Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 27, 2026

Intratibial Osteosarcoma Cell Injection to Generate Orthotopic Osteosarcoma and Lung Metastasis Mouse Models
04:25

Intratibial Osteosarcoma Cell Injection to Generate Orthotopic Osteosarcoma and Lung Metastasis Mouse Models

Published on: October 28, 2021

11.4K

Is Estrogen the Answer for Osteosarcoma?

Ryan D Roberts1

  • 1Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio. Ryan.Roberts@nationwidechildrens.org.

Cancer Research
|March 17, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Researchers found that epigenetic silencing of the estrogen receptor (ER) in osteosarcoma (bone cancer) can be reversed. Reactivating ER expression promoted tumor differentiation, offering a potential new therapeutic strategy.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Endocrinology
  • Epigenetics

Background:

  • Estrogen is known to regulate bone formation by affecting osteoclasts.
  • A potential role for estrogen signaling loss in osteosarcoma, a bone-forming cancer, has been hypothesized but not investigated.
  • Osteosarcoma is a primary bone cancer that affects children and young adults.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the epigenetic status of the estrogen receptor (ER) in human osteosarcomas.
  • To determine if reactivating ER expression can influence osteosarcoma tumor behavior.
  • To explore potential therapeutic strategies targeting ER in osteosarcoma.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of epigenetic silencing of estrogen receptor (ER) in human osteosarcoma samples.
  • Treatment of osteosarcoma cells with demethylating agents to induce ER reexpression.
  • Assessment of tumor differentiation following ER reactivation.

Main Results:

  • Widespread epigenetic silencing of the estrogen receptor (ER) was observed in human osteosarcomas.
  • Exposure to demethylating agents led to the reexpression of ER in these tumors.
  • Reexpression of ER promoted the therapeutic differentiation of osteosarcoma cells.

Conclusions:

  • Epigenetic silencing of ER is a common feature in osteosarcomas.
  • Reactivating ER signaling presents a promising therapeutic avenue for osteosarcoma treatment.
  • Targeting ER epigenetic silencing could offer a novel strategy for bone cancer therapy.

More Related Videos

Detecting Estrogenic Ligands in Personal Care Products using a Yeast Estrogen Screen Optimized for the Undergraduate Teaching Laboratory14:13

Detecting Estrogenic Ligands in Personal Care Products using a Yeast Estrogen Screen Optimized for the Undergraduate Teaching Laboratory

Published on: January 1, 2018

13.8K
Profiling of Estrogen-regulated MicroRNAs in Breast Cancer Cells16:24

Profiling of Estrogen-regulated MicroRNAs in Breast Cancer Cells

Published on: February 21, 2014

20.7K

Related Concept Videos

The Fluid Mosaic Model01:34

The Fluid Mosaic Model

The fluid mosaic model was first proposed as a visual representation of research observations. The model comprises the composition and dynamics of membranes and serves as a foundation for future membrane-related studies. The model depicts the structure of the plasma membrane with a variety of components, which include phospholipids, proteins, and carbohydrates. These integral molecules are loosely bound, defining the cell’s border and providing fluidity for optimal function.
177.7K
Milgram's Obedience to Authority02:20

Milgram's Obedience to Authority

Obedience to authority is classically demonstrated in a more famous series of social psychology experiments performed by Stanley Milgram. He was a social psychology professor at Yale who was influenced by the trial of Adolf Eichmann, a Nazi war criminal. Eichmann’s defense for the atrocities he committed was that he was “just following orders.”
7.3K
Archival Research01:40

Archival Research

Some researchers gain access to large amounts of data without interacting with a single research participant. Instead, they use existing records to answer various research questions. This type of research approach is known as archival research. Archival research relies on looking at past records or data sets to look for interesting patterns or relationships. For example, a researcher might access the academic records of all individuals who enrolled in college within the past ten years and...
17.1K
Reason and Intuition01:37

Reason and Intuition

The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the...
7.5K
Surveys02:16

Surveys

Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.
16.8K
The Anchoring-and-Adjustment Heuristic01:25

The Anchoring-and-Adjustment Heuristic

In order to make good decisions, we use our knowledge and our reasoning. Often, this knowledge and reasoning is sound and solid. However, sometimes, we are swayed by biases or by others manipulating a situation. For example, let’s say you and three friends wanted to rent a house and had a combined target budget of $1,600. The realtor shows you only very run-down houses for $1,600 and then shows you a very nice house for $2,000. Might you ask each person to pay more in rent to get the...
7.8K