Biomarkers and tumor stem cells in the treatment of head and neck cancer

Abstract

Head and neck cancer is a malignant tumor class that affects the regions of the mouth, larynx, and nasopharynx. This heterogeneity of head and neck tumors has made difficult the early diagnosis and prognosis of the disease. The analysis at the molecular level is now an indispensable tool in the fight against cancer. The identification of biomarkers can define cellular and molecular changes associated with malignant transformation and may present potential applications in oncology, including risk assessment, screening, differential diagnosis, prognosis determination, treatment response prediction and monitoring of disease progression. This project aims at the identification of biomarkers related to cancer, evaluation of chemotherapy in tumor stem cells, gene and protein expression and the evaluation of microRNAs in the development of the disease. Primary tumors and lineages of head and neck cancer will be studied and the methodology to be used includes cell culture, flow cytometry, MTS technique, cell sorting technique, transfection techniques, RNA extraction and protein from the samples, real-time PCR techniques, ELISA, and to identify and validate ligands with potential use as new inhibitors of molecular markers involved in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process. The results will be evaluated by statistical analysis in specific programs. The data will be written in scientific articles and published in magazines of high impact in the literature, providing technological innovation, efficient biomarkers, collaborating significantly in the prognosis, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. (AU)