116 Program for Research in Science and Engineering Nerve Mediated Mechanisms of Metastatic Tropism

Authors:

Viswajith Jith Nambiar, Ella Perrault, William Hwang

Date Created:

2025-01-01

Course Title:

Professor:

Not specified

About Paper:

Perineural invasion (PNI), a hallmark of Pancreatic Ductal cellular content retention posed by their low cellularity and dense Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) enables cancer cells to spread along tissuestructure. These optimizations lay the groundworkfor future nerves, creating distinct tumor microenvironments and unique RNA sequencing to identify nerve-specific molecular signatures metastatic niches. This tumor-nerve crosstalk promotes metastatic driving PNI. Utilizing the Trizol derivative QIAzol, RNA yield growth. However, the unique molecular mechanisms and from mouse ganglia increased from 8ug/uL to 50ug/uL enabling genetic drivers of PNI along varying nerve systems are heavily foreffectivedownstreamtranscriptomicanalysis. Gangliasamples understudied. This study aims to examine the mechanisms of collected after three rounds of Boyden chamber selection will differential PNI pathways in sensory and sympathetic nerves. now undergo bulk RNA sequencing to identify differential gene Using multiple selection rounds of the Boyden chamber assay expression patterns and molecular pathways associated with PNI to model extracellular matrix invasion by PDAC, we isolated across sensory and sympathetic nerve systems. Sequencing results mousedorsalrootganglia(DRG),superiorcervicalganglia(SCG), will advance understanding of PNI by identifying differential and celiac ganglia (CG) that had undergone invasion in response mechanismsofinvasionandmetastasespropagatedbynervesinthe to tumor-derived paracrine signaling. To enable downstream contextofPDAC.GiventhecorrelationofPNIwithpoorprognosis transcriptionalprofiling, weoptimizedanRNAextractionprotocol in PDAC, understanding nerve-specific drivers of invasion may specific to mouse ganglia, overcoming challenges regarding reveal novel therapeutic targets to halt metastatic progression.

Abstract:

Perineural invasion (PNI), a hallmark of Pancreatic Ductal cellular content retention posed by their low cellularity and dense Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) enables cancer cells to spread along tissuestructure. These optimizations lay the groundworkfor future nerves, creating distinct tumor microenvironments and unique RNA sequencing to identify nerve-specific molecular signatures metastatic niches. This tumor-nerve crosstalk promotes metastatic driving PNI. Utilizing the Trizol derivative QIAzol, RNA yield growth. However, the unique molecular mechanisms and from mouse ganglia increased from 8ug/uL to 50ug/uL enabling genetic drivers of PNI along varying nerve systems are heavily foreffectivedownstreamtranscriptomicanalysis. Gangliasamples understudied. This study aims to examine the mechanisms of collected after three rounds of Boyden chamber selection will differential PNI pathways in sensory and sympathetic nerves. now undergo bulk RNA sequencing to identify differential gene Using multiple selection rounds of the Boyden chamber assay expression patterns and molecular pathways associated with PNI to model extracellular matrix invasion by PDAC, we isolated across sensory and sympathetic nerve systems. Sequencing results mousedorsalrootganglia(DRG),superiorcervicalganglia(SCG), will advance understanding of PNI by identifying differential and celiac ganglia (CG) that had undergone invasion in response mechanismsofinvasionandmetastasespropagatedbynervesinthe to tumor-derived paracrine signaling. To enable downstream contextofPDAC.GiventhecorrelationofPNIwithpoorprognosis transcriptionalprofiling, weoptimizedanRNAextractionprotocol in PDAC, understanding nerve-specific drivers of invasion may specific to mouse ganglia, overcoming challenges regarding reveal novel therapeutic targets to halt metastatic progression.

Source:

Harvard / Harvard College | Eliot House | Chemistry | 2026 / 2025

Topics:

nerve, pni, metastatic, invasion, mechanism, pdac, tumor, rna, sequencing, molecular, ganglia, differential

Co-authors:

@viswajithjithnambiar342 , @ellaperrault343 , @williamhwang344