Announcing the Labroots 2021 Cell Biology Virtual Event Poster Winner

The winner of the Labroots Cell Biology Virtual Event poster competition (September 22, 2021) was submitted by a research group from MedFUTURE – The Research Center for Advanced Medicine at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Romania.

Their poster "5-Azacytidine treatment determines the epigenetic reprogramming of lung cancer models followed by a significant anti-cancer activity" focuses on investigating lung cancer cells and potential lung cancer treatments.

Diana Gulei, Ph.D explained that "our research demonstrates that the development of lung cancer is strongly based on the methylation mechanism," and noted that this process could be a reversible one.

Opon observing excessive methylation in their study, the researchers looked to a demethylating drug called 5-Azacytidine that is used in the hematology sector. An induced orthotopic model of lung cancer was exposed to 5-Azacytidine and the drug showed positive results.

The investigators found that 5-Azacytidine triggered cell death through apoptosis and necrosis. It also stopped new cell growth by inhibiting the cell cycle at the G1 phase. The researchers determined that the ability of lung cancer cells to proliferate into colonies was halted. In the xenografted model, lung cancer tumor size was reduced when mice were treated with 5-Azacytidine.

The study indicated that 5-Azacytidine could make lung cancer cells sensitive to therapeutics, and targetable for treatment, noted Gulei.

Find more information and sources on the winning poster in the On-Demand 2021 Cell Biology Virtual Event Poster Hall and in the Full Article about this research, Written by Labroots Science Writer Carmen Leitch.