Bombesin like peptides as autocrine growth factors in colorectal cancer

结肠直肠癌（大肠癌）是癌症死亡的第二大常见原因。结直肠癌与其他癌症类型如前列腺癌和肺癌一样，通常会产生自己的生长因子和受体。生长因子对受体的激活进一步刺激肿瘤的生长并扩散到全身。本项目的目的是确定一种名为蛙皮素样肽的生长因子的潜在作用。这种肽，现在在哺乳动物系统中被称为GRP，是某些肺癌中确定的生长因子，但对其在大肠肿瘤中的作用知之甚少。我们将在基因和蛋白质水平上研究GRP及其受体的表达和产生，GRP刺激生长的能力，GRP的化学结构，以及GRP拮抗剂调节生长的潜力。研究将在肠癌患者、肠癌动物模型以及从患者和肠癌细胞系中切除的肠肿瘤中进行。一个成功的结果将导致检测的发展，早期诊断和监测肠癌和潜在的新的治疗方法，如GRP受体拮抗剂和放射性标记的GRP类似物的放射治疗。

Colorectal carcinoma (cancer of the large bowel) is the second most common cause of cancer death. Colorectal carcinomas in common with other cancer types such as cancer of the prostate and lung often produce its own growth factors and receptors. Activation of the receptor by the growth factor further stimulates the tumour's growth and spread throughout the body. The objective of this project is to determine the potential roles of a growth factor termed Bombesin Like Peptide. This peptide, now known as GRP in mammalian systems, is an established growth factor in certain lung cancers but little is known about its role in tumours of the large bowel. We will study the expression and production of GRP and its receptors at the gene and protein level, the ability of GRP to stimulate growth, the chemical structures of GRP, and the potential of antagonists of GRP to modulate growth. Studies will be performed in patients with bowel cancer, in animal models of bowel cancer, and with bowel tumours removed from patients and bowel cancer cell lines. A successful outcome will result in the development of assays for the early diagnosis and monitoring of bowel cancer and the potential for novel treatments such as GRP receptor antagonists and radiolabelled GRP analogues for radiotherapy.