Women's Cancers Exam 2 Study Guide

What result in changes in the way tissues appear?

Changes in gene expression

Define the associated mutations of gene expression changes:

• Metaplasia

• Hypertropy

• Hyperplasia

• Dysplasia

• Neoplasia

• Metaplasia - cells look like other cells found in the body

• Hypertropy - cells enlarge in size

• Hyperplasia - cells increase in number

• Dysplasia - cells are disorganized

• Neoplasia - cells have crossed the basement membrane and invaded neighboring tissue - cancerous activity → malignant

Benign v. Malignant

benign - non/precancerous, but has high likelihood of developing it

malignant - cancerous, has crossed the basement membrane

metastasis

cancer cells spread from the primary tumor to a distant site in the body

Define chemotherapy and and why one may lose hair due to this treatment

a form of cancer therapy that targets rapidly-dividing cells. Being non-specific, chemotherapy targets cancer cells and healthy rapidly dividing cells like hair cells; → hair loss

Know what is produced and where for each of the following processes:

• glycolysis

• Kreb’s cycle

• electron transport chain

• glycolysis → ATP, NADH+ in cytoplasm

• Kreb’s cycle → NADH, FADH2, ATP, CO2 in mitochondria

• electron transport chain → ATP in mitochondria

Know where carbon dioxide is produced and where oxygen is used in cellular respiration

CO2 - produced during Kreb’s cycle in the mitochondria

O2 - present in cell metabolism (aerobic respiration) at the end of the electron transport chain to catch electrons in the mitochondria

Know when lactic acid fermentation takes place

Takes place instead of Kreb’s cycle when oxygen isn’t present in the cells.

• Occurs in human cells.

• Without NADH converted to ATP, NADH made in glycolysis isn’t useful

  • goal is to make all the ATP from glycolysis to keep it running

    • as a result, lots more sugar than normal needs to be consumed,

    • and also need NAD+ to become NADH, which is needed to be made during glycolysis

Define angiogenesis, autophagy, and apoptosis

angiogenesis - cancer cells build their own blood vessels

autophagy - when cell death is triggered, cells eat their own organelles → die

apoptosis - commonly triggered by DNA damage and rids the body of of damaged cells and preventing uncontrolled cell growth and division

Know histone acetylation and DNA methylation, how they impact gene expression, and how it contributes to cancer development or prevents cancer from starting

histone acetylation - acetyl groups added to histones on DNA that, upon attachment, twist DNA looser and increase transcription

DNA methylation - a sequence RNAp binds to; methyl groups are added to DNA of promoters

→ prevents RNAp from doing transcription

→ increased methyl groups → decreased gene expression (tumor suppressor)

histone acetylation promoting g.e. of oncogene: prevent/promote cancer? - Promote

miRNA targeting mRNA of tumor suppressor: prevent/promote cancer? - Promote

promoter methylation is increased at a promoter of a gene that is a tumor suppressor: prevent/promote cancer? - Promote

The scientific method and the steps (6)

1. Observation is made

2. Observation motivates a question

3. Create a hypothesis (if X, then Y); must be testable, possibly falsifiable, and repeatable by peer

4. Design an experiment

5. End of experiment: hypothesis made is supported or falsified

6. Results are recorded

Know the different categories of therapies discussed in class:

• surgery

• radiation

• chemotherapies

• targeted therapies

• immunotherapies

• any other general definitions

• surgery - anatomical removal of all/part of a tumor

• radiation - target tumor cells to promote cancer cell death

  • external source: patient goes to an appointment and gets it done there

  • internal source: implant can give radiation

  • organ has to be reachable, not underneath another organ

• chemotherapies - non-specific therapy targeting all rapidly-dividing cells, including healthy ones

• targeted therapies - drugs targeted to specific proteins that are up-regulated in cancer

  • Tamoxifen - drug for patients with high amounts of estrogen receptor

  • Gleevac - targets BCRABL protein, inhibiting it’s promotion of cell division

• immunotherapies - vaccines used to treat different kinds of cancer

Define proto-oncogene and tumor suppressor

proto-oncogene - cancerous; promotes cancer cell division

tumor suppressor - slows cell division

Purpose of circulatory vs. lymphatic system and their respective cells

circulatory - transports blood around the body

lymphatic -

What is the pathway of blood through the heart and what are the valves?

Deoxygenated:

1. Enters vena cava

2. passes through tricuspid valve to enter the right atrium,

3. going into the right ventricle,

4. up to the pulmonary artery,

5. and out to the lungs

Oxygenated:

6. back into the body through the bicuspid valve

7. to enter the left atrium,

8. and go down the left ventricle,

9. to finish by exiting through the aorta

When is blood (de)oxygenated?

• during steps 1-5

• after returning to the veins then entering vena cava, it’s low in O2 but high in CO2

Define the following, provide their function, and how they differ:

• veins

• arteries

• arterioles

• capillaries

• venules

• veins - larger vessels that carry blood back to the heart

• arteries - vessels that carry blood away from the heart

• arterioles - smaller vessels that carry blood from the heart

• capillaries - small vessels where nutrients are exchanged at cells or tissues

• venules - smaller vessels that carry blood back to the heart

Leukemia vs. Lymphoma

leukemia - cancers developed from abnormal cell division of white blood cells

lymphoma - cancers developed in the lymphatic system

Two main categories of lymphoma

Hodgkin’s lymphoma - large white blood cell with 2 nuclei; less common; often in young adults

non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma - one nucleus; more common (often in 60+)

4 types of leukemia discussed

• ALL - acute lymphoblastic lymphoma - large number of lymphocyte cells, common in 3-6 and 65+; good prognosis w/ chemo.

• AML - acute myeloid lymphoma - common in 65+; success/prognosis vary

• CLL - chronic lymphatic lymphoma - most common in North America; caused by overproduction of B-cells; may have it for years and don’t know

• CML - chronic myelogenous lymphoma - often in older adults; over-production of granulocytes; prognosis/survival rate 90%; chromosomal translocation between chromosomes. 9 (BCR) and 22 (ABL) called Philadelphia Chromosome, which leads to an increased cell division (proliferation); treatment: Gleevac

Gleevec’s function and the leukemia form it’s used on

• issue: results in proliferation of granulocytes and CML

• Gleevac - vaccination

  • impact on translocation: restricts the translocated protein BCR (22) ABL (9) from dividing; these are called the Phillidelphia chromosome