Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Tumor Progression02:07

Tumor Progression

6.3K
Tumor progression is a phenomenon where the pre-formed tumor acquires successive mutations to become clinically more aggressive and malignant. In the 1950s, Foulds first described the stepwise progression of cancer cells through successive stages.
Colon cancer is one of the best-documented examples of tumor progression. Early mutation in the APC gene in colon cells causes a small growth on the colon wall called a polyp. With time, this polyp grows into a benign, pre-cancerous tumor. Further...
6.3K
Loss of Tumor Suppressor Gene Functions01:12

Loss of Tumor Suppressor Gene Functions

4.8K
Tumor suppressor genes are normal genes that can slow down cell division, repair DNA mistakes, or program the cells for apoptosis in case of irreparable damage. Hence, they play an essential role in preventing the proliferation of damaged cells.
When the tumor suppressor genes develop mutations or are lost, cells start growing out of control, leading to cancer. However, a single functional copy of the tumor suppressor gene is enough for the cells to maintain their normal functions and cell...
4.8K
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells02:53

Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells

5.8K
Cancer cells accumulate genetic changes at an abnormally rapid rate due to the defects in the DNA repair mechanisms. From an evolutionary perspective, such genetic instability is advantageous for cancer development. Mutant cell lines accumulate a series of beneficial mutations that contribute to their progression into cancer.
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
5.8K
The Retinoblastoma Gene01:20

The Retinoblastoma Gene

4.1K
Tumor suppressor genes are normal genes that can slow down cell division, repair DNA mistakes, or program the cells for apoptosis in case of irreparable damage. Hence, they play an essential role in preventing the proliferation of damaged cells.
The first-ever tumor suppressor gene called Rb was identified in retinoblastoma - a rare eye tumor in children. In inherited forms of the disease, a child inherits one defective copy of the Rb gene, which predisposes them to retinoblastoma. However,...
4.1K
Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell02:21

Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell

12.0K
Cancer arises from mutations in the critical genes that allow healthy cells to escape cell cycle regulation and acquire the ability to proliferate indefinitely. Though originating from a single mutation event in one of the originator cells, cancer progresses when the mutant cell lines continue to gain more and more mutations, and finally, become malignant. For example, chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) develops initially as a non-lethal increase in white blood cells, which progressively...
12.0K
Mismatch Repair01:20

Mismatch Repair

4.9K
Organisms are capable of detecting and fixing nucleotide mismatches that occur during DNA replication. This sophisticated process requires identifying the new strand and replacing the erroneous bases with correct nucleotides. Mismatch repair is coordinated by many proteins in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes.
The Mutator Protein Family Plays a Key Role in DNA Mismatch Repair
The human genome has more than 3 billion base pairs of DNA per cell. Prior to cell division, that vast amount of genetic...
4.9K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

IL-8 blockade enhances anti-PD-1 therapeutic activity in renal cell carcinoma in a next-generation patient-derived xenograft model.

iScience·2026
Same author

Animals have expanded the evolutionary legacy of unicellular ancestors in blood cells.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

Phase 1/2 study of a WT1 peptide-dosing emulsion in pediatric patients with recurrent/refractory diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, glioblastoma, or anaplastic astrocytoma.

European journal of cancer (Oxford, England : 1990)·2026
Same author

Distinct cytokines regulate gene expression and anti-tumor activity in regenerated CD8<sup>+</sup> T cells from induced pluripotent stem cells.

iScience·2026
Same author

Tissue-restricted secondary TCR engagement drives the transition from stem-like to CD200<sup>+</sup> Egr2<sup>hi</sup> arthritogenic Th17 cells.

Nature immunology·2026
Same author

Targeted introduction of T cell receptor genes at the TRAC locus in cytotoxic T lymphocytes regenerated from human iPSCs by genome editing.

Biochemical and biophysical research communications·2026
Same journal

Association between HPV-16 and HPV-18 viral loads and severity of cervical pre-invasive lesions in women with and without HIV in Botswana.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
Same journal

Radiomics-based interpretable machine learning model from multiphasic CT imaging for predicting pathological grade in upper tract urothelial carcinoma: a multicenter study.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
Same journal

Case Report: Conversion therapy for initially unresectable intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
Same journal

Analysis of ultrasonic characteristics in 12 cases of ovarian Sertoli-Leydig cell tumour.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
Same journal

Severe asparaginase-associated hypertriglyceridemia in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a single-center experience.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
Same journal

Evaluation of the CIB1R peptide derived from the cytoplasmic domain of neprilysin on cell migration in an <i>in vitro</i> model of lung cancer.

Frontiers in oncology·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 9, 2025

Defining Gene Functions in Tumorigenesis by Ex vivo Ablation of Floxed Alleles in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Cells
09:37

Defining Gene Functions in Tumorigenesis by Ex vivo Ablation of Floxed Alleles in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Cells

Published on: August 25, 2021

1.8K

Evolutionary reversion in tumorigenesis.

Yosuke Nagahata1, Hiroshi Kawamoto1

  • 1Laboratory of Immunology, Institute for Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.

Frontiers in Oncology
|November 29, 2023
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Tumorigenesis, the development of malignant tumors, can be viewed as "evolutionary reversion." This perspective, alongside developmental reversion, suggests cancer cells share traits with unicellular organisms, offering new therapeutic insights.

Keywords:
cross-species comparisonevolutionmulticellularizationtranscriptometumorigenesisunicellular organism

More Related Videos

Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer
08:34

Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer

Published on: April 13, 2015

10.3K
Induction and Diagnosis of Tumors in Drosophila Imaginal Disc Epithelia
08:14

Induction and Diagnosis of Tumors in Drosophila Imaginal Disc Epithelia

Published on: July 25, 2017

15.0K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 9, 2025

Defining Gene Functions in Tumorigenesis by Ex vivo Ablation of Floxed Alleles in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Cells
09:37

Defining Gene Functions in Tumorigenesis by Ex vivo Ablation of Floxed Alleles in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Cells

Published on: August 25, 2021

1.8K
Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer
08:34

Utilizing Murine Inducible Telomerase Alleles in the Studies of Tissue Degeneration/Regeneration and Cancer

Published on: April 13, 2015

10.3K
Induction and Diagnosis of Tumors in Drosophila Imaginal Disc Epithelia
08:14

Induction and Diagnosis of Tumors in Drosophila Imaginal Disc Epithelia

Published on: July 25, 2017

15.0K

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Malignant tumor cells exhibit distinct features like rapid division and differentiation arrest, resembling stem cells.
  • This similarity leads to the established view of tumorigenesis as developmental reversion.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To propose a novel perspective on tumorigenesis, viewing it as "evolutionary reversion" from a phylogenetic standpoint.
  • To explore the similarities between tumor cells and unicellular organisms.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing advances in sequencing technologies for comprehensive cross-species transcriptome comparisons.
  • Identifying homologous genes across species to facilitate comparative analysis.

Main Results:

  • Leukemic cells, specifically those arising from polycomb dysfunction, were found to transcriptionally resemble unicellular organisms.
  • Tumor cells share certain characteristics with unicellular life forms.

Conclusions:

  • Viewing tumorigenesis through the lens of phylogeny offers new insights beyond developmental reversion.
  • Understanding cancer as "evolutionary reversion" may pave the way for novel therapeutic strategies against malignant tumors.