Hildebrand L, Mehravani BP, Khalifa M, Schiller P, Langkrär J, Jost T, Fietkau R, Distel L (2026)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2026
Book Volume: 26
Article Number: 107
Journal Issue: 1
DOI: 10.1186/s12935-026-04218-1
Background: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a relevant cancer entity with two main risk factors. Human papilloma virus (HPV)-positive ones are induced by virus infection and generally have a good prognosis due to their chemo- and radiosensitivity. In contrast, HPV-negative HNSCCs are primarily caused by tobacco and alcohol abuse; patients have a poor prognosis resulting in the need of innovative targeted and combinatory treatment options. Therefore, we combined the Mre11-Rad50-Nbs1 (MRN) inhibitor Mirin with ionizing radiation (IR). Our hypothesis is that the inhibition of the cancer cells’ DNA damage response (DDR) by Mirin leads to reduced repair capacity and a radiosensitization of the cancer cells. Methods: We investigated the effect of Mirin in combination with IR on five HPV-negative and two HPV-positive HNSCC cell lines and one primary fibroblast cell line - serving as healthy control - in several functional assays. Results: We suggest – on the one hand - that Mirin shows a trend towards radiosensitizing effects regarding cell death, cell cycle distribution, colony formation, and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage in HPV-negative HNSCC cell lines but not in HPV-positive ones. On the other hand, the healthy control was nearly unaffected by the combinatory treatment which indicates low side effects. Conclusions: It is useful to generate a deeper insight into the underlying cellular mechanisms of Mirin response in future studies and further validate Mirin’s potential radiosensitizing effect in HPV-negative HNSCCs.
APA:
Hildebrand, L., Mehravani, B.P., Khalifa, M., Schiller, P., Langkrär, J., Jost, T.,... Distel, L. (2026). The inhibition of the MRN complex by Mirin radiosensitizes particularly HPV-negative HNSCC cell lines. Cancer Cell International, 26(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12935-026-04218-1
MLA:
Hildebrand, Laura, et al. "The inhibition of the MRN complex by Mirin radiosensitizes particularly HPV-negative HNSCC cell lines." Cancer Cell International 26.1 (2026).
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