Cell Adh Migr

Despite an increasing knowledge about the causes of cancer, this disease is difficult to cure and still causes far too high a death rate. Based on advances in our understanding of disease pathogenesis, novel treatment concepts, including targeting the tumor microenvironment, have been developed and are being combined with established treatment regimens such as surgical removal and radiotherapy. Yet it is obvious that we need additional strategies to prevent tumor relapse and metastasis. Given its exceptional high expression in most cancers with low abundance in normal tissues, tenascin-C appears an ideal candidate for tumor treatment. Here, we will summarize the current applications of targeting tenascin-C as a treatment for different tumors, and highlight the potential of this therapeutic approach

Oncol. Rep.

The present in vitro study aimed to assess the effects of combining the mTOR inhibitor RAD001 and temozolomide (TMZ) together with irradiation by either low-linear energy transfer (LET) radiation (γ-rays) or high-LET radiation (fast neutrons) on the growth and cell survival of the human glioblastoma cell line U-87. We observed a strong decrease in cell proliferation along with a concomitant increase in cell death as a function of the radiation dose. As expected, high-LET radiation was more effective and induced more sustained damage to DNA than low-LET radiation. While RAD001 in association with TMZ induced autophagic cell death, additional combination with either type of radiation did not further increase its occurrence. On the contrary, apoptosis remained at a low level in all experimental groups