Université de Fribourg

Angiogenesis and metastasis

Wyss, Christof B. ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: ESMO handbook of translational research, 2015, p. 67-80

Université de Fribourg

Fragment N2, a caspase-3-generated RasGAP fragment, inhibits breast cancer metastatic progression

Barras, David ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Lhermitte, Benoît ; Viertl, David ; Rüegg, Curzio ; Widmann, Christian

In: International Journal of Cancer, 2014, p. -

The p120 RasGAP protein negatively regulates Ras via its GAP domain. RasGAP carries several other domains that modulate several signaling molecules such as Rho. RasGAP is also a caspase-3 substrate. One of the caspase-3-generated RasGAP fragments, corresponding to amino acids 158–455 and called fragment N2, was previously reported to specifically sensitize cancer cells to death induced by...

Université de Fribourg

Inhibition of cell migration and invasion mediated by the TAT-RasGAP317–326 peptide requires the DLC1 tumor

Barras, D ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Rüegg, Curzio ; Widmann, Christian

In: Oncogene, 2014, p. -

TAT-RasGAP317–326, a peptide corresponding to the 317–326 sequence of p120 RasGAP coupled with a cell-permeable TAT-derived peptide, sensitizes the death response of various tumor cells to several anticancer treatments. We now report that this peptide is also able to increase cell adherence, prevent cell migration and inhibit matrix invasion. This is accompanied by a marked...

Université de Fribourg

Inhibition of the Kit ligand/c-Kit axis attenuates metastasis in a mouse model mimicking local breast cancer relapse after radiotherapy

Kuonen, François ; Laurent, Jullien ; Secondini, Chiara ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Stehle, Jean-Christophe ; Rausch, Thierry ; Hull, Eveline Faes-van't ; Bieler, Gregory ; Alghisi, Gian Carlo ; Schwendener, Reto A. ; Andrejevic-Blant, Snezana ; Mirimanoff, René-Olivier ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: Clinical Cancer Research, 2012, vol. 18, no. 16, p. 4365-4374

Purpose: Local breast cancer relapse after breast-saving surgery and radiotherapy is associated with increased risk of distant metastasis formation. The mechanisms involved remain largely elusive. We used the well-characterized 4T1 syngeneic, orthotopic breast cancer model to identify novel mechanisms of post-radiation metastasis. Experimental Design: 4T1 cells were injected in 20 Gy...

Université de Fribourg

Innate immune cells and their contribution to T-cell-based immunotherapy

Ginefra, Pierpaolo ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Vannini, Nicola

In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2020, vol. 21, no. 12, p. 4441

In recent years, immunotherapy has become the most promising therapy for a variety of cancer types. The development of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies, the adoptive transfer of tumor-specific T cells (adoptive cell therapy (ACT)) or the generation of T cells engineered with chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) have been successfully applied to elicit durable immunological responses in...

Université de Fribourg

The matricellular protein CYR61 promotes breast cancer lung metastasis by facilitating tumor cell extravasation and suppressing anoikis

Huang, Yu-Ting ; Lan, Qiang ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Duffey, Nathalie ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: Oncotarget, 2016, vol. 8, no. 6, p. 9200–9215

Matricellular proteins play multiple roles in primary tumor growth, local invasion and tumor angiogenesis. However, their contribution to metastasis and the putative mechanisms involved are less well characterized. In ER-negative human breast cancer, elevated expression levels of the matricellular protein Cysteine-rich angiogenic inducer 61 (CYR61) are associated with more aggressive...

Université de Fribourg

New insights into the mechanisms of organ-specific breast cancer metastasis

Lorusso, Girieca ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: Seminars in Cancer Biology, 2012, p. -

Despite the substantial advances obtained in the treatment of localized malignancies, metastatic disease still lacks effective treatment and remains the primary cause of cancer mortality, including in breast cancer. Thus, in order to improve the survival of cancer patients it is necessary to effectively improve prevention or treatment of metastasis. To achieve this goal, complementary strategies...

Université de Fribourg

Proangiogenic factor PlGF programs CD11b+ myelomonocytes in breast cancer during differentiation of their hematopoietic progenitors

Laurent, Julien ; Faes-van't Hull, Eveline ; Touvrey, Cedric ; Kuonen, François ; Lan, Qiang ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Doucey, Marie-Agnès ; Ciarloni, Laura ; Imaizumi, Natsuko ; Alghisi, Gian Carlo ; Fagiani, Ernesta ; Zaman, Khalil ; Stupp, Roger ; Shibuya, Masabumi ; Delaloye, Jean-François ; Christofori, Gerhard ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: Cancer Research, 2011, vol. 71, no. 11, p. 3781-3791

Tumor-mobilized bone marrow-derived CD11b+ myeloid cells promote tumor angiogenesis, but how and when these cells acquire proangiogenic properties is not fully elucidated. Here we show that CD11b+ myelomonocytic cells develop proangiogenic properties during their differentiation from CD34+ hematopoietic progenitors and that Placenta Growth Factor (PlGF) is critical in promoting this ...

Université de Fribourg

Targeting the extra-cellular matrix—tumor cell crosstalk for anti-cancer therapy: emerging alternatives to integrin inhibitors

Lorusso, Girieca ; Rüegg, Curzio ; Kuonen, François

In: Frontiers in Oncology, 2020, vol. 10, p. -

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex network composed of a multitude of different macromolecules. ECM components typically provide a supportive structure to the tissue and engender positional information and crosstalk with neighboring cells in a dynamic reciprocal manner, thereby regulating tissue development and homeostasis. During tumor progression, tumor cells commonly modify and...

Université de Fribourg

Type I interferon/IRF7 axis instigates chemotherapy-induced immunological dormancy in breast cancer

Lan, Qiang ; Peyvandi, Sanam ; Duffey, Nathalie ; Huang, Yu-Ting ; Barras, David ; Held, Werner ; Richard, François ; Delorenzi, Mauro ; Sotiriou, Christos ; Desmedt, Christine ; Lorusso, Girieca ; Rüegg, Curzio

In: Oncogene, 2019, vol. 38, no. 15, p. 2814–2829

Neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapies provide survival benefits to breast cancer patients, in particular in estrogen receptor negative (ER−) cancers, by reducing rates of recurrences. It is assumed that the benefits of (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy are due to the killing of disseminated, residual cancer cells, however, there is no formal evidence for it. Here, we provide experimental...