The cell is the building block of life. This proposal focusses on the surface of the cell, the plasma membrane, and specialised structures called caveolae that are an abundant feature of animal cells. Altered caveolae are a feature of many human disease conditions. In this proposal we will address the function of caveolae. We will test the idea that proteins are released from caveolae into the cell when cells are stressed forming a novel signalling pathway disrupted in disease.
How Caveolae Condition Tissue Mechanics For An Anti-tumor Niche.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,091,226.00
Summary
The outcome of cancer is determined not only by the behaviour of the cancer cell, but also by how the normal tissue cells of the body respond to it. This project investigates how tissue cells that surround cancer cells can eliminate early cancers from the body. It develops on newly-discovered mechanisms that allow epithelial tissues to detect and physically expel cancer cells. This mechanism can protect us from cancer, but potentially allow cancer to develop when it fails.