Cancerous bladder cells that lack the Y chromosome are primed to evade our immune system. new research The study used mice and was conducted by researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Ohio State University in the United States.
The findings help explain why so many symptoms occur. certain cancers Contains the following cells no longer have male sex chromosomes And potentially why men are statistically susceptible to cancer.
Like hair color, skin elasticity, memory, and vision, the Y chromosome has a habit of disappearing with age, leaving it behind while the rest of the gene library is copied and transferred to new cells.
Most of the time, I seem to be able to get along relatively well without it, at least for a while. compared to the 156,000 base pairs that make up the X chromosomeThe small chunk of DNA that gives rise to male sexual characteristics contains just 57,000 base pairs of information and encodes a variety of genes that may not be all that important for life.
But when it comes to general health, it’s clear that something in these sequences must make a difference. For example, loss of chromosomes in tissues that produce blood cells Bad news for heart function. Ten to forty percent of bladder cancers also contain cells that lack the Y chromosome, suggesting a hidden protective function.
To find them, Dan Theodorescu, a urologist at Cedars-Sinai, led a team of scientists to investigate bladder cancer prognosis in mouse models, with results from analysis of individual cells taken from human bladder cancer. verified.
Cells from mice that naturally lost the Y chromosome or had the Y chromosome removed by CRISPR-Cas 9 gene editing proliferated nearly as well as cells with sex chromosomes when observed in vitro.
Inside the mouse, the difference became more apparent. Cancers without a Y chromosome became more malignant and grew almost twice as fast as genomically intact cancers.
Disruption of key immune genes in Y-positive mice re-uniformed growth rates, implying that something in the chromosome promoted the body’s anti-tumor adaptive immunity. Further analysis confirmed two specific genes – KDM5D and UTY – Mainly responsible for additional protection.
By scanning the proteins produced by cancer cells in mice and comparing the key immune cells present in two different tumor types, we were able to shed more light on the picture and the ability to fight cancer. was suggested. T lymphocytes They attacked cells lacking genes and quickly became exhausted.
Examination of a database of proteins active in human bladder cancer corroborates findings in mouse models, suggesting that the presence of the Y chromosome in bladder cells produces a key protein that aids the immune system’s onslaught against growing tumors. backed up.
Not only does this give medical professionals something to look out for in judging the aggressiveness of bladder cancer, further experiments suggest that Y-negative tumors are well-suited for treating a type of cancer known as bladder cancer. He also showed a reaction. immune checkpoint inhibitor.
If you’re tempted to give your Y chromosome a big, heartfelt hug and say you’ll never let it go, you might want to hold back.
another recently published findings Researchers at the University of Texas in the United States evaluated sex differences in colorectal cancer in mice and found differences similar to those measured in humans.
An analysis of known mutations reveals that the mutation primarily controls a gene on the Y chromosome that is responsible for giving the tumor an advantage as it moves through the mouse. That her Y-chromosome gene happens to be KDM5D, and he is one of the specific genes confirmed to protect against bladder cancer.
Depending on the type of tissue, this little chromosomal ‘pamphlet’ can be a weapon in fighting cancer or a how-to manual for tumors to invade new organs. It depends on which disease you want to be at the highest risk for.
There are studies that suggest the Y chromosome may be disappearing in the process of evolution, and it’s hard to say whether to celebrate or mourn.
