Inhibition Of Inflammatory Signaling Via The Il-6-Stat3 Pathway And Its Effects On Growth And Survival Of Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells

Jennifer Sims-MourtadaBreast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer, and while many types of breast cancer can be treated with anti-estrogen therapy or Trastuzumab, such directed treatment against triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) remains elusive and the prognosis remain poor. Previous evidence would suggest that the inflammatory IL-6-STAT3 pathway may be a viable target for treatment in triple negative breast cancers, as IL-6 is upregulated in TNBC, and STAT3 has been shown to promote dedifferentiation into cancer stem cell and tumor cell proliferation and survival in TNBC. This has led us to test the effects of anti-inflammatory inhibitors on the effects of TNBC cell viability and proliferation. The inhibitors tested were the direct STAT3 inhibitor, Stattic, and the ATP competitive JAK1/2 inhibitor, Baricitinib. Stattic inhibited tumor cell viability and proliferation, whereas Baricitinib did not. These results suggest that STAT3 plays a major role in triple negative breast cancer, but it may not be mediated through the canonical pathway.Molecular Biolog