Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 28, 2025

Engineering Adherent Bacteria by Creating a Single Synthetic Curli Operon
15:28

Engineering Adherent Bacteria by Creating a Single Synthetic Curli Operon

Published on: November 16, 2012

14.7K

Bacterial cyclomodulins: types and roles in carcinogenesis

Radwa N Morgan1, Sarra E Saleh2, Hala A Farrag1

  • 1Drug radiation research Department, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority (EAEA), National Center for Radiation Research and Technology (NCRRT), Cairo, Egypt.

Critical Reviews in Microbiology
|July 15, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Bacterial toxins called cyclomodulins disrupt cell cycles and promote cancer. This review explores their mechanisms and links to human carcinomas like colorectal and gastric cancers.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Oncology
  • Toxicology

Background:

  • Bacterial infections contribute to cancer by increasing reactive oxygen species (ROS) and releasing toxins.
  • These bacterial toxins, known as cyclomodulins, disrupt cell cycle regulation and promote inflammation, mimicking carcinogens.
  • Cyclomodulins are bacterial toxins that modulate cell cycles, increasing the carcinogenic potential of the bacteria that produce them.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the different types of bacterial cyclomodulins.
  • To highlight the mode of action of these toxins.
  • To discuss the possible role of cyclomodulins in carcinogenesis.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on bacterial toxins and cancer.
  • Analysis of the mechanisms of cyclomodulin action on cellular processes.
  • Examination of epidemiological data linking cyclomodulin-producing bacteria to human carcinomas.

Main Results:

  • Cyclomodulins can either promote cellular proliferation or induce cell cycle arrest.
  • Specific examples include colibactin from *Escherichia coli* in colorectal cancer, CagA in gastric cancer, and CdtB from *Salmonella* in hepatobiliary cancer.
  • These toxins have been shown to stimulate carcinoma overgrowth and induce hyperplasia in animal models.

Conclusions:

  • Cyclomodulin-producing bacteria are linked to various human carcinomas.
  • The toxins' ability to disrupt cell cycle regulation and induce genotoxicity suggests a significant role in cancer development.
  • Further research into cyclomodulins is crucial for understanding and potentially targeting bacterial contributions to carcinogenesis.
Keywords:
Cyclomodulinscarcinomascell cycle modulationhyperplasia

More Related Videos

Studying Proteolysis of Cyclin B at the Single Cell Level in Whole Cell Populations10:54

Studying Proteolysis of Cyclin B at the Single Cell Level in Whole Cell Populations

Published on: September 17, 2012

10.7K
Identification of Cyclin-dependent Kinase 1 Specific Phosphorylation Sites by an In Vitro Kinase Assay12:26

Identification of Cyclin-dependent Kinase 1 Specific Phosphorylation Sites by an In Vitro Kinase Assay

Published on: May 3, 2018

18.9K

Related Concept Videos

Positive Regulator Molecules02:39

Positive Regulator Molecules

Mitotic cell division results in daughter cells that exactly resemble the parent cell. However, errors in the DNA replication or distribution of genetic material may lead to genetic mutations that may be passed down to every new cell formed from the resulting abnormal cell. Propagation of such mutant cells is restricted through checkpoint mechanisms present at different stages of the cell cycle. These checkpoints involve regulator molecules that either promote or demote cell cycle events.
5.9K
Positive Regulator Molecules01:45

Positive Regulator Molecules

To consistently produce healthy cells, the cell cycle—the process that generates daughter cells—must be precisely regulated.
115.7K
Cytoskeletal Proteins in Bacteria01:29

Cytoskeletal Proteins in Bacteria

Bacterial cells were initially considered simple, randomly organized structures lacking a cytoskeleton. However, the discovery of cytoskeleton homologs in bacteria led to the change of this opinion. Bacterial cytoskeletal filaments regulate the cell shape, cell polarity, cell division, and partitioning of plasmids during cell division. It was later discovered that bacterial cytoskeletal proteins, mainly actin and tubulin homologs, are diverse compared to their eukaryotic counterparts. On the...
3.8K
Mitogens and the Cell Cycle02:38

Mitogens and the Cell Cycle

Mitogens and their receptors play a crucial role in controlling the progression of the cell cycle. However, the loss of mitogenic control over cell division leads to tumor formation. Therefore, mitogens and mitogen receptors play an important role in cancer research. For instance, the epidermal growth factor (EGF) - a type of mitogen and its transmembrane receptor (EGFR), decides the fate of the cell's proliferation. When EGF binds to EGFR, a member of the ErbB family of tyrosine kinase...
7.2K
Inhibition of Cdk Activity02:34

Inhibition of Cdk Activity

The orderly progression of the cell cycle depends on the activation of Cdk protein by binding to its cyclin partner. However, the cell cycle must be restricted when undergoing abnormal changes. Most cancers correlate to the deregulated cell cycle, and since Cdks are a central component of the cell cycle, Cdk inhibitors are extensively studied to develop anticancer agents. For instance, cyclin D associates with several Cdks, such as Cdk 4/6, to form an active complex. The cyclin D-Cdk4/6 complex...
5.1K
Molecular Factors Affecting Cell Division01:27

Molecular Factors Affecting Cell Division

Several external and internal factors influence the initiation and inhibition of cell division. For instance, the death of nearby cells or the release of human growth hormone (hGH) promotes cell division. In contrast, lack of hGH or crowding of cells can inhibit cell division.
Several proteins function as internal regulators to ensure each cell cycle stage is completed faithfully before proceeding to the next. Regulator molecules may act directly or influence the activity or production of other...
3.5K