Tumori e invecchiamento: il ruolo sottovalutato del sistema immunitario / Tumors and aging: the undervalued role of the immune system
Tumori e invecchiamento: il ruolo sottovalutato del sistema immunitario / Tumors and aging: the undervalued role of the immune system
Segnalato dal Dott. Giuseppe Cotellessa / Reported by Dr. Giuseppe Cotellessa
Partendo da questa ipotesi, i ricercatori hanno messo a punto un corpus di dati relativi a due milioni di casi di tumore (ottenuti dal National Cancer Insitute degli USA) verificatisi in un intervallo di età che va dai 18 ai 70 anni. Poi hanno sviluppato un’equazione matematica in grado di predire le probabilità di sviluppare un cancro in relazione al declino del sistema immunitario, comparandola quindi con l’incidenza, in base all’età, di 100 differenti tumori.
Il modello ottenuto è riuscito a far luce sui dati meglio dell’ipotesi che vede come principale indiziato l’accumulo di mutazioni genetiche nel DNA cellulare. Inoltre, dato che il declino del sistema immunitario è più lento nel genere femminile, i ricercatori sono stati in grado di far luce sulle differenze di genere legate all’insorgenza dei tumori (più comuni nel genere maschile), cosa che l’ipotesi delle mutazioni cellulari da sola non riusciva a spiegare facilmente.
A questo punto è interessante capire perché il sistema immunitario perde la sua efficacia. Tutto dipende dal timo: una piccola ghiandola con funzione immunitaria situata dietro lo sterno. “La ghiandola tende a ridurre il suo volume con l’adolescenza ma mantiene il suo ruolo di produzione di timociti che poi diverranno linfociti T” – spiega a Galileo Paolo Zucali, oncologo del Cancer Center di Humanitas. “Tuttavia la progressiva riduzione della produzione dei linfociti T, a causa dell’avanzare dell’età, è alla base dell’immunosenescenza che sembrerebbe compromettere il riconoscimento di mutazioni geniche cellulari che possono portare a neoplasie”.
Alcuni stili di vita potrebbero accelerare la riduzione del timo e quindi l’immunosenescenza. “Dati ancora da confermare indicano come un elevato BMI (indice di massa corporea) renda più rapida l’involuzione adiposa del timo” – aggiunge Carlo Selmi, responsabile Reumatologia di Humanitas e docente dell’Università degli Studi di Milano. “Inoltre, studi ancora in corso stanno valutando le relazioni tra alimentazione, stress, esercizio fisico, microbiota, sistema nervoso centrale ed efficienza del sistema immunitario. In futuro, poi, non possono essere escluse strategie per stimolare la produzione di linfociti T sfruttando, tramite alcuni farmaci, il ruolo chiave di alcuni recettori come il PPAR-gamma”.
ENGLISH
A study on Pnas reveals the possible role, still little known, of the aging of the immune system in the development of age-related cancers
The advancing age brings with it an increase in the incidence of tumor pathologies. Until now it was thought that the cause was linked to time: the accumulation of genetic mutations at each cycle of cell division would increase the risk of developing cancer cells over the years. A new study, published on Pnas by a team from the University of Dundee in collaboration with researchers at Heriot Watt University, offers a completely different perspective, shedding light on the underestimated role of the immune system, which with aging would gradually lose its ability to identify and eliminate cancer cells before they can spread and originate tumors.
Starting from this hypothesis, the researchers have developed a body of data related to two million cases of cancer (obtained from the National Cancer Institute of the USA) occurring in an age range of 18 to 70 years. Then they developed a mathematical equation capable of predicting the chances of developing cancer in relation to the decline of the immune system, comparing it with the incidence, based on age, of 100 different tumors.
The model obtained was able to shed light on the data better than the hypothesis that sees as the main suspect the accumulation of genetic mutations in cellular DNA. Moreover, since the decline of the immune system is slower in the female gender, researchers have been able to shed light on gender differences related to the onset of tumors (more common in the male gender), which the hypothesis of mutations cell phones alone could not easily explain.
At this point it is interesting to understand why the immune system loses its effectiveness. Everything depends on the thymus: a small gland with immune function located behind the breastbone. "The gland tends to reduce its volume with adolescence but maintains its role of producing thymocytes that will then become T lymphocytes" - explains to Galileo Paolo Zucali, oncologist at the Humanitas Cancer Center. "However, the progressive reduction in the production of T lymphocytes, due to the advance of age, is the basis of the immunosenescence that would seem to compromise the recognition of cellular gene mutations that can lead to neoplasms".
Some lifestyles could accelerate thymic reduction and thus immunosenescence. "Data to be confirmed indicate that a high BMI (body mass index) makes the fatty involution of the thymus more rapid" - adds Carlo Selmi, head of Humanitas's rheumatology and professor of the University of Milan. "In addition, ongoing studies are evaluating the relationships between nutrition, stress, exercise, microbiota, central nervous system and immune system efficiency. In the future, strategies to stimulate the production of T lymphocytes can not be excluded by exploiting, through some drugs, the key role of some receptors such as PPAR-gamma ".
The advancing age brings with it an increase in the incidence of tumor pathologies. Until now it was thought that the cause was linked to time: the accumulation of genetic mutations at each cycle of cell division would increase the risk of developing cancer cells over the years. A new study, published on Pnas by a team from the University of Dundee in collaboration with researchers at Heriot Watt University, offers a completely different perspective, shedding light on the underestimated role of the immune system, which with aging would gradually lose its ability to identify and eliminate cancer cells before they can spread and originate tumors.
Starting from this hypothesis, the researchers have developed a body of data related to two million cases of cancer (obtained from the National Cancer Institute of the USA) occurring in an age range of 18 to 70 years. Then they developed a mathematical equation capable of predicting the chances of developing cancer in relation to the decline of the immune system, comparing it with the incidence, based on age, of 100 different tumors.
The model obtained was able to shed light on the data better than the hypothesis that sees as the main suspect the accumulation of genetic mutations in cellular DNA. Moreover, since the decline of the immune system is slower in the female gender, researchers have been able to shed light on gender differences related to the onset of tumors (more common in the male gender), which the hypothesis of mutations cell phones alone could not easily explain.
At this point it is interesting to understand why the immune system loses its effectiveness. Everything depends on the thymus: a small gland with immune function located behind the breastbone. "The gland tends to reduce its volume with adolescence but maintains its role of producing thymocytes that will then become T lymphocytes" - explains to Galileo Paolo Zucali, oncologist at the Humanitas Cancer Center. "However, the progressive reduction in the production of T lymphocytes, due to the advance of age, is the basis of the immunosenescence that would seem to compromise the recognition of cellular gene mutations that can lead to neoplasms".
Some lifestyles could accelerate thymic reduction and thus immunosenescence. "Data to be confirmed indicate that a high BMI (body mass index) makes the fatty involution of the thymus more rapid" - adds Carlo Selmi, head of Humanitas's rheumatology and professor of the University of Milan. "In addition, ongoing studies are evaluating the relationships between nutrition, stress, exercise, microbiota, central nervous system and immune system efficiency. In the future, strategies to stimulate the production of T lymphocytes can not be excluded by exploiting, through some drugs, the key role of some receptors such as PPAR-gamma ".
Da:
https://www.galileonet.it/2018/02/tumori-invecchiamento-ruolo-sistema-immunitario/?utm_campaign=Newsatme&utm_content=Tumori%2Be%2Binvecchiamento%3A%2Bil%2Bruolo%2Bsottovalutato%2Bdel%2Bsistema%2Bimmunitario&utm_medium=news%40me&utm_source=mail%2Balert
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