PKM2 in Canine Mammary Tumors: Parallels to Human Breast Cancer

PKM2 is a pyruvate kinase isoform that is the final and rate-limiting step in aerobic glycolysis in tumor cells. Increased expression of PKM2 has been detected in human cancers. The present study examined the expression of PKM2 in canine mammary tumors and assessed its prognostic significance. Paraffin sections of 5 adenomas, 67 carcinomas, and 5 samples of nonneoplastic hyperplasia from 77 dogs, aged 8 to 18 y, were evaluated. Significantly higher levels of PKM2 were detected among the carcinomas compared with all other tissues examined. The level of PKM2 expression in carcinoma tissue correlated positively with the tumor grade. These findings suggest that PKM2 may have a similar role in canine mammary tumors to its role in human breast cancer. As such, canine mammary tumors may be useful models for studies focused on the progression of human neoplastic disease.

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Naturally-Occurring Canine Mammary Tumors as a Translational Model for Human Breast Cancer

Frontiers in Oncology ◽

10.3389/fonc.2020.00617 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Mark Gray ◽

James Meehan ◽

Carlos Martínez-Pérez ◽

Charlene Kay ◽

Arran K. Turnbull ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Human Breast Cancer ◽

Mammary Tumors ◽

Human Breast ◽

Translational Model ◽

Naturally Occurring ◽

Canine Mammary Tumors

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A Role for T-Lymphocytes in Human Breast Cancer and in Canine Mammary Tumors

BioMed Research International ◽

10.1155/2014/130894 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2014 ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Maria Isabel Carvalho ◽

Isabel Pires ◽

Justina Prada ◽

Felisbina L. Queiroga

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

T Lymphocytes ◽

Human Breast Cancer ◽

Survival Rates ◽

Mammary Tumors ◽

Treg Cells ◽

Th2 Cells ◽

Human Breast ◽

Canine Mammary Tumors ◽

As Relationship

Chronic inflammation in the tumor microenvironment has a prominent role in carcinogenesis and benefits the proliferation and survival of malignant cells, promoting angiogenesis and metastasis. Mammary tumors are frequently infiltrated by a heterogeneous population of immune cells where T-lymphocytes have a great importance. Interestingly, similar inflammatory cell infiltrates, cytokine and chemokine expression in humans and canine mammary tumors were recently described. However, in both species, despite all the scientific evidences that appoint for a significant role of T-lymphocytes, a definitive conclusion concerning the effectiveness of T-cell dependent immune mechanisms has not been achieved yet. In the present review, we describe similarities between human breast cancer and canine mammary tumors regarding tumor T-lymphocyte infiltration, such as relationship of TILs and mammary tumors malignancy, association of ratio CD4+/ CD8+ T-cells with low survival rates, promotion of tumor progression by Th2 cells actions, and association of great amounts of Treg cells with poor prognostic factors. This apparent parallelism together with the fact that dogs develop spontaneous tumors in the context of a natural immune system highlight the dog as a possible useful biological model for studies in human breast cancer immunology.

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