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Reyes-Aldasoro CC. Modelling the Tumour Microenvironment, but What Exactly Do We Mean by "Model"? Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:3796. [PMID: 37568612 PMCID: PMC10416922 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15153796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The Oxford English Dictionary includes 17 definitions for the word "model" as a noun and another 11 as a verb. Therefore, context is necessary to understand the meaning of the word model. For instance, "model railways" refer to replicas of railways and trains at a smaller scale and a "model student" refers to an exemplary individual. In some cases, a specific context, like cancer research, may not be sufficient to provide one specific meaning for model. Even if the context is narrowed, specifically, to research related to the tumour microenvironment, "model" can be understood in a wide variety of ways, from an animal model to a mathematical expression. This paper presents a review of different "models" of the tumour microenvironment, as grouped by different definitions of the word into four categories: model organisms, in vitro models, mathematical models and computational models. Then, the frequencies of different meanings of the word "model" related to the tumour microenvironment are measured from numbers of entries in the MEDLINE database of the United States National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health. The frequencies of the main components of the microenvironment and the organ-related cancers modelled are also assessed quantitatively with specific keywords. Whilst animal models, particularly xenografts and mouse models, are the most commonly used "models", the number of these entries has been slowly decreasing. Mathematical models, as well as prognostic and risk models, follow in frequency, and these have been growing in use.
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Abstract
Integration of ecological and evolutionary features has begun to understand the interplay of tumor heterogeneity, microenvironment, and metastatic potential. Developing a theoretical framework is intrinsic to deciphering tumors' tremendous spatial and longitudinal genetic variation patterns in patients. Here, we propose that tumors can be considered evolutionary island-like ecosystems, that is, isolated systems that undergo evolutionary and spatiotemporal dynamic processes that shape tumor microenvironments and drive the migration of cancer cells. We examine attributes of insular systems and causes of insularity, such as physical distance and connectivity. These properties modulate migration rates of cancer cells through processes causing spatial and temporal isolation of the organs and tissues functioning as a supply of cancer cells for new colonizations. We discuss hypotheses, predictions, and limitations of tumors as islands analogy. We present emerging evidence of tumor insularity in different cancer types and discuss their relevance to the islands model. We suggest that the engagement of tumor insularity into conceptual and mathematical models holds promise to illuminate cancer evolution, tumor heterogeneity, and metastatic potential of cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Chroni
- Institute for Genomics and Evolutionary Medicine, Temple University, USA
- Department of Biology, Temple University, USA
| | - Sudhir Kumar
- Institute for Genomics and Evolutionary Medicine, Temple University, USA
- Department of Biology, Temple University, USA
- Center for Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
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3
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Dujon AM, Vittecoq M, Bramwell G, Thomas F, Ujvari B. Machine learning is a powerful tool to study the effect of cancer on species and ecosystems. Methods Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.13703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Antoine M. Dujon
- Geelong School of Life and Environmental Sciences Centre for Integrative Ecology Deakin University Waurn Ponds Victoria Australia
- CREECUMR IRD 224‐CNRS 5290‐Université de Montpellier Montpellier France
- CANECEV‐Centre de Recherches Ecologiques et Evolutives sur le cancer (CREEC) Montpellier France
| | - Marion Vittecoq
- CREECUMR IRD 224‐CNRS 5290‐Université de Montpellier Montpellier France
- MIVEGECUniversity of MontpellierCNRSIRD Montpellier France
- Tour du Valat Research Institute for the Conservation of Mediterranean Wetlands Arles France
| | - Georgina Bramwell
- Geelong School of Life and Environmental Sciences Centre for Integrative Ecology Deakin University Waurn Ponds Victoria Australia
- CANECEV‐Centre de Recherches Ecologiques et Evolutives sur le cancer (CREEC) Montpellier France
| | - Frédéric Thomas
- CREECUMR IRD 224‐CNRS 5290‐Université de Montpellier Montpellier France
- CANECEV‐Centre de Recherches Ecologiques et Evolutives sur le cancer (CREEC) Montpellier France
- MIVEGECUniversity of MontpellierCNRSIRD Montpellier France
| | - Beata Ujvari
- Geelong School of Life and Environmental Sciences Centre for Integrative Ecology Deakin University Waurn Ponds Victoria Australia
- CANECEV‐Centre de Recherches Ecologiques et Evolutives sur le cancer (CREEC) Montpellier France
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4
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Baudoin NC, Bloomfield M. Karyotype Aberrations in Action: The Evolution of Cancer Genomes and the Tumor Microenvironment. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:558. [PMID: 33921421 PMCID: PMC8068843 DOI: 10.3390/genes12040558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2021] [Revised: 03/27/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer is a disease of cellular evolution. For this cellular evolution to take place, a population of cells must contain functional heterogeneity and an assessment of this heterogeneity in the form of natural selection. Cancer cells from advanced malignancies are genomically and functionally very different compared to the healthy cells from which they evolved. Genomic alterations include aneuploidy (numerical and structural changes in chromosome content) and polyploidy (e.g., whole genome doubling), which can have considerable effects on cell physiology and phenotype. Likewise, conditions in the tumor microenvironment are spatially heterogeneous and vastly different than in healthy tissues, resulting in a number of environmental niches that play important roles in driving the evolution of tumor cells. While a number of studies have documented abnormal conditions of the tumor microenvironment and the cellular consequences of aneuploidy and polyploidy, a thorough overview of the interplay between karyotypically abnormal cells and the tissue and tumor microenvironments is not available. Here, we examine the evidence for how this interaction may unfold during tumor evolution. We describe a bidirectional interplay in which aneuploid and polyploid cells alter and shape the microenvironment in which they and their progeny reside; in turn, this microenvironment modulates the rate of genesis for new karyotype aberrations and selects for cells that are most fit under a given condition. We conclude by discussing the importance of this interaction for tumor evolution and the possibility of leveraging our understanding of this interplay for cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolaas C. Baudoin
- Department of Genetics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences and Fralin Life Sciences Institute, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Mathew Bloomfield
- Department of Biological Sciences and Fralin Life Sciences Institute, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
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5
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Rodriguez Messan M, Damaghi M, Freischel A, Miao Y, Brown J, Gillies R, Wallace D. Predicting the results of competition between two breast cancer lines grown in 3-D spheroid culture. Math Biosci 2021; 336:108575. [PMID: 33757835 DOI: 10.1016/j.mbs.2021.108575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Revised: 02/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
This study develops a novel model of a consumer-resource system with mobility included, in order to explain a novel experiment of competition between two breast cancer cell lines grown in 3D in vitro spheroid culture. The model reproduces observed differences in monoculture, such as overshoot phenomena and final size. It also explains both theoretically and through simulation the inevitable triumph of the same cell line in co-culture, independent of initial conditions. The mobility of one cell line (MDA-MB-231) is required to explain both the success and the rapidity with which that species dominates the population and drives the other species (MCF-7) to extinction. It is shown that mobility directly interferes with the other species and that the cost of that mobility is in resource usage rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisabel Rodriguez Messan
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, United States of America.
| | - Mehdi Damaghi
- Moffitt Cancer Research Center, Tampa, FL, 33612, United States of America.
| | - Audrey Freischel
- Department of Mathematics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America.
| | - Yan Miao
- Department of Mathematics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America.
| | - Joel Brown
- Moffitt Cancer Research Center, Tampa, FL, 33612, United States of America.
| | - Robert Gillies
- Moffitt Cancer Research Center, Tampa, FL, 33612, United States of America.
| | - Dorothy Wallace
- Department of Mathematics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America.
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6
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Reynolds BA, Oli MW, Oli MK. Eco-oncology: Applying ecological principles to understand and manage cancer. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:8538-8553. [PMID: 32884638 PMCID: PMC7452771 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer is a disease of single cells that expresses itself at the population level. The striking similarities between initiation and growth of tumors and dynamics of biological populations, and between metastasis and ecological invasion and community dynamics suggest that oncology can benefit from an ecological perspective to improve our understanding of cancer biology. Tumors can be viewed as complex, adaptive, and evolving systems as they are spatially and temporally heterogeneous, continually interacting with each other and with the microenvironment and evolving to increase the fitness of the cancer cells. We argue that an eco-evolutionary perspective is essential to understand cancer biology better. Furthermore, we suggest that ecologically informed therapeutic approaches that combine standard of care treatments with strategies aimed at decreasing the evolutionary potential and fitness of neoplastic cells, such as disrupting cell-to-cell communication and cooperation, and preventing successful colonization of distant organs by migrating cancer cells, may be effective in managing cancer as a chronic condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brent A. Reynolds
- Department of NeurosurgeryCollege of MedicineUniversity of FloridaGainesvilleFLUSA
| | - Monika W. Oli
- Department of Microbiology and Cell ScienceInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesUniversity of FloridaGainesvilleFLUSA
| | - Madan K. Oli
- Department of Wildlife Ecology and ConservationInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesUniversity of FloridaGainesvilleFLUSA
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7
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Whelan CJ, Avdieiev SS, Gatenby RA. Insights From the Ecology of Information to Cancer Control. Cancer Control 2020; 27:1073274820945980. [PMID: 32762341 PMCID: PMC7791475 DOI: 10.1177/1073274820945980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Revised: 06/18/2020] [Accepted: 07/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Uniquely in nature, living systems must acquire, store, and act upon information. The survival and replicative fate of each normal cell in a multicellular organism is determined solely by information obtained from its surrounding tissue. In contrast, cancer cells as single-cell eukaryotes live in a disrupted, heterogeneous environment with opportunities and hazards. Thus, cancer cells, unlike normal somatic cells, must constantly obtain information from their environment to ensure survival and proliferation. In this study, we build upon a simple mathematical modeling framework developed to predict (1) how information promotes population persistence in a highly heterogeneous environment and (2) how disruption of information resulting from habitat fragmentation increases the probability of population extinction. Because (1) tumors grow in a highly heterogeneous microenvironment and (2) many cancer therapies fragment tumors into isolated, small cancer cell populations, we identify parallels between these 2 systems and develop ideas for cancer cure based on lessons gleaned from Anthropocene extinctions. In many Anthropocene extinctions, such as that of the North American heath hen (Tympanuchus cupido cupido), a large and widespread population was initially reduced and fragmented owing to overexploitation by humans (a "first strike"). After this, the small surviving populations are vulnerable to extinction from environmental or demographic stochastic disturbances (a "second strike"). Following this analogy, after a tumor is fragmented into small populations of isolated cancer cells by an initial therapy, additional treatment can be applied with the intent of extinction (cure). Disrupting a cancer cell's ability to acquire and use information in a heterogeneous environment may be an important tactic for causing extinction following an effective initial therapy. Thus, information, from the scale of cells within tumors to that of species within ecosystems, can be used to identify vulnerabilities to extinction and opportunities for novel treatment strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J. Whelan
- Cancer Biology and Evolution Program, Moffitt Cancer Center
& Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
- Department of Cancer Physiology, Moffitt Cancer Center &
Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Stanislav S. Avdieiev
- Cancer Biology and Evolution Program, Moffitt Cancer Center
& Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
- Department of Integrated Mathematical Oncology, Moffitt
Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Robert A. Gatenby
- Cancer Biology and Evolution Program, Moffitt Cancer Center
& Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
- Department of Integrated Mathematical Oncology, Moffitt
Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Interventional
Radiology, Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL,
USA
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8
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Gatenbee CD, Minor ES, Slebos RJC, Chung CH, Anderson ARA. Histoecology: Applying Ecological Principles and Approaches to Describe and Predict Tumor Ecosystem Dynamics Across Space and Time. Cancer Control 2020; 27:1073274820946804. [PMID: 32869651 PMCID: PMC7710396 DOI: 10.1177/1073274820946804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Cancer cells exist within a complex spatially structured ecosystem composed of resources and different cell types. As the selective pressures imposed by this environment determine the fate of cancer cells, an improved understanding of how this ecosystem evolves will better elucidate how tumors grow and respond to therapy. State of the art imaging methods can now provide highly resolved descriptions of the microenvironment, yielding the data required for a thorough study of its role in tumor growth and treatment resistance. The field of landscape ecology has been studying such species-environment relationship for decades, and offers many tools and perspectives that cancer researchers could greatly benefit from. Here, we discuss one such tool, species distribution modeling (SDM), that has the potential to, among other things, identify critical environmental factors that drive tumor evolution and predict response to therapy. SDMs only scratch the surface of how ecological theory and methods can be applied to cancer, and we believe further integration will take cancer research in exciting new and productive directions. Significance: Here we describe how species distribution modeling can be used to quantitatively describe the complex relationship between tumor cells and their microenvironment. Such a description facilitates a deeper understanding of cancers eco-evolutionary dynamics, which in turn sheds light on the factors that drive tumor growth and response to treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chandler D. Gatenbee
- Integrated Mathematical Oncology Department, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer
Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Emily S. Minor
- Department of Biological Sciences, Institute for Environmental
Science and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Robbert J. C. Slebos
- Department of Head and Neck–Endocrine Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt
Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Christine H. Chung
- Department of Head and Neck–Endocrine Oncology, H. Lee Moffitt
Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Alexander R. A. Anderson
- Integrated Mathematical Oncology Department, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer
Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
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9
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Adler FR, Gordon DM. Cancer Ecology and Evolution: Positive interactions and system vulnerability. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 17:1-7. [PMID: 32318644 DOI: 10.1016/j.coisb.2019.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Parallels of cancer with ecology and evolution have provided new insights into the initiation and spread of cancer, and new approaches to therapy. This review describes those parallels while emphasizing some key contrasts. We argue that cancers are less like invasive species than like native species or even crops that have escaped control, and that ecological control and homeo-static control differ fundamentally through both their ends and their means. From our focus on the role of positive interactions in control processes, we introduce a novel mathematical modeling framework that tracks how individual cell lineages arise, and how the many layers of control break down in the emergence of cancer. The next generation of therapies must continue to look beyond cancers as being created by individual renegade cells and address not only the network of interactions those cells inhabit, but the evolutionary logic that created those interactions and their intrinsic vulnerability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frederick R Adler
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, 257 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112.,Department of Mathematics, University of Utah, 155 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112
| | - Deborah M Gordon
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, 371 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305-5020
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10
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Heindl A, Lan C, Rodrigues DN, Koelble K, Yuan Y. Similarity and diversity of the tumor microenvironment in multiple metastases: critical implications for overall and progression-free survival of high-grade serous ovarian cancer. Oncotarget 2018; 7:71123-71135. [PMID: 27661102 PMCID: PMC5342067 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.12106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2016] [Accepted: 08/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The tumor microenvironment is pivotal in influencing cancer progression and metastasis. Different cells co-exist with high spatial diversity within a patient, yet their combinatorial effects are poorly understood. We investigate the similarity of the tumor microenvironment of 192 local metastatic lesions in 61 ovarian cancer patients. An ecologically inspired measure of microenvironmental diversity derived from multiple metastasis sites is correlated with clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic outcome. We demonstrate a high accuracy of our automated analysis across multiple sites. A low level of similarity in microenvironmental composition is observed between ovary tumor and corresponding local metastases (stromal ratio r = 0.30, lymphocyte ratio r = 0.37). We identify a new measure of microenvironmental diversity derived from Shannon entropy that is highly predictive of poor overall (p = 0.002, HR = 3.18, 95% CI = 1.51-6.68) and progression-free survival (p = 0.0036, HR = 2.83, 95% CI = 1.41-5.7), independent of and stronger than clinical variables, subtype stratifications based on single cell types alone and number of sites. Although stromal influence in ovary tumors is known to have significant clinical implications, our findings reveal an even stronger impact orchestrated by diverse cell types. Quantitative histology-based measures can further enable objective selection of patients who are in urgent need of new therapeutic strategies such as combinatorial treatments targeting heterogeneous tumor microenvironment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Heindl
- Centre for Evolution and Cancer, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.,Centre for Molecular Pathology, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK.,Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK
| | - Chunyan Lan
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Centre, Guangzhou, China.,State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Centre for Cancer Medicine, Guangzhou, China
| | | | - Konrad Koelble
- Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.,Department of Histopathology, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK
| | - Yinyin Yuan
- Centre for Evolution and Cancer, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.,Centre for Molecular Pathology, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK.,Division of Molecular Pathology, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK
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11
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Jacqueline C, Biro PA, Beckmann C, Moller AP, Renaud F, Sorci G, Tasiemski A, Ujvari B, Thomas F. Cancer: A disease at the crossroads of trade-offs. Evol Appl 2017; 10:215-225. [PMID: 28250806 PMCID: PMC5322410 DOI: 10.1111/eva.12444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Accepted: 11/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Central to evolutionary theory is the idea that living organisms face phenotypic and/or genetic trade-offs when allocating resources to competing life-history demands, such as growth, survival, and reproduction. These trade-offs are increasingly considered to be crucial to further our understanding of cancer. First, evidences suggest that neoplastic cells, as any living entities subject to natural selection, are governed by trade-offs such as between survival and proliferation. Second, selection might also have shaped trade-offs at the organismal level, especially regarding protective mechanisms against cancer. Cancer can also emerge as a consequence of additional trade-offs in organisms (e.g., eco-immunological trade-offs). Here, we review the wide range of trade-offs that occur at different scales and their relevance for understanding cancer dynamics. We also discuss how acknowledging these phenomena, in light of human evolutionary history, may suggest new guidelines for preventive and therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille Jacqueline
- CREECMontpellier Cedex 5France
- MIVEGECUMR IRD/CNRS/UM 5290Montpellier Cedex 5France
| | - Peter A. Biro
- Centre for Integrative EcologySchool of Life and Environmental SciencesDeakin UniversityWaurn PondsVICAustralia
| | - Christa Beckmann
- Centre for Integrative EcologySchool of Life and Environmental SciencesDeakin UniversityWaurn PondsVICAustralia
| | - Anders Pape Moller
- Ecologie Systématique EvolutionUniversité Paris‐SudCNRSAgroParisTechUniversité Paris‐Saclay, F‐91405 Orsay CedexFrance
| | - François Renaud
- CREECMontpellier Cedex 5France
- MIVEGECUMR IRD/CNRS/UM 5290Montpellier Cedex 5France
| | - Gabriele Sorci
- BiogéoSciencesCNRS UMR 6282Université de BourgogneDijonFrance
| | - Aurélie Tasiemski
- Unité d'EvolutionEcologie et Paléontologie (EEP) Université de Lille 1 CNRS UMR 8198groupe d'Ecoimmunologie des AnnélidesVilleneuve‐d'AscqFrance
| | - Beata Ujvari
- Centre for Integrative EcologySchool of Life and Environmental SciencesDeakin UniversityWaurn PondsVICAustralia
| | - Frédéric Thomas
- CREECMontpellier Cedex 5France
- MIVEGECUMR IRD/CNRS/UM 5290Montpellier Cedex 5France
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12
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Thomas F, Nesse RM, Gatenby R, Gidoin C, Renaud F, Roche B, Ujvari B. Evolutionary Ecology of Organs: A Missing Link in Cancer Development? Trends Cancer 2016; 2:409-415. [DOI: 10.1016/j.trecan.2016.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2016] [Revised: 06/28/2016] [Accepted: 06/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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13
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Thomas F, Roche B, Ujvari B. Intrinsic versus Extrinsic Cancer Risks: The Debate Continues. Trends Cancer 2016; 2:68-69. [PMID: 28741552 DOI: 10.1016/j.trecan.2016.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2016] [Accepted: 01/11/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Deciphering the relative contribution of intrinsic (e.g., genetic) and extrinsic (e.g., life style, environmental) risk factors in cancer development is crucial for strategizing cancer prevention. The recent publication by Wu and colleagues in Nature appears as an important contribution to the debate previously initiated by Tomasetti and Vogelstein in Science, who proposed that two-thirds of cancers can be attributed to random mutations and hence 'bad luck'. By contrast, Wu and colleagues, using four lines of evidence, suggest that cancer risk is dominated by extrinsic factors, and intrinsic risk factors only contribute marginally. The debate remains open, and an approach focusing on the evolutionary ecology of organs could provide crucial insights.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédéric Thomas
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Research on Cancer (CREEC), UMR CNRS/IRD/UM1 MIVEGEC, Montpellier, France.
| | - Benjamin Roche
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Research on Cancer (CREEC), UMR CNRS/IRD/UM1 MIVEGEC, Montpellier, France; UMI IRD/UPMC 209 UMMISCO, Paris, France
| | - Beata Ujvari
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, Australia
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14
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15
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Aktipis CA, Nesse RM. Evolutionary foundations for cancer biology. Evol Appl 2013; 6:144-59. [PMID: 23396885 PMCID: PMC3567479 DOI: 10.1111/eva.12034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 142] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2012] [Accepted: 10/12/2012] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
New applications of evolutionary biology are transforming our understanding of cancer. The articles in this special issue provide many specific examples, such as microorganisms inducing cancers, the significance of within-tumor heterogeneity, and the possibility that lower dose chemotherapy may sometimes promote longer survival. Underlying these specific advances is a large-scale transformation, as cancer research incorporates evolutionary methods into its toolkit, and asks new evolutionary questions about why we are vulnerable to cancer. Evolution explains why cancer exists at all, how neoplasms grow, why cancer is remarkably rare, and why it occurs despite powerful cancer suppression mechanisms. Cancer exists because of somatic selection; mutations in somatic cells result in some dividing faster than others, in some cases generating neoplasms. Neoplasms grow, or do not, in complex cellular ecosystems. Cancer is relatively rare because of natural selection; our genomes were derived disproportionally from individuals with effective mechanisms for suppressing cancer. Cancer occurs nonetheless for the same six evolutionary reasons that explain why we remain vulnerable to other diseases. These four principles-cancers evolve by somatic selection, neoplasms grow in complex ecosystems, natural selection has shaped powerful cancer defenses, and the limitations of those defenses have evolutionary explanations-provide a foundation for understanding, preventing, and treating cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Athena Aktipis
- Center for Evolution and Cancer, University of California San Francisco, CA, USA ; Department of Psychology, Arizona State University Tempe, AZ, USA
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