Complementation Screening in Mammalian Cells: Application to Cell Immortalization.

Abstract

The broad goals of my initial proposal were two-fold. First, I proposed the development of a genetic system that would allow complementation screening in animal cells much in the way that this is done in yeast. Second, I proposed the application of this approach to problems of mortality control and tumorigenesis in breast tumor cells and their normal precursors. As a model system, I chose primary, normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMEC). Progress over the last year can be summarized as follows: (1) Development and validation of the genetic system has been largely completed. (2) We have determined that the lifespan of HMEC cells can be altered by manipulation of telomere length. (3) We have found that a commonly activated cellular oncogene, c-myc, can regulate telomerase activity in HMEC cells and in normal fibroblasts. (4) Either myc expression or telomerase activation can effectively immortalize HMEC cells. (5) We have expanded our genetic analysis of neoplastic transformation to include other aspects of the process, namely resistance to growth inhibitory cytokines.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 01, 1998
Accession Number
ADA357868

Entities

People

  • Gregory Hannon

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Biomedical And Dental Materials
  • Breast Cancer
  • Calcium Compounds
  • Cancer
  • Cell Line
  • Cell Physiological Processes
  • Cells
  • Chemistry
  • Cytokines
  • Epithelial Cells
  • Genetic Structures
  • Genetics
  • Lymphocytes
  • Neoplasms
  • Papillomavirus Infections
  • Peptide Growth Factors
  • Proteins

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Molecular Biology and Genetics
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology