Actions for Understanding the Role of BRCA1 in Breast Cancer Progression : Evaluating the Effect of Tissue Viscoelasticity on BRCA1 Localization and Foci

Email RIS file
Bookmark
Report an Issue

Understanding the Role of BRCA1 in Breast Cancer Progression : Evaluating the Effect of Tissue Viscoelasticity on BRCA1 Localization and Foci

Author
Adetayo, Olutomilola
Published
[University Park, Pennsylvania] : Pennsylvania State University, 2024.
Physical Description
1 electronic document
Additional Creators
Gomez, Esther and Schreyer Honors College
Access Online

Availability

I Want It
I Want It

Finding items...

Restrictions on Access
Restricted (PSU Only).
Summary
Cells are continuously exposed to external stresses and thus must be equipped with DNA repair mechanisms for cell survival. BRCA1 is an important gene in such mechanisms, but its function is negatively impacted in breast cancer cells, resulting in inadequate repair pathways. This relationship can be taken advantage of in cancer therapies to selectively target unhealthy tissue in triggering cell death. Etoposide is a chemotherapy drug that causes DNA damage to BRCA1 deficient cells. Due to the lack of BRCA1 function, such cells are unable to repair the damage, making them susceptible to cell apoptosis. To aid in future cancer therapy, we investigated the behavior of the tumor-related marker in different extracellular matrix (ECM) environments, using viscoelastic hydrogels to mimic the mechanical properties of cancerous and healthy tissues. The results indicate that microenvironments that have high storage moduli and low loss moduli exhibited the greatest DNA damage and potentially impaired DNA repair mechanisms, especially when treated with etoposide. The environmental stiffness and viscous properties were also found to correlate to an increased nuclear area and intensity, signifying changes in DNA organization.
Other Subject(s)
Genre(s)
Dissertation Note
B.S. Pennsylvania State University 2024.
Technical Details
The full text of the dissertation is available as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file ; Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view the file.
View MARC record | catkey: 44540827