Cadherin-11 in Cancer and Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Common Target for Treatment

Cadherin-11, a cell adhesion molecule which enables cells to ‘stick together’, is associated with many cancers and with the inflammatory disease rheumatoid arthritis.  Scientists in the US now believe that cadherin-11 in fact drives the development of many aggressive cancers.  The findings, published in Oncotarget this month, indicate that new treatments targeting cadherin-11 could be just around the corner.  Indeed, the researchers are already “rapidly translating this discovery for use in the clinic’’, says lead author Professor Stephen Byers.

Using publicly available databases, the scientists found that cadherin-11 is present early in the development of many cancers.  As the molecule is associated with tumour progression, the researchers explored whether it is actually responsible for driving malignant progression and reasoned that, if so, therapeutic options could rapidly be developed.

The scientists consistently found that cancer cells stop growing when cadherin-11 activity is blocked, confirming that it is indeed important in cancer development.  The drug celecoxib, which targets cadherin-11, is already being used clinically for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and a therapeutic antibody developed by Dr Michael Brenner is also in trials.  Importantly, celecoxib was found to inhibit the growth of cadherin-11 expressing cancer cells.  Furthermore, when mice were injected with Dr Brenner’s antibody, the growth of their tumours was inhibited.  The team have gone on to develop further small molecules targeting cadherin-11 which could be used clinically and these various therapeutic options can now be rapidly tested in humans suffering from certain cancers, including those of the breast, brain and gastrointestinal tract.

Given that cadherin-11 expression is associated with tumour progression and a poor prognosis, the study gives new hope for the treatment of a range of cancers which currently have limited therapeutic options.

Read more at: http://explore.georgetown.edu/news/?ID=73435&PageTemplateID=295