Signal in Basal Layer Identifies Oral Cancer

The discovery of the new biomarker, an amino acid identified as human beta defensin-3 (hBD-3), may significantly improve early detection efforts by blowing the whistle on cancer when it is in its most curable stage, according to Ge Jin, assistant professor of biological sciences at the dental school.

Jin, who led the study, points out that 10,000 people die from oral cancer each year.

The study is titled, “An Antimicrobial Peptide Regulates Tumor-Associated Macrophage Trafficking via the Chemokine Receptor CCR2, a Model for Tumorigenesis,” and was published by The Public Library of Science in PLoS ONE.

Though several defensins are present in a healthy mouth, hBD-3 is the only one present in the basal layer where oral cancers grow, and it is the lone defensin the study found present during the growth of an oral cancer tumor.

Researchers discovered hBD-3 not only acts as a warning signal of oral cancer, but its properties also aid the tumor’s growth and help it metastasize. In cases where lesions are not biopsied, oral cancer may not be discovered until it reaches later stages or has traveled to other organs in the body. Treating the disease in its late stages can involve expensive surgery, and disfigurement may occur if it becomes necessary to remove tissues inside the oral cavity.