Ovarian cancer remains one of the most deadly forms of cancer, killing more than 150,000 women annually. Surprisingly, little is known about the molecular and cellular basis of this disease, something researchers are keen to change.

Dr. Nick Barker from the Institute of Medical Biology (IMB), A*STAR, explains researcher’s goals, saying: “We need to understand the normal cell biology of the ovary before we can begin to understand what goes wrong during cancer, for example.” The goal of researchers is to learn the molecular mechanisms of the tissue renewal process and its abnormality when ovarian cancer is present.

Dr Barker’s team decided to use resident stem cells as a basis for learning about molecular mechanisms within the ovaries. The scientists suspected that ovarian stem cells were responsible for regenerating tissue and maintaining the epithelial layers — but they didn’t know with 100% certainty that stem cells existed inside the organ.

The research team used a cell-surface receptor protein known as Lgr5 to identify the stem cells in the epithelial layers. In the past this protein has played a role in altering the behaviour of stem cells in the gastric disease. The researchers believed the way Lgr5 alters stem cells could help them identify the resident stem cells on the outer lining of the ovaries.

As Dr Barker explained: “This will give scientists the ability to decipher the biology of these stem cells in normal healthy tissue.” Scientists were able to identify resident stem cells in the ovaries of mice and can now gain further insight into the causes of ovarian cancer. They already suspect stem cell mutations are responsible for some forms of the cancer — this new breakthrough will help them confirm or deny that theory.

Researchers are also going to try culturing and purifying the newly found ovarian stem cells to see if they can be used to treat other conditions. Scientists suspect they may be useful for treating other diseases that affect the ovaries including diseases that cause infertility.

Source: Ovarian Stem Cells Hold Potential for Ovarian Cancer Drug Discovery

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