Cancer microenvironment
Head: Karel Smetana
Prague node
HOME INSTITUTION
First Faculty of Medicine CU
RESEARCH PROGRAMME(S)
RP 3 - Biomarkers of cancers and cancer diagnostics
Intercellular crosstalk in cancer: new route to diagnostics and therapy.
- Mission: Intercellular crosstalk in cancer: new route to diagnostics and therapy.
- Vision: Any therapy without knowledge of vocabulary.
Cancer microenvironment represents factors influencing the properties of tumors including the local aggressive growth and metastazation. Our research is mainly focused on study of cancer-associated fibroblasts, their products and their influence on the biological properties of cancer cells from solid tumors (head and neck, skin incl. melanoma and ductal adenocarcinoma of pancreas). We also participate in the development of new substances influencing the intercellular signalization in cancer ecosystem with therapeutic purpose.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
- Abramenko N, Vellieux F, Veselá K, Kejík Z, Hajduch J, Masařík M, Babula P, Hoskovec D, Pacák K, Martásek P, Smetana K Jr, Jakubek M. Investigation of the potential effects of estrogen receptor modulators on immune checkpoint molecules. Sci Rep. 2024 Feb 6;14(1):3043. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-51804-2
- Gál P, Brábek J, Holub M, Jakubek M, Šedo A, Lacina L, Strnadová K, Dubový P, Hornychová H, Ryška A, Smetana K Jr. Autoimmunity, cancer and COVID-19 abnormally activate wound healing pathways: critical role of inflammation. Histochem Cell Biol. 2022 Nov;158(5):415-434. DOI: 10.1007/s00418-022-02140-x
- Groza Y, Lacina L, Kuchař M, Rašková Kafková L, Zachová K, Janoušková O, Osička R, Černý J, Petroková H, Mierzwicka JM, Panova N, Kosztyu P, Sloupenská K, Malý J, Škarda J, Raška M, Smetana K Jr, Malý P. Small protein blockers of human IL-6 receptor alpha inhibit proliferation and migration of cancer cells. Cell Commun Signal. 2024;22:261, in press. DOI: 10.1186/s12964-024-01630-w
- Procházka V, Lacina L, Smetana K Jr, Svoboda M, Skřivanová K, Beňovská M, Jarkovský J, Křen L, Kala Z. Serum concentrations of proinflammatory biomarker interleukin-6 (IL-6) as a predictor of postoperative complications after elective colorectal surgery. World J Surg Oncol. 2023 Dec 14;21(1):384. DOI: 10.1186/s12957-023-03270-9
- Urban L, Čoma M, Lacina L, Szabo P, Sabová J, Urban T, Šuca H, Lukačín Š, Zajíček R, Smetana K Jr, Gál P. Heterogeneous response to TGF-β1/3 isoforms in fibroblasts of different origins: implications for wound healing and tumorigenesis. Histochem Cell Biol. 2023 Dec;160(6):541-554. DOI: 10.1007/s00418-023-02221-5
- Brábek, J., Rösel, D., Smetana, K. Jr.: Treatment of COVID-19. US Patent US 11,246,874B1 (2022).
COLLABORATION WITHIN THE NICR
Aleksi Šedo
(Prague node, First Faculty of Medicine CU)
Jan Brábek
(Prague node, Faculty of Science CU)
Helena Kupcová Skalníková
(Prague node, First Faculty of Medicine CU)
Michal Kolář
(Prague node, Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences)
Milan Jakubek
(Prague node, First Faculty of Medicine CU)
SPECIALIZED EXPERTISE AND TECHNOLOGY
Advanced cell cultures (2D, 3D)
Advanced optical microscopy
Immunohistochemistry
Lectin and reversed lectin histochemistry
COLLABORATION WITH LARGE RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURES AND RESEARCH CENTRES
Biotechnology and Biomedicine Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences and the Charles University BIOCEV
Central European Institute of Technology at Masaryk University CEITEC MU
National infrastructure for biological and biomedical imaging Czech-Bioimaging
National infrastructure for translational medicine EATRIS-CZ