cancer lecture 3

Density-dependent inhibition

A process that regulates cell division in normal cells, where cells stop dividing when they come into contact with each other.

Confluence

The state in which the total number of cells remains constant, forming a single layer of cells in a culture.

Monolayer

A layer of cells that is one cell thick, formed by normal cells in culture.

Focus

A clump of cancer cells that ignore signals of overcrowding and continue to divide.

Invasiveness

The ability of cancer cells to break free from their home tissue and invade other tissues.

Metastasis

The process by which cancer cells spread from the original tumor site to distant organs.

Intravasation

The process of invasive cancer cells entering blood vessels or lymph vessels.

Extravasation

The exit of circulating cancer cells from blood or lymph vessels into new tissues.

Genomic instability

The high frequency of mutations within the genome of cancer cells, leading to abnormal behavior.

Normal Karyotype

A genetic profile that shows a diploid set of chromosomes without abnormalities.

Aneuploidy

An abnormal number of chromosomes, either missing or having extra copies, often found in tumor cells.

Proto-oncogenes

Normal genes that promote cell growth and division; mutations can lead to oncogenes.

Oncogenes

Mutated proto-oncogenes that lead to uncontrolled cell growth and division.

Tumor Suppressor Genes

Genes that regulate the cell cycle and prevent uncontrolled cell division; their mutation leads to cancer.

Loss-of-function mutation

A mutation that results in the inactivation of a gene, often seen in tumor suppressor genes.

Gain-of-function mutation

A mutation that results in a gene becoming overactive, often seen in oncogenes.

Translocation events

Abnormal exchanges between non-homologous chromosomes, common in cancer karyotypes.

Mechanical trapping

The ability of blood vessels at a secondary site to physically capture circulating tumor cells.

Adhesive proteins

Proteins that allow cancer cells to bind to cells in a new region, facilitating metastasis.

Supportive microenvironment

The local environment at a secondary site that allows tumor cells to thrive and proliferate.

Chromosomal breakage and fusion events

Abnormal occurrences in tumor cells that lead to chromosomal structural abnormalities.