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Bio 331 Final Exam > Intro To Cancer Biology > Flashcards

Intro To Cancer Biology Flashcards

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1
Q

What are cancer cells

A

Normal cells that have gotten genetic mutations that let them survive and proliferate independently from the normal cell cycle signals

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2
Q

What is metastasis

A

The spread of cancer from the primary site (where it started)

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3
Q

What is a characteristic of a abnormal cell

A

A larger size of nucleus

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4
Q

What are the three main groups of tumours

A

Sarcomas

Leukemias and lymphomas

Carcinomas

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5
Q

What are sarcomas

A

Rare, less than 2%

Solid tumours made of connective tissues

Like bone, cartilage and fibrous tissues

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6
Q

What are Leukemias and lymphomas

A

8% of cancer

Come from blood forming cells (leukaemia)

And from immune system cells (lymphomas)

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7
Q

What are carcinomas

A

90% of cancers

Come from epithelial cells

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8
Q

What are the 4 causes of cancer

A

Exposure to carcinogenic chemicals

Ionizing radiation

Viruses (that alter the genome, papilloma virus)

UV light

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9
Q

What is an example of a virus and what is its characteristics

A

The human papilloma virus

Found in 90% of cervical cancers

But most women with the infection don’t develop the cancer

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10
Q

How can viruses cause cancer

A

They are able to transform cells from normal to cancerous

This is because the virus can pick up cancer causing genes whose protien products stop the cells growth regulating activities

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11
Q

Is cancer genetic or inherited

A

Genetic (changes to dna)

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12
Q

How do the mutations that cause cancer happen

A

Due to somatic (not in germ cells) mutations in specific genes

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13
Q

How do inherited mutations affect cancer risk

A

Inherited mutations like mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes

This increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer

But this is rare (5%)

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14
Q

BRCA1 and BRCA2 help with what

A

DNA repair

If mutated the cell cant repair dna and mutation can accumulate and risk of cancer increases

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15
Q

In what way does cancer affect the shape of chromosome

A

Chromosomes could duplicate, and have other parts of chromosomes translocated onto it

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16
Q

Where would mis-segregations of chromosomes occur

A

During mitosis

17
Q

What are the hallmarks of cancer

A

Sustaining proliferative signalling (making RAS growth factor independent, ex RAS)

Evading growth suppressors

Activating invasion and metastasis (cancer migrating)

Allowing replicative immortality (dividing infinitely)

Inducing angiogenesis (Forming new blood vessels to take away the waste of the cancer tumor)

Resisting cell death (no apoptosis)

18
Q

What is contact inhibition

A

The inhibition/stopping of cell division in normal cells when they contact or a neighbouring cell

It stops the cells motility and proliferation since they can’t grow over top of each other

This lead to them making a monolayer

19
Q

What is special about tumor cells in regard to contact inhibition

A

The tumor cells have lost their contact inhibition

So they begin to grow on top of each other after the first layer is formed

20
Q

Describe how serum in cell cultures can affect normal and cancer cells

A

Cancer cells eventually become growth factor independent

Serum has growth factors

So when there is no serum, normal cells would not grow as much

When there is serum , normal cells grow then level out at some point bc of contact inhibition

cancer cells with serum grow, cancer cells without serum also grow at same rate

Basically cancer cells don’t need serum to grow

21
Q

What is anchorage independence

A

Cancer cells can grow without an ECM since the don’t need adhesion

They can grow in agar which doesn’t have a ECM

But normal cells need ECM to grow since the need interaction with their integrin

22
Q

What can cancer cells do since the have anchorage indoependencd

A

Since the don’t need to adhere to the ECM , they are able to freely float through the body and not die

23
Q

What are ways that cancer progresses

A

It’s caused by mutations in tumor suppressor genes (deactivating) and proto oncogenes (activating genes that promote cell growth

It can progress through:

loss of control over cell proliferation

Loss of adhesion to neighbouring cells and the basement membrane

Use of matrix metalloproteinases to digest the basement membrane

Invasion into surrounding tissue and blood stream or lymph system

24
Q

What is involved in loss of adhesion in cancer cells

A

They lose their E-cadherins

They lose their integrin (not required for survival anymore, can still have and use them but not needed for survival

25
Q

How can we measure metastasis (the spread of cancer)

A

Through the use of a boyden chamber

26
Q

How do the boyden chambers work

A

There is the invasion assay and migration assay

In the migration assay, you have two wells and out the cells in the upper well. They travel through a porous membrane to the bottom well

This has no ECM

In the invasion assay, an ECM in in between the porous membrane of the two wells.
The cells have to now eat through the ECM to get to the bottom chamber. Invasion is measured

27
Q

What gene encodes p53

A

TP53

28
Q

How do MMP’s (matrix metalloproteinases) help metastasis happen

A

Is it an ECM protease

Breaks down the basement membrane so the cancer cells can escape

Breaks down the vessels ECM to allow invasion into the vessel

Breaks down the vessels ECM to allow extravasation into the vessel

29
Q

What is a way to detect MMP’s in normal and cancer cells

A

Zymography

30
Q

What is zymography

A

Loading the wells of a SDS PAGE with protiens that may or may not have MMPS

looking for the clear spots where the gel has been digested. That’s where the MMP’s are

31
Q

What is the proposed cells that a tumour may originate from

A

From the stem cells that can get mutations and have a high potential for replication

From progenitor cells that gain the capacity for self renewal

32
Q

What is a tumor initiating cell/ cancer stem cell

A

Similar to normal stem cells where it

  1. Commits to differentiation
  2. Self renews
33
Q

Can an anticancer drug that kills fast dividing cells work on cancer stem cells

A

No because cancer stem cells are not fast dividing

The stem cell that differentiates into a cancer cell is still present

34
Q

What are the 7 steps of apoptosis

A
  1. Shrinkage in the cells volume and it nucleus’s
  2. Loss of adhesion or other cells
  3. Bleb formation at the surface of the cell
  4. Chromatin fragmentation
  5. Nuclear fragmentation
  6. Cellular fragmentation
  7. Phagocytosis of the cell and apoptotic bodies (membrane bound cell fragments)
35
Q

In apoptosis what is special about what happens to the cell

A

The inside stuff of the cell does not come out, it’s always wrapped around in cell membrane

If the cell innards spill out then inflammation can happen

36
Q

What is an example of how apoptosis helps in development

A

Apoptosis occurs during development to remove the webbing cells between our fingers

Also Lose neurons early on to help with brain development

Bio 331 Final Exam (17 decks)

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