Ovarian Cancer

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness month and brings to focus a cancer that is estimated to be diagnosed in over 21,000 women in the US in 2014 (1). Ovarian cancer often goes undiagnosed due to the lack of symptoms until it metastasized into the pelvic or abdominal areas. Treatment typically requires surgery and chemotherapy.

By: Lisa Ikariyama; Design: Kim Mesman

Plumbagin (5-hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone) is a toxin, named after the plant genus Plumbago from which it was first isolated in 1968 (1). Since its discovery there have been a wide variety of publications describing its effects on fertility, hyperlipedaemia (high cholesterol) and its use as an anti-bacterial. More recently, there have been multiple efforts to synthesise derivatives and analogues of plumbagin in order to increase its potential as an anti-cancer agent.

Glandular tissues synthesise substances for release, such as hormones and enzymes. The term adenocarcinoma is used to describe a cancer that originates within a glandular tissue, for example the ovary.

 Ovarian carcinoma is disease that eludes early diagnosis and has a high mortality rate. In a diagnosis of ovarian carcinoma, one of the most common problems is to distinguish between a primary ovarian and colorectal adenocarcinoma (1).

CDR2 is a tumor antigen expressed in a high percentage of breast and ovarian tumors and is the target of a naturally occurring tumor immune response in patients with paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration.

Beclin 1 is the mammalian orthologue of the yeast Apg6/Vps30 gene. Beclin 1 can complement the defect in autophagy present in apg6 yeast strains and stimulate autophagy when overexpressed in mammalian cells (1) and can bind to Bcl2, an important regulator of apoptosis (2) suggesting a role in two fundamentally important cellular pathways: autophagy and apoptosis.

The myeloid differentiation protein MyD88 (myeloid differentiation primary response protein) was originally identified and characterized as a primary upregulated response gene in interleukin-6 mediated myeloid differentiation.

ATP-binding cassette superfamily F2 (ABCF2) is a member of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter superfamily, and more specifically, a member of the GCN20 subfamily. Most members of this family are membrane proteins that transport various substrates across the cell membrane [1, 2].

In the United States, breast cancer is one of the most common cancers and the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in women. According to the American Cancer Society's most recent estimates for breast cancer in the United States, there are about 200,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer, 60,000 new cases of carcinoma in situ (CIS),  and approximately 40,000 deaths from breast cancer this year.

BRCA1, also known as breast cancer type 1 susceptibility protein and RING finger protein 53, belongs to a class of genes known as tumor suppressors. BRCA1 regulates cell growth and division, and is also involved in DNA repair.