficulty swallowing
O - obvious change in a wart or mole
N - nagging cough or hoarseness