The University of Osaka · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Professor Nobuyuki Takakura's research lab focuses on the tumor microenvironment, particularly the roles of stromal cells such as cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and vascular-resident progenitor endothelial cells in tumor progression and angiogenesis. The lab investigates how microenvironmental cues—such as hypoxia and nutrient stress—influence cell behavior, with a strong emphasis on CD44 expression in CAFs and the contribution of PDGFRα-expressing cells during development. Additionally, the lab explores the link between lymphatic and vascular function and metabolic disorders, proposing novel therapeutic strategies targeting angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis in cancer and obesity. Their work integrates developmental biology, cancer biology, and vascular physiology to uncover new targets for disease intervention.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Cells constituting the tumor microenvironment are attractive targets for developing new cancer therapies. Here we show that cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) support tumor growth in vivo and maintain the stemness of cancer stem/initiating cells in an in vitro model using an established CAF cell line. We found that CD44 is abundantly expressed on CAFs. This molecule is a cancer stem cell marker in several tumors, but its role in tumorigenesis when expressed by CAFs has not been investigated. I
We investigated the cells that express platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFR alpha) during mouse embryogenesis. PDGFR alpha expression has been identified by in situ hybridization or immunohistochemistry using polyclonal antibodies on tissue sectins. Because no immunostaining study using whole-mount specimens has been published to date, we established a new monoclonal antibody (MAb), APA5, for this purpose. Our results differed in that APA5 stained only the paraxial mesoderm, wher
Angiogenesis is tightly associated with the outgrowth of adipose tissue, leading to obesity, which is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes and hypertension, mainly because expanding adipose tissue requires an increased nutrient supply from blood vessels. Therefore, induction of vessel abnormality by adipokines has been well-studied, whereas how altered vascular function promotes obesity is relatively unexplored. Also, surviving Prox1 heterozygous mice have shown abnormal lymphatic patterning and ad
Angiogenesis plays a crucial role in tumor growth, with an undisputed contribution of resident endothelial cells (EC) to new blood vessels in the tumor. Here, we report the definition of a small population of vascular-resident stem/progenitor-like EC that contributes predominantly to new blood vessel formation in the tumor. Although the surface markers of this population are similar to other ECs, those from the lung vasculature possess colony-forming ability in vitro and contribute to angiogenes
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