Reversing immune evasion through modulation of exosome release

Ovarian cancer is the deadliest type of cancer affecting the female reproductive system. While surgery and chemotherapy are commonly used to treat it, many patients experience a recurrence of the disease that no longer responds to treatment. Immunotherapy—a method that helps the body’s immune system fight cancer—has worked well in other cancers but not in ovarian cancer. One reason is that ovarian tumors create a surrounding environment that weakens the immune system’s ability to attack. Our project is focusing on stopping cancer cells from releasing tiny particles, exosomes, which cancer cells use to communicate with one another to weaken the immune environment around the tumor. So, by blocking the release of exosomes, we hope to improve the body’s immune response to ovarian cancer. We are also combining this new approach with another approach our laboratory has previously studied, which involves turning off the function of protein called BRG1 that affects how genes are controlled in cancer cells. By combining both treatments—blocking BRG1 and stopping exosome release—we aim to make the immune system stronger and more effective at fighting ovarian cancer.

Faculty Supervisor:

Melica Brodeur;Julia Burnier

Student:

Partner:

Jewish General Hospital Foundation

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Health and Related Sciences & Technology

University:

McGill University

Program: