{"674348":{"#nid":"674348","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Researchers Identify Novel Gene Networks Associated with Aggressive Type of Breast Cancer","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBreast cancer is the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/cancer\/breast\/basic_info\/index.htm#:~:text=Cancer%20is%20a%20disease%20in,women%20in%20the%20United%20States.\u0022\u003Esecond-most common cancer diagnosis for U.S. women\u003C\/a\u003E, and the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cancer.org\/cancer\/types\/breast-cancer\/about\/how-common-is-breast-cancer.html\u0022\u003Esecond-leading cause of female cancer deaths\u003C\/a\u003E. In recent years, breast cancer treatments have improved significantly, thanks to targeted gene therapy and immunotherapy. However, for the small group of patients diagnosed with the most aggressive basal-like type of breast cancer, such approaches are less successful.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ERecently, scientists in the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/icrc.gatech.edu\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGeorgia Tech Integrated Cancer Research Center (ICRC)\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;have found that this particular breast cancer displays a unique interactive gene network structure. Using a type of mathematics called \u201cgraph theory,\u201d which models relationships between a pair of objects, the researchers computationally detected changes in gene-gene interactions as \u003Ca\u003Ethis breast\u003C\/a\u003E cancer occurs and develops.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe discovery of novel gene networks associated with basal-like breast cancers has helped us identify potential new gene targets to treat this very aggressive type of breast cancer,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/people\/john-mcdonald\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJohn McDonald\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E, ICRC founding director, professor emeritus in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/a\u003E, and the study\u2019s corresponding author. \u201cWe would not have discovered these possible treatments through analyses of gene expression alone.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EWhile causing just 10-20% of breast cancer diagnoses, basal-like breast cancer is much more aggressive than other subtypes \u2014 and if not identified early, when it can be treated by surgery and\/or radiation therapy, effective anti-cancer drug treatment can be challenging. The basal-like subtype does not respond to traditional hormonal therapies.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/molecular-cancer.biomedcentral.com\/articles\/10.1186\/1476-4598-7-4\u0022\u003EOne theory\u003C\/a\u003E \u003Ca\u003Eas\u003C\/a\u003E to why, advocated by many cancer researchers, is that individual genes do not function autonomously; as such, changes in how genes interact with one another in cancer may be as important as the cancer-driving genes themselves.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe components of any complex system, like the human genome, are certainly important,\u201d said McDonald. \u201cThe way in which these independent components interact with one another is also critical.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca\u003EFor this study, the researchers analyzed three major subtypes of breast cancer, with particular emphasis on the most aggressive basal-like subtype.\u003C\/a\u003E The researchers found that gene-gene interactive networks are quite different in the aggressive basal-like subtype, compared to the more prevalent luminal A and luminal B subtypes.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMany of the genes comprising these unique networks were found to be involved in functions not previously associated with breast cancer. \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/profile\/Stephen-Housley\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EStephen Housley\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E, a neurobiology researcher in the School of Biological Sciences and a co-author on the paper, noted that \u201can unexpected and intriguing result from our study is that neural processes appear to play a prominent role in distinguishing the highly aggressive basal-like tumors from the less aggressive luminal A and luminal B subtypes.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca\u003EIn total, the researchers examined more than 300 million pairs of genes, comparing healthy women to those with breast cancer. Study co-author \u003C\/a\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/zainab-arshad-a81673178\/\u0022\u003EZainab Ashard\u003C\/a\u003E, a computational biologist who recently worked in McDonald\u2019s lab,\u003Cstrong\u003E \u003C\/strong\u003Eexplained, \u201cDifferences in the gene network structure between healthy individuals and breast cancer patients allowed us to identify changes in patterns of gene-gene interactions within breast cancer development.\u201d\u003Ca href=\u0022#_msocom_1\u0022 id=\u0022_anchor_1\u0022\u003E[s1]\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe team\u2019s results are detailed\u0026nbsp;in a new paper,\u0026nbsp;\u201c\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1089\/genbio.2024.0002\u0022\u003EChanges in Gene Network Interactions in Breast Cancer Onset and Development\u003C\/a\u003E,\u201d which appeared\u003Cstrong\u003E \u003C\/strong\u003Ein the April 2024 issue of \u003Cem\u003EGEN Biotechnology\u003C\/em\u003E. Based on the results of this study and their \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cell.com\/iscience\/pdf\/S2589-0042(21)01493-0.pdf\u0022\u003Epreviously published analyses of eight other types of cancer\u003C\/a\u003E, the researchers believe they have established the usefulness of network analysis in identifying potential new candidates for the diagnosis of and targeted gene therapy treatment for breast and other types of cancers.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to McDonald, Housley, and Ashard, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/kara-keun-lee\u0022\u003EKara Keun Lee\u003C\/a\u003E, a former bioinformatics Ph.D. student who worked in McDonald\u2019s lab, is also a co-author on the paper.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe results shown here are in whole or in part based on data generated by the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cancer.gov\/tcga\u0022\u003ETCGA Research Network.\u003C\/a\u003E The Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) Project was supported by the Common Fund of the Office of the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and by NCI, NHGRI, NHLBI, NIDA, NIMH, and NINDS.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThis research was supported by the Mark Light Integrated Cancer Research Center Student Fellowship, the Deborah Nash Endowment Fund, Northside Hospital (Atlanta), and the Ovarian Cancer Institute (Atlanta).\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003ECitation: \u201cChanges in Gene Network Interactions in Breast Cancer Onset and Development,\u201d Zainab\u0026nbsp;Arshad,\u0026nbsp;Stephen N.\u0026nbsp;Housley,\u0026nbsp;Kara Keun\u0026nbsp;Lee, and\u0026nbsp;John F.\u0026nbsp;McDonald, GEN Biotechnology, April 2024,\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nDOI: \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1089\/genbio.2024.0002\u0022\u003Ehttps:\/\/doi.org\/10.1089\/genbio.2024.0002\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe team used a computational math theory to identify gene-gene interactions that may be good targets for treating basal-like cancers that are resistant to traditional hormone therapies.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The team used a computational math theory to identify gene-gene interactions that may be good targets for treating basal-like cancers that are resistant to traditional hormone therapies."}],"uid":"34760","created_gmt":"2024-04-23 18:35:04","changed_gmt":"2024-04-24 18:34:55","author":"Laurie Haigh","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-04-23T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-04-23T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"670488":{"id":"670488","type":"image","title":"John McDonald, Emeritus Professor in the School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Tech","body":null,"created":"1681145806","gmt_created":"2023-04-10 16:56:46","changed":"1681145862","gmt_changed":"2023-04-10 16:57:42","alt":"John McDonald, Emeritus Professor in the School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Tech","file":{"fid":"253352","name":"john_mcdonald_0.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2023\/04\/10\/john_mcdonald_0.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2023\/04\/10\/john_mcdonald_0.png","mime":"image\/png","size":1099148,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2023\/04\/10\/john_mcdonald_0.png?itok=VHjiP2YI"}}},"media_ids":["670488"],"groups":[{"id":"1292","name":"Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB)"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"}],"categories":[{"id":"138","name":"Biotechnology, Health, Bioengineering, Genetics"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"},{"id":"187423","name":"go-bio"},{"id":"193266","name":"cos-research"},{"id":"192250","name":"cos-microbial"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71891","name":"Health and Medicine"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto: savannah.williamson@research.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESavannah Williamson\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nResearch Communications\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}