Project 466843

Cancer remains the primary cause of death in Canada due to its ability to spread throughout the body, and create secondary complications of cancer-associated thrombotic disease, or in other words a blockage in the circulatory system. Platelets, which we are ordinarily familiar with for their role in stopping bleeding, play a very important supportive role in cancer disease development. They provide tumors with the means to create new blood vessels vital for gathering necessary nutrients, and form a protective coat around cancer cells that spread to other organs through the blood. One very important commonality between cancer cells and platelets are integrins: cell surface proteins comprised of two parts, called α and β subunits, which are important for cell adhesion to its environment, and the sending and receiving of cellular signals. In this study, we are interested in integrin αIIbβ3 on platelets as it is responsible for platelet activation and subsequent release of important cancer signals. For cancer cells, we are interested in integrin αVβ3 which is responsible for the tumors ability to create new blood vessels and enter those vessels to spread. Notably, there is a common denominator on both cells integrins: the β3 subunit, for which our lab has developed a highly specific antibody which interrupts both αIIbβ3 and αVβ3 function. Our initial data has shown evidence of combating cancer through blocking two pivotal mechanisms, tumor creation of blood vessels and the spreading of cancer to other organs, as well as alleviating cancer-associated thrombosis. Our study will further reveal the importance of how and why cancer exploits platelets for disease progression, and provide insight to a novel anti-cancer solution for current and future therapeutic development.