The University of Tokyo · Medicine
Professor Hiroaki Nozawa's research lab focuses on the molecular mechanisms underlying tumor progression, particularly the roles of immune cells and transcription factors in cancer angiogenesis and immune surveillance. The lab investigates key regulators such as MMP-9 and IRF-1 in tumor microenvironment dynamics, with a strong emphasis on their functions in pancreatic and gastric carcinogenesis. Using transgenic mouse models and clinical tumor samples, the lab explores genetic alterations like LOH at chromosome 5q and their implications in tumor suppression and metastasis. The research also extends to understanding the impact of these molecular pathways on patient outcomes, especially in colorectal cancer with brain metastasis.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Matrix metalloprotease type 9 (MMP-9) has been functionally implicated in VEGF activation, the induction and maintenance of chronic angiogenesis, and early stage tumor growth in a number of mouse models of cancer. In this article, we have identified two inflammatory cell types that are major sources of MMP-9 in the angiogenic stages of pancreatic islet carcinogenesis that unfold in RIP1-Tag2 transgenic mice. MMP-9-expressing neutrophils were predominantly found inside angiogenic islet dysplasias
The transcription factor IRF-1 has been implicated in tumor suppression: IRF-1 suppresses cell transformation and mediates apoptosis in vitro. Here we show that the loss of IRF-1 alleles per se has no effect on spontaneous tumor development in the mouse but dramatically exacerbates previous tumor predispositions caused by the c-Ha-ras transgene or by nullizygosity for p53. Grossly altered tumor spectrum, as compared to p53-null mice, was also observed in mice lacking both IRF-1 and p53, and cell
Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) observed in human tumors strongly suggests the existence of (a) tumor-suppressor gene(s) at the concerned locus. A series of studies has revealed that LOH on the long arm of chromosome 5 (5q) frequently occurs in differentiated gastric adenocarcinomas. Furthermore, it has been shown that the interferon regulatory factor-1 (IRF-1) locus on chromosome 5q31.1 is one of the common minimal regions of LOH in these cancers. IRF-1 is a transcriptional activator that shows tu
CRC patients with metastasis to the lung or bone were at a higher risk of BM. Because the survival is still limited, it is crucial to determine the treatment strategy in consideration of the characteristics of each therapy and quality of life in CRC patients with BM.
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