Down syndrome is the leading genetic cause of mental retardation, affecting about one in 800 live births. It results from a trisomy of all or most of human chromosome 21 (Chr 21). Symptoms include varying degrees of mental retardation, characteristic craniofacial features, Alzheimer-like pathology after the third or fourth decade of life and, occasionally, problems such as childhood leukemia and gastro-intestinal disorders (National Association for Down Syndrome).
People with Down syndrome are 10 times less susceptible to most solid tumor cancers and develop fewer angiogenic diseases, such as diabetic retinopathy and atherosclerosis, than the general population. In 2009, a collaborative research team led by Kwan-Hyuck Baek, Ph.D., from the Vascular Biology Program, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Boston, Mass., demonstrated a genetic link between reduced cancer incidence and angiogenesis (blood vessel generation) in people with Down syndrome. Using mouse models, the team showed that overexpression of two genes on the extra copy of Chr21 suppresses solid tumor growth by reducing tumor blood supply (Baek et al. 2009).
The research team found that overexpression of the first gene, Down syndrome critical region-1 (gene symbol DSCR1 in humans, Dcsr1 in mice; now called regulator of calcineurin 1, RCAN1 and Rcan1 in humans and mice, respectively) correlates with reduced tumor angiogenesis in people with Down syndrome. They found similar correlations in a Down syndrome mouse model (JAX® Mice strain B6EiC3Sn a/A-Ts(1716)65Dn (001924), more commonly known as the "Ts65Dn" mouse), and in a B6 mouse transgenic for an extra copy of the Dscr1 gene. Increased levels of DSCR1 had previously been shown to downregulate vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-mediated angiogenic signaling by the calcineurin pathway. The team also found that, in vitro, the combined overexpression of a second gene, dual-specificity tyrosine-(Y)-phosphorylation regulated kinase 1a (gene symbol DYRK1A in humans, Dyrk1a in mice), and Dscr1 seems to further attenuate the same calcineurin pathway.
The findings not only help explain why people with Down syndrome are less susceptible to cancer than the general public, but they indicate that targeting the calcineurin signaling pathway and its regulators, such as DSCR1 and DYRK1A, may have wide applications as cancer therapies.
Baek KH, Zaslavsky A, Lynch RC, Britt C, Okada Y, Siarey RJ, Lensch MW, Park IH, Yoon SS, Minami T, Korenberg JR, Folkman J, Daley GQ, Aird WC, Galdzicki Z, Ryeom S. 2009. Down's syndrome suppression of tumour growth and the role of the calcineurin inhibitor DSCR1. Nature 459:1126-30.
The most widely used animal model of Down syndrome is JAX® Mice strain B6EiC3Sn a/A-Ts(1716)65Dn (001924), a strain constructed almost 20 years ago by JAX Professor Muriel Davisson, Ph.D. Selected features of this and two other Down syndrome JAX® Mice models are summarized below.
We use cookies to personalize our website and to analyze web traffic to improve the user experience. You may decline these cookies although certain areas of the site may not function without them. Please refer to our privacy policy for more information.