Scientists find genes that help cancer cells to penetrate brain

In an attempt to create new methods for cancer diagnosis and treatment, an international team of scientists, including a researcher from Sechenov University, reviewed scientific articles on proteins (and genes encoding them) that help cancer cells enter the brain. The study, that tried to understand the processes that facilitate the formation of metastases in the brain, was published in the journal Trends in Cancer. Brain tissues are very sensitive to changes in the levels of many substances and to the penetration of microorganisms and immune cells, but they need a large amount of nutrients and oxygen. The authors of the article decided to find out which genes give cancer cells such a 'superpower'.'Metastasis formation is controlled by proteins and genes encoding these proteins. The purpose of this work was to systematise experimentally or clinically proven findings about the proteins and microRNAs that allow migration of tumour cells to the brain.