The interaction between cancer cells and neighboring cells plays a crucial role in breast cancer metastasis and anticancer drug resistance. However, current cultivation systems fail to recapitulate heterotypic cell-cell interactions in a breast cancer microenvironment. The ability to incorporate and control cell-cell interactions in an engineered breast cancer metastasis model is crucial for the understanding of breast tumor progression and anticancer drug development, leading to a cure for breast cancer. This in vitro study of breast cancer cell-stem cell interactions has the potential to revolutionize traditional cancer research which targets bulk tumors and uses expensive animal models.
Broader Impact:
The proposed effort will have a broad impact on research, education and outreach efforts in the region through the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering's (CNSE's) established infrastructure. This effort will advance the understanding of the role of cell-cell interactions in engineering human disease which will result in the development of novel human disease models for the biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. At the same time it will deliver new discoveries and enhance the infrastructure of CNSE. Accompanied by research activities, the proposed "top-down" modular approach will serve as a unique training system for graduate, undergraduate and high school students from the City School District of Albany (CSDA) who will participate in the year-long "Engineering Exploration Program" and "Nano High". It will not only provide students hands-on nanobiotechnology skills but also "21st century skills". Results generated during this proposed effort will be disseminated into the design of the Nanobiotechnology Workbook for K-16 students and broadcast to the general public community through "NanoNow" television show presented by CNSE. It will also broadly benefit K-12 through CNSE's ongoing partnerships with the CSDA, whose majority student population is composed of a traditionally underrepresented group in science and engineering, as well as extensive outreach programs at CNSE targeting students from throughout New York's Tech Valley region. By exposing students to the exciting hands-on activity of nanobiotechnology at a young age, science and engineering seeds will be implanted in their mind. Eventually, one will have a sustained supply of students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM ) fields.
Intellectual Merit: Cancer metastasis is the spread of cancer cells to the other part of the body. It is a leading cause of cancer death. The interaction between metastatic cancer cells and their surrounding microenvironments plays a crucial role in cancer metastasis. It is very challenge to study cancer metastasis in vivo. The study of the interaction between cancer cells and neighboring cells in vitro is of paramount importance for Understanding breast cancer metastasis and anticancer drug resistance. Using the bioengineering approach and stem cell-based technology, an innovative tumor suppressive microenvironment has been created and used to study how the microenvironment could restrict metastatic breast cancer cell behaviors, including cell growth, metabolism, migration, invasion, and metastatic marker expression. The results have shown that the bioengineered stem cell microenvironments could restrict cell growth, change cancer metabolism, restrict cell migration, decrease cell invasion, and reduce metastatic marker expression. These results indicate that the bioengineered stem cell microenvironments could reprogram metastatic cancer cells into a less aggressive phenotype. The success of this NSF-supported project enables the future identification of factors that can restrict cancer metastasis in tumor suppressive microenvironments. It will lead to effective way to understand and fight cancer metastasis. It shows the potential to revolutionize traditional cancer research which targets tumor promoting microenvironments or uses expensive animal models. The techniques that were developed here offer a platform of novel non-animal tumor models for pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry to test anticancer drugs. Broader impact: The proposed effort will have a broad impact on research, education and outreach efforts in the region through the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering's (CNSE's) established infrastructure. This effort will advance the understanding of the role of cell-cell interactions in engineering human diseases which will result in the development of novel human disease models for the biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. It has demonstrated a connection between basic research and clinical impact. Accompanied by research activities, the established "top-down" modular approach serves as a unique training system for 6 graduate, 10 undergraduate and 5 high school students. Research findings have been incorporated into both graduate and undergraduate courses. Research results have been disseminated into 15 peer-reviewed journal papers, 1 edited book, 2 Ph.D. dissertations and 16 conference presentations. Result findings have been partially disseminated to K-12 students in the format of hands-on activities and workshops through extensive established partnership and programs at SUNY CNSE.
