Macrophages in Metastasis
With Dr. Minna Roh-Johnson
Decoding macrophage messages.
From the lab of Dr. Minna Roh-Johnson
Understanding the spread of cancer cells is at the heart of Dr. Minna Roh-Johnson’s work. She recent dug into the role of macrophages. While macrophages are a component of our immune systems, they can also promote metastasis.
Dr. Roh-Johnson’s lab discovered that macrophages transfer an organelle called mitochondria directly to cancer cells, which allows them to grow more rapidly. Additionally, this transfer seems be signaling additional tumor cells to migrate.
Understanding the how and why of these facts will help drive novel prevention strategies. Further research is in progress to better define the function of macrophages, mitochondrial transfer in breast cancer, and cell signaling.
Mitochondrial heterogeneity in breast cancer cells
MDA-MDA-231 breast cancer cells with RFP-tagged mitochondria labelled with MitoTracker Deep Red (magenta) and LysoTracker (cyan).
Mitochondrial fragmentation
Primary human macrophages expressing mitochondrially-localized mEmerald differentiated into an M2-like “anti-tumor” macrophage state exhibits increased mitochondrial fragmentation.
Transferring mitochondria to cancer cells
Primary human macrophages (green) transfer mitochondria to MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells (red). Arrowheads mark transferred macrophage mitochondria in breast cancer cells.
“The best results are when you see something you didn't expect under the microscope.”
Dr. Minna Roh-Johnson leads the University of Utah’s biochemistry lab. The primary focus of her research is cell biology and unlocking the mysteries of cell migration, particularly in cancer cells.
Experience more breakthroughs and download Dr. Minna Roh-Johnson ’s full research report.
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