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Genetic ‘fingerprints’ may help with understanding colon cancer cells

Written by Daniel Barrett, Future Science Group

Human colon cancer cells with the cell nuclei stained red and the protein E-cadherin stained green. E-cadherin is a cell adhesion molecule and its loss signals a process known as the epithelial-mesenchymal transition in which cells acquire the ability to migrate and become invasive. This image was originally submitted as part of the 2015 NCI Cancer Close Up project and selected for exhibit. https://visualsonline.cancer.gov/details.cfm?imageid=9867

New insights into genetic mutations of colon cancer cells could help determine how healthy cells become cancerous and what makes them mutate, thus potentially leading to uncovering new causes of colon cancer. Researchers from The Wellcome Sanger Institute (UK)have developed new technology allowing them to study healthy cancer cells and their genomes from tissue samples. This aids in the understanding of genetic mutations within cancer, along with the variety of mutations found between individuals. The team hope that their findings will help future studies verify how healthy cells become cancerous, particularly in colon cancer. The research has been published in...

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