A research team led by Professor Seiji Ogawa of Kyoto University focused on the fact that esophageal cancer occurs frequently in people with a high degree of drinking and smoking history, and has updated the genetic mutations that occur in seemingly normal esophagus. We have succeeded in elucidating a part of the mechanism by which cancer develops in the elderly by analyzing it in detail using the gene analysis technology of.The research results were published online in the international scientific journal "Nature".
70% of cancers occur in older people over the age of 65, but the reason is unclear.It is also well known that lifestyle-related habits such as smoking and drinking are related to the development of cancer, but it is also being elucidated how these factors are related to the development of cancer in relation to aging. Not.
The research group collected endoscopic epithelium of the esophagus from subjects of various ages, smoking and drinking history, and analyzed it using a next-generation sequencer.As a result, in the esophageal epithelium, cells that have acquired gene mutations that are frequently found in esophageal cancer gradually increase with age, and in elderly people over 70 years old, 40 to 80% of the total esophageal area is like this. It was found that the cells were replaced by various cells.
These "reconstructions" of abnormal cells in the esophageal epithelium have already begun in infancy and have been observed in all healthy individuals without exception, but this process is strong in those with a high degree of drinking and smoking history. It was revealed that the proportion of cells with TP53 gene and chromosomal abnormalities, which are promoted and most frequently found to be abnormal in cancer, is significantly increased.
These results are expected to provide important clues as to why cancer is prevalent in the elderly and how it is promoted by risks such as drinking and smoking.
Paper information:[Nature] Age-related remodeling of oesophageal epithelia by mutated cancer drivers
