IMMORTAL CELLS AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CELL CYCLE, MITOSIS & CANCER Lesson Overview This is a lesson to teach students about the life cy

IMMORTAL CELLS

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CELL CYCLE, MITOSIS & CANCER 

Lesson Overview  

This is a lesson to teach students about the life cycle of a cell and cellular functions including growth, division (mitosis), repair, and cell death (apoptosis).  It is intended for use in an introductory high school biology class.  The cell processes are taught through a disease theme, in this case, exploring cancer.   

Description of Activity

The lesson has 3 parts to it.  It begins with a writing prompt to engage students in a class discussion about aging and death.  From that the Hayflick limit idea is introduced – that cells have a limited number of times they can divide.  This idea is compared to cancer cells which are essentially immortal.  Students then explore the Inside Cancer website to learn about the Hallmarks of Cancer.  Next, the students explore the events of mitosis and the cell cycle by constructing a simple mitosis puzzle and taking notes on the events happening at each stage.   Finally, students revisit the Inside Cancer site to find where disruption of the normal life cycle occurs in cancer cells. 

Background

Cell processes are the result of complex interactions between a cell’s genetic code (DNA) and its environment.  Cells grow, divide, and die in response to cellular and extracellular signals.  Sometimes cells are damaged beyond repair by environmental factors and undergo a programmed cell death - apoptosis.  Some cells take advantage of apoptosis to die for the greater good of the organism.

Before a cell divides, it must make copies of its DNA and all the cellular organelles needed for the daughter cells.  Each time DNA replication occurs, mutations occur.  The cell has mechanisms for repairing both mistakes in DNA replication and other non-replication mutations that occur, but they are not foolproof.  Even these mechanisms for repair are controlled by proteins that are produced from genes that are susceptible to mutations.  If mutations occur in any of the key molecules along the repair pathways, cancer susceptibility increases as mutation rates accelerate.

In addition, with each cell division the non-coding ends of chromosomes (telomeres) get shorter and shorter.  Eventually, these telomeres (junk DNA) will get so short that important information will no longer be copied leading to cell death.  This, in part, placed a limit on the life of a cell.  Telomere length alone does not account for the aging processes of cells or of an organism.  Instead, the aging process is a complex interaction of intracellular events that are still not well understood.  Cancer cells, however, have found a way around this limit.  They have an enzyme called telomerase that extends the length of telomeres for unlimited cell divisions.

There are other noncancerous cells, however, that also produce telomerase –stem cells for example – so the characteristics of cancer cells must go beyond this.  In fact, cancer is not as simple as inheriting one mutation in a single gene; it involves multiple mutations in multiple genes.  There are checkpoints in a cells life cycle to make certain that the cell is on track for DNA replication and for cell division.  Mutations in the proteins that regulate these check points are likely candidates for developing cancer.

The cell biology of aging.    Hayflick L.        Clin Geriatr Med. 1985 Feb;1(1):15-27. 
      Taken from:  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3913498?dopt=Abstract 

It is only within the past ten years that biogerontology has become attractive to a sufficient number of biologists so that the field can be regarded as a seriously studied discipline. Cytogerontology, or the study of aging at the cellular level, had its genesis about 20 years ago when the dogma that maintained that cultured normal cells could replicate forever was overturned. Normal human and animal cells have a finite capacity to replicate and function whether they are cultured in vitro or transplanted as grafts in vivo. This phenomenon has been interpreted to be aging at the cellular level. Only abnormal somatic cells are capable of immortality. In recent years it has been found that the number of population doublings of which cultured normal cells are capable is inversely proportional to donor age. There is also good evidence that the number of population doublings of cultured normal fibroblasts is directly proportional to the maximum lifespan of ten species that have been studied. Cultures prepared from patients with accelerated aging syndromes (progeria and Werner's syndrome) undergo far fewer doublings than do those of age-matched controls. The normal human fibroblast cell strain WI-38 was established in 1962 from fetal lung, and several hundred ampules of these cells were frozen in liquid nitrogen at that time. These ampules have been reconstituted periodically and shown to be capable of replication. This represents the longest period of time that a normal human cell has ever been frozen. Normal human fetal cell strains such as WI-38 have the capacity to double only about 50 times. If cultures are frozen at various population doublings, the number of doublings remaining after reconstitution is equal to 50 minus the number of doublings that occurred prior to freezing. The memory of the cells has been found to be accurate after 23 years of preservation in liquid nitrogen. Normal human cells incur many physiologic decrements that herald the approach of their failure to divide. Many of these functional decrements are identical to decrements found in humans as they age. Thus it is likely that these decrements are also the precursors of age changes in vivo. The finite replicative capacity of normal cells is never seen to occur in vivo because aging and death of the individual occurs well before the doubling limit is reached. 


The background information below describes the events at each of the stages of mitosis.  There are many ways you can go from here to make sure your students receive the content you want them to have. 

• You can keep it simple and not worry about learning the names of the phases at all. And you could discuss as a class the events and the process. Or…

 

• You can have students use a textbook as a reference to find and match the names of the stages with the pictures.  The only complication with this is sometimes students are not careful about making sure the description is really what they see going on in the picture and so if they stages don’t match up perfectly with the textbook pictures, they might misidentify stages and have to redo them.  Or…
• You could write the 7 stages on the board (reminding them that technically Interphase is not a stage of mitosis) and have them match up the pictures using a reference.  I would recommend going over them together and having students share their captions with the class, allowing those with incomplete captions to add to theirs. 
  
 


The information below is taken from: http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_Bio/tutorials/cell_cycle/cells3.html

What is (and is not) mitosis?




Mitosis is nuclear division plus cytokinesis, and produces two identical daughter cells during prophase, prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase. Interphase is often included in discussions of mitosis, but interphase is technically not part of mitosis, but rather encompasses stages G1, S, and G2 of the cell cycle.

 


Interphase & Mitosis




Interphase	The cell is engaged in metabolic activity and performing its prepare for mitosis (the next four phases that lead up to and include nuclear division). Chromosomes are not clearly discerned in the nucleus, although a dark spot called the nucleolus may be visible. The cell may contain a pair of centrioles (or microtubule organizing centers in plants) both of which are organizational sites for microtubules.
Prophase	Chromatin in the nucleus begins to condense and becomes visible in the light microscope as chromosomes. The nucleolus disappears. Centrioles begin moving to opposite ends of the cell and fibers extend from the centromeres. Some fibers cross the cell to form the mitotic spindle.
Prometaphase	The nuclear membrane dissolves, marking the beginning of prometaphase. Proteins attach to the centromeres creating the kinetochores. Microtubules attach at the kinetochores and the chromosomes begin moving.
Metaphase	Spindle fibers align the chromosomes along the middle of the cell nucleus. This line is referred to as the metaphase plate. This organization helps to ensure that in the next phase, when the chromosomes are separated, each new nucleus will receive one copy of each chromosome.
Anaphase	The paired chromosomes separate at the kinetochores and move to opposite sides of the cell. Motion results from a combination of kinetochore movement along the spindle microtubules and through the physical interaction of polar microtubules.
Telophase	Chromatids arrive at opposite poles of cell, and new membranes form around the daughter nuclei. The chromosomes disperse and are no longer visible under the light microscope. The spindle fibers disperse, and cytokinesis or the partitioning of the cell may also begin during this stage.
Cytokinesis	In animal cells, cytokinesis results when a fiber ring composed of a protein called actin around the center of the cell contracts pinching the cell into two daughter cells, each with one nucleus. In plant cells, the rigid wall requires that a cell plate be synthesized between the two daughter cells.

 


Goals and Objectives

Students will be able to:  

• Describe the process of cell division, identify the stages of mitosis in pictures or under a microscope, and describe what is happening in each stage.

• Explain in part why cells die (apotosis) and have limited life-spans (telomeres) 
  

• Explain how cancer cells operate differently than normal cells to live indefinitely 
  

• Explain how cells interact with their environment through extracellular signals (growth factors, hormones, etc) 
  

 
 
 
 

National Science Education Content Standards:

THE CELL:

• Cells have particular structures that underlie their functions.  Every cell is surrounded by a membrane that separates it from the outside world.  Inside the cell is a concentrated mixture of thousands of different molecules which form a variety of specialized structures that carry out such cell functions as energy production, transport of molecules, waste disposal, synthesis of new molecules, and the storage of genetic material.
• Cells store and use information to guide their functions.  The genetic information stored in DNA is used to direct the synthesis of the thousands of proteins that each cell requires.
• Cell functions are regulated.  Regulation occurs both through changes in the activity of the functions performed by proteins and through the selective expression of individual genes.  This regulation allows cells to respond to their environment and to control and coordinate cell growth and division.

 

THE MOLECULAR BASIS OF HEREDITY

• In all organisms, the instructions for specifying the characteristics of the organism are carried in DNA, a large polymer formed from subunits of four kinds (A, G, C, and T).  The chemical and structural properties of DNA explain how the genetic information that underlies heredity is both encoded in genes and replicated.  Each DNA molecule in a cell forms a single chromosome.
• Changes in DNA (mutations) occur spontaneously at low rates.  Some of these changes make no difference to the organism, whereas others can change cells and organisms.  Only mutations in germ cells can create the variation that changes an organism’s offspring.

 
 

Assumptions of Prior Knowledge  

• Students should know the basic requirements of life:  made of cells, contain a genetic code (DNA or RNA), responds to its environment, obtains materials and gives wastes, grows and develops, reproduces, and changes (evolves) over time.
• Students should have a basic understanding of the cell including:  cell membrane, nucleus, cytoplasm, chromosomes, DNA, and other organelles.
• Students should be familiar with the proper use and care of microscopes

 

Common Misconceptions

• Living systems are made of cells but not molecules.
• Cells continue to grow as the organism matures and that it is the cell size that is the determinant of the organism size.
• A single mutation can lead to cancer.

Implementing the Lesson  

Time Allotment  

Part 1.  Hallmarks of Cancer – approximately 80 minutes –some students may not finish the Hallmarks of Cancer online activity.  Decide how you want to deal with that if your students do not all have access to the internet at home.  Some students may finish early, so consider a follow-up activity for those that finish early. 

Part 2.  Mitosis– approximately 80 minutes or less 

Part 3.  Mitosis and Microscopes (1 class period – reduce assignment and combine with online root tip activity if you have limited microscopes) 

Part 4.  Cell Cycle and Cancer – approximately 50 minutes (65 with Nicotine Connection) 
 

Before Class  

• Photocopy student worksheets:
• Hallmarks of Cancer –Student Worksheet (4 pages)
• Mitosis Puzzle (1 page)
• Part 3:  Cell Cycle and Cancer Student Worksheet (2 pages or 3 with Nicotine Connection)
• Other materials: 
• Computers with internet
• Scissors and glue for day 2
• Microscopes and prepared slides of onion root tips
• Make sure the following websites work:
• www.insidecancer.org
• http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_BIO/activities/cell_cycle/activity_description.html

During Class

DAY 1:  Hallmarks of Cancer

1. Writing Prompt and discussion

What do you think:  What does it mean to die of “natural causes” or to die of “old age?” And why does this happen?

      (Free write for 4-5 minutes and then discuss)

Then orally pose the question… “Is there any living thing that doesn’t die, that can live forever?”

(Discuss )  Emryonic germ cells, cell lines from tumors are capable of this but it doesn’t mean they can’t die.  Bacteria?  Asexual organisms? 

2. Analyzing research data

Table 1:  The average number of cell doublings (or rounds of cell division) in human fetal cells in vitro.  Source:

 

	Normal Cells 20% Oxygen	Normal Cells  w/ 3% Oxygen (equal to internal environment of humans)	Cancer cells
Average Number of cell doublings	50	70	No limit

 

Place the table above on the board with a document camera (or write on the board).

Have students look briefly at the data and explain any unfamiliar vocabulary.  Have them answer the following questions in their science journal or on a piece of paper:

1. What does the data say?  (This is good practice for the explanatory language of a conclusion.)

The data shows that cells with more oxygen divide less than cells with less oxygen and cancer cells can divide unlimited in a petri dish(as long as they are moved to new dishes)

2. What conclusion can you assume or draw from this data?

Oxygen kills cells.   Cells have limits to the amount of times they can divide.

3. Write a question about these findings.  What more do you want to know?  Or what else might you consider testing?

Isn’t oxygen a good thing?  Why would it kill cells?  Why can’t our cells divide forever?  What would happen if you grew cells with no oxygen?

After about 5-7 minutes, discuss the answers to the questions as a class.

3. Complete:  Hallmarks of Cancer Student Worksheet

In order to understand how cancer cells are able to evade death it is important to understand how normal cells work and how cancer cells differ.  Today we are going to visit the Inside Cancer website to learn a little about normal cell functions and abnormal cells that may become cancerous. 


DAY 2:  Mitosis

Tell students that to really understand why cells have limits, it is important to understand how cell division occurs, what those steps are, and how some cells (cancer cells) can escape death.

MITOSIS PUZZLE:  Give them the handout for the mitosis puzzle.  Read through the background together stopping to define the functions of the key players as a class. 

Vocabulary Review:

• Chromosomes – coiled structures consisting of DNA & proteins, found in the nucleus (of Eukaryotes)
• Chromatin – DNA and proteins before they are tightly coiled in preparation for cell division
• Centrioles- organelles involved in cell division in animal cells
• Nuclear membrane – the porous membrane enclosing the contents of the nucleus
• Cell Membrane   - the semi-permeable & flexible boundary between the inside and outside of the cell

When students are done with their puzzle they will take notes on the events happening at each stage of the cycle.  You may want to allow a certain amount of time and then go over as a class.  (Alternatively, you could start the next class period projecting a picture of one of the stages and ask students to say what stage it is in and what evidence in the picture led them to that conclusion.  This is also assigned individually for Day 3.)

DAY 3:  Stages of Mitosis & Microscopes

Considering reviewing how to safely handle and use microscopes.  Then have students search for 3 different stages of Mitosis under the highest objective lens.  Have them draw the cells in their science notebook and label the major structures visible including cell wall/cell membrane, chromosomes, spindle, cell plate, nuclear membrane, nucleus, etc.  Students should include a sentence for each drawing stating what stage of mitosis the cell is in and 2-3 observations/evidence to support this.  It is recommended that students get their first drawing signed off by their teacher to make sure it meets standard for size, amount of detail, etc. 


DAY 4:  Cell Cycle and Cancer

(You may be able to start on this if you have time left over on day 2 or 3, or you could assign the online practice for homework.)

Go over the mitosis puzzles and stages as a class before moving on.

Then tell the students that they will have some time to practice identifying the stages of mitosis with an online tutorial.  Then they will see how mitosis fits into the cell cycle and how disruptions in the cell cycle may result in cancer.

Hand out “Part 3. Cell Cycle and Cancer –Student Worksheet” and read directions together before releasing students to computers.

Go over material as a class when finished either the same day or the next day. 


Recommendations for Evaluation:  


• With remaining class time or with the last 5 minutes of class, you may ask students to fill out an “Exit Slip” where they write 3 things they learned that day.
• Have students make a Venn diagram of Normal Cells and Cancer cells.
• Give students a picture of a stage in mitosis and have them describe what is going on in the picture with the key organelles.
• Show a picture of an onion root tip and project it asking students to name the stage and describe the events happening in the picture.
 
 


Suggestions for Extended Learning

Continue exploring the Inside Cancer website and have students look specifically for cell biology content.

Have students write a specific question about cancer and have them look for it on the website. 


Glossary

Apoptosis – programmed cell death

Mitosis – the process of cell division beginning with prophase and ending in cytokineses.

Protein Synthesis – the joining of amino acids to match mRNA that carries the DNA message of a particular gene

Telomerase – an enzyme responsible for extending the length of telomeres, present in cancer cells and embryonic stem cells

Telomere – the junk DNA at the ends of chromosomes that does not get copied in DNA replication and serves to protect the ends of chromosomes; telomeres get shorter with each cell division and eventually so short that coding regions of DNA may be lost  


Resources

www.insidecancer.org

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3913498?dopt=Abstract

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_BIO/activities/cell_cycle/activity_description.html 
 


The following pages are Student Worksheets followed by Teacher Answer Keys:

 


 

INSIDE CANCER:  Hallmarks of Cancer – Student Worksheet     http://www.insidecancer.org/

Direction:  Go to the website above and navigate through the Hallmarks of Cancer section to answer the following questions for each section.

OVERVIEW

1. In a single cell, what do all cancers begin with? ________________________________
1. What are the two causes of these and which is more common?
2. DNA changes may result in a change in the ________________________________ produced. 
    
    
   
3. Demonstrate the three different types of mutations by writing an example of the resulting new DNA strand in the table below.  (Circle the point where the mutation occurred.) 
   
 


Type of Mutation	Original DNA sequence	New DNA sequence
Single Nucleotide Change (aka Point Mutation)	CAGGCGCAT
Deletion	CAGGCGCAT
Duplication	CAGGCGCAT

4. Explain why cancer incidence increases with age. 
   
 
 


GROWING UNCONTROLLABLY

1. What normally regulates cell growth and division in typical cells?
2. What are two ways cancer cells are able to grow continuously? 
    
   

EVADING DEATH

1. What is apoptosis?
2. What are the roles of proteases and enzymes in cell death? 
   
3. What eventually happens to dead cells or cellular remains? 
   
4. Why would a cell commit suicide? 
    
   
 


PROCESSING NUTRIENTS

1. What does angiogenic mean?
2. Why do cancer cells need a blood supply? 
    
   
3. What are some of the nutrients a cancer cell needs? 
    
   
4. What are some of the waste products a cancer cell produces? 
    
   
5. What types of cancers would be unlikely to undergo angiogenesis and why? 
    
   
6. Extend your thinking:  The outer layer of your skin (the epidermis) does not have a direct blood supply.  How do you think this affects the growth rate of skin cancers compared to other cancers? 
    
    
   
 
 


BECOMING IMMORTAL

1. What is a telomere?
2. What  are two things that happen to telomeres as cells undergo cell divisions? 
    
   
3. What is the role of telomerase?  
    
    
   
4. Where and/or when is telomerase typically expressed? 
    
   

INVADING TISSUES

1. What is usually the cause of people dying from cancer?
2. Cells normally stay in one site or one tissue type.  Why can cancer spread to other tissues? 
    
   
3. What happens to body tissues as a result of cancer that classifies cancer as a disease? 
   
 


AVOIDING DETECTION

1. How does the appearance of a cancer cell compare to a normal cell?
2. What body system is responsible for detecting precancerous cells? ________________________ 
   
3. Describe the two adaptive immune responses (B cells and T cells) that respond to changes in cells in our body such as infections or cancer. 
   
4. Describe what adjuvant therapy is. 
    
    
   
 
 
 
 


PROMOTING MUTATIONS

1. One way mutations are acquired in cancer cells is during the process of _________   ____________________________.
2. WATCH THE DNA REPLICATION ANIMATION: 
   
1. What is the role of helicase?
2. One strand of DNA is copied continuously.  How is the other strand copied? 
   
3. Each DNA molecule formed has ________ original strand(s) and _______new strand(s). 
    
   
3. What often happens once new daughter cells are formed and the copied DNA is separated? 
   
4. What are cancer cells unable to do? 
   
1. What does this result in? 
    
   
5. What is the estimated average number of mutations required to develop cancer? 
    
   
 


Part 2.  MITOSIS PUZZLE

Objective:  To identify the stages and events of mitosis (cell division) in a multicellular organism.

Background:  Human embryos are similar in size to a rat embryo.  Why then do they end up being such different sized organisms?  The size of an organism is determined mostly by its number of cells and partially by the sizes of those cells.  Certain cells in a human might be smaller than certain cells in a mouse and vice versa.  In addition, most cells have a limit to the size they can grow.   On the other hand fat cells can grow larger when we stores excess calories as fat droplets inside those cells.  The more droplets, the larger the cell becomes until it reaches a point in which the control center (nucleus) can no longer manage a cell of that size.  At that point the cell must undergo cell division.

In order for a cell to divide, it needs to make copies of the genetic code, cell organelles and other molecules necessary for each of the daughter cells to survive.  After this point, the cell is ready to divide.  The process of cell division occurs in a series of observable steps that scientists have termed “mitosis.”  Below are some key players (organelles) in mitosis.  Review their functions before going on.

• Chromosomes
• Chromatin
• Centrioles
• Nuclear membrane
• Cell Membrane  

Directions:  T rough observation of the following stages of mitosis, one can figure out the most logical sequence of events.  You know you are starting with one cell and ending with two.  Use the information depicted in the pictures to place them in the correct order.  Once you have the correct order (check with your teacher), cut each picture out and tape or glue onto a clean page in your science notebook.  Then use the vocabulary words of the key players to write a complete caption for each picture of what is going on in the cell at that time. 


        


        

  Pictures from:  http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_Bio/tutorials/cell_cycle/cells3.html

 


Name _________________________________________________________ Period _______ Date____________

Part 3:  Cell Cycle and Cancer –Student Worksheet

Go to:    http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_BIO/activities/cell_cycle/activity_description.html

Directions:  For review on the stages of mitosis, go through the activity to identify the state of the cell cycle for each of the cells sampled from the onion root tip. 

The picture of the cell that you are trying to identify is small and is located here.

1. Table:  The Time Spent in Different Phases of the Cell Cycle.
2. What stage is the cell in most of the time? ________________________________________ 
   
3. The number of times you see a cell in a particular stage gives you an idea of how often the average cell spends in a particular stage.  Use the blank pie chart below to draw in the approximate % of the stages you calculated.  Make sure the numbers add up to 100%.
4. These numbers reflect the activity going on in cells in the root tip of an onion.  What would you expect to see to the amount of time devoted to Interphase if you looked at cells further away from the tip?  Why is this? 
    
    
    
   
 
 
 
 


Remember that that the actual process of cell division does not begin until Prophase.  So what exactly goes on during Interphase?  The stages of Interphase can actually be broken down into three other stages: G1, S, and G2.  To learn more about these stages and why they are important continue on to the Inside Cancer website.

Directions:  Go to the Inside Cancer website (www.insidecancer.org).  Navigate through the “Causes and Prevention” tab.  Select “Smoking” and scroll to the “p53” link to answer the following questions:

1. Mutations in the p53 gene are found in what percentage of lung tumors? _______________
2. The p53 protein is a tumor _________________________________ that is involved in detecting damage to ________ or ______________________. 
   
3. Using the diagram below, write a caption highlighting the cellular events for each of the stages in the cell cycle: 
   
 


CELL CYCLE

4. In the above diagram, label the two checkpoints that p53 patrols with a *. 
   
5. If p53 is capable of stopping cell division to allow time for DNA repairs, at which checkpoint would this be appropriate?     S    or   M   (circle one)
6. If the DNA damage is not repairable what will p53 initiate?  ______________________________ 
   
7. What happens to a cell’s DNA over time if p53 is mutated and nonfunctional? 
   
 
 
 


COMPARE THIS INFO TO THE CELL CYCLE OF THE ONION ROOT TIP.

1. How does the Interphase stage from the onion root tip compare to the Interphase of the cell cycle diagram above?
2. Some cells in the human body reach a point when they become so specialized that they usually lose their ability to divide, such as brain cells called neurons or even most skeletal muscle cells.  If these cells are “suspended” in the cell cycle, at what stage would you expect to see them? 
    
   
3. Cancer can also result when a cell’s genome, or DNA, is unstable.  This can happen from having too few or too many chromosomes.  Can you think of a mutation involving one of the key players (organelles) in mitosis that could result in abnormal numbers of chromosomes in daughter cells? 
    
    
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


FOR MORE ON CANCER CONTINUE NAVIGATING THE “CAUSES AND PREVENTION” TAB & “SMOKING” 


Nicotine Connection

1. Nicotine and nitrosamines bind to what type of cell membrane proteins?
2. Akt is a protein kinase that activates other molecules (“substrates”) that then go on to influence cellular processes.  What are the three different cellular processes mentioned that Akt can indirectly influence? 
    
   
3. What effect does nicotine activation of Akt have on a cell? 
    
    
   
4. When DNA damage is not repaired, Akt probably plays a role in deciding whether or not to undergo which cellular process? 
    
    
   
 
 
 


Prevention

Use the information Dr. Glorian Sorenson presents as she discusses an anti-smoking campaign to answer the following questions. 


1. Who is the audience public health researchers are targeting for their anti-smoking campaigns?
2. What was one reason these people gave for why they were not concerned about quitting tobacco use? 
    
   
3. Define the following in the study: 
    
    
   
1. Manipulated (independent) variable: ___________________________________
2. Responding (dependent) variable: ______________________________________
3. Experimental Control: ________________________________________________
4. What do you suppose two controlled variables must have been? (describe/explain them)
1. ______________________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________________
5. What did researchers conclude from this study?  
   
 
 
 
 


      

 

INSIDE CANCER:  Hallmarks of Cancer – Student Worksheet TEACHER KEY http://www.insidecancer.org/

Direction:  Go to the website above and navigate through the Hallmarks of Cancer section to answer the following questions for each section.

OVERVIEW

5. In a single cell, what do all cancers begin with?     mutations
1. What are the two causes of these and which is more common?
1. Inherited (only 10%)
2. Environmental factors (more common)
6. DNA changes may result in a change in the ____protein__________ produced. 
   
7. Demonstrate the three different types of mutations by drawing an example of the resulting new DNA strand in the table below.  (Circle the point where the mutation occurred.) 
   
 


Type of Mutation	Original DNA sequence	New DNA sequence
Single Nucleotide Change (aka Point Mutation)	CAGGCGCAT	CAAGCGCAT   (for example)
Deletion	CAGGCGCAT	CAGCGCAT   (for example)
Duplication	CAGGCGCAT	CAGCAGGCGCAT  (for example)

8. Explain why cancer incidence increases with age. 
   

It is usually caused by more than one mutation and these mutations build up over time. 

GROWING UNCONTROLLABLY

3. What normally regulates cell growth and division in typical cells?

• Signals (growth stimulatory signals) from cell’s environment

4. What are two ways cancer cells are able to grow continuously?

-They grow in the absence of growth stimulatory signals from its environment.

-They grow even in the presence of growth inhibitory signals. 

EVADING DEATH

5. What is apoptosis?

• Programmed cell death (aka cell suicide)

6. What are the roles of proteases and enzymes in cell death?

They degrade the cell by breaking up DNA in the nucleus, breaking down proteins, and causing the cell membrane to shrink. 

7. What eventually happens to dead cells or cellular remains?

They are engulfed by neighboring cells. 

8. Why would a cell commit suicide?

For the common good – when there are too many cells it isn’t good for the organism.

PROCESSING NUTRIENTS

7. What does angiogenic mean?

• Attracting blood vessel growth

8. Why do cancer cells need a blood supply? 
   

-Just like typical cells they need a system to bring in nutrients and give up wastes. 

9. What are some of the nutrients a cancer cell needs?

-Oxygen, glucose, amino acids 

10. What are some of the waste products a cancer cell produces?

-Carbon dioxide, urea, water 

11. What types of cancers would be unlikely to undergo angiogenesis and why?

Leukemia and other blood cancers because they are already bathed in nutrients in the blood. 

12. Extend your thinking:  The outer layer of your skin (the epidermis) does not have a direct blood supply.  How do you think this affects the growth rate of skin cancers compared to other cancers?

This concept needs to be discusses and researched a bit more and the question tweaked appropriately. 

BECOMING IMMORTAL

5. What is a telomere?

-A specialized DNA sequence found at the end of chromosomes; related to a cell’s age; prevents end-to-end fusion of chromosomes 

6. What  are two things that happen to telomeres as cells undergo cell divisions?

-They get shorter, eventually until they can’t protect chromosomal DNA anymore

-They start fusing

7. What is the role of telomerase?

-This enzyme elongates telomeres to extend the number of cell divisions that cell is capable of. 

8. Where and/or when is telomerase  typically expressed?

-During embryonic development & in stem cells

INVADING TISSUES

4. What is usually the cause of people dying from cancer?

-When cancer cells spread and colonize other parts of the body 

5. Cells normally stay in one site or one tissue type.  Why can cancer spread to other tissues?

-They lose or inactivate the signals or controls that keep them in one place.

6. What happens to body tissues as a result of cancer that classifies cancer as a disease?

-Tissue function is impaired. 


AVOIDING DETECTION

5. How does the appearance of a cancer cell compare to a normal cell?

-A cancer cell is different in shape and size.

6. What body system is responsible for detecting precancerous cells?  ___Immune system___
7. Describe the two adaptive immune responses (B cells and T cells) that respond to changes in cells in our body such as infections or cancer. 
   

-B cells make antibodies that bind and direct the elimination of abnormal cells

- T cells kill the cells these changed cells

8. Describe what adjuvant therapy is.

-The immune system is stimulated with agents that make it hypersensitive to foreign cells.

PROMOTING MUTATIONS

6. One way mutations are acquired in cancer cells is during the process of ___DNA___  _____REPLICATION.________
7. WATCH THE DNA REPLICATION ANIMATION: 
   
1. What is the role of helicase?

-It unwinds the double helix.

2. One strand of DNA is copied continuously.  How is the other strand copied?

-It is copied backwards in pieces. 


3. Each DNA molecule formed has __1___ original strand(s) and __1___new strand(s).
8. What often happens once new daughter cells are formed and the copied DNA is separated?

-Genes get distributed unevenly 


9. What are cancer cells unable to do?

-Repair alterations or mistakes in DNA replication

1. What does this result in?

-additional mutations that could advance the progression to cancer 


10. What is the estimated average number of mutations required to develop cancer?   ___5-7___
 
 
 


Part 3:  Cell Cycle and Cancer –Student Worksheet

Go to:    http://www.biology.arizona.edu/Cell_BIO/activities/cell_cycle/activity_description.html

Directions:  For review on the stages of mitosis, go through the activity to identify the state of the cell cycle for each of the cells sampled from the onion root tip. 

The picture of the cell that you are trying to identify is small and is located here.

1. Table:  The Time Spent in Different Phases of the Cell Cycle.
 
 


  ~50%          All others    should  be    under 15%

2. What stage is the cell in most of the time? ______Interphase___
3. The number of times you see a cell in a particular stage gives you an idea of how often the average cell spends in a particular stage.  Use the blank pie chart below to draw in the approximate % of the stages you calculated.  Make sure the numbers add up to 100%.
 
 
 


Answers may vary slightly depending on their individual results but should match numbers above.

4. These numbers reflect the activity going on in cells in the root tip of an onion.  What would you expect to see to the amount of time devoted to Interphase if you looked at cells further away from the tip?  Why is this?
 


I’d expect to see more time in Interphase because those cells shouldn’t be growing as much as the tips.

Remember that that the actual process of cell division does not begin until Prophase.  So what exactly goes on during Interphase?  The stages of Interphase can actually be broken down into three other stages: G1, S, and G2.  To learn more about these stages and why they are important continue on to the Inside Cancer website. 


Directions:  Go to the Inside Cancer website (www.insidecancer.org).  Navigate through the “Causes and Prevention” tab.  Select “Smoking” and scroll to the “p53” link to answer the following questions:

p53

1. Mutations in the p53 gene are found in what percentage of lung tumors?  ______70%_____
2. The p53 protein is a tumor ___suppresor_______ that is involved in detecting damage to _DNA_ or ___mutations______. 
   
3. Using the diagram below, write a caption highlighting the cellular events for each of the stages in the cell cycle: 
   
 


M – (mitosis) Cell divides into 2 daughter cells

CELL CYCLE

*

*

G2 – cell synthesizes proteins and other cellular compounds needed for cell division

S – cell synthesizes DNA in preparation for cell division

  

G1 – cell grows and replenishes resources

4. In the above diagram, label the two checkpoints that p53 patrols with a *. 
   
If p53 is capable of stopping cell division to allow time for DNA replication repairs, at which checkpoint would this be appropriate?          S     or    M  (circle one)

Why?

Because the M check point is before division but the S check point comes before DNA replication so only spontaneous mutations have occurred at that point

6. If the DNA damage is not repairable what will p53 initiate?  ___apoptosis________________
7. What happens to a cell’s DNA over time if p53 is mutated and nonfunctional? 
   

Mutations and DNA damage accumulate

COMPARE THIS INFO TO THE CELL CYCLE OF THE ONION ROOT TIP.

1. How does the Interphase stage from the onion root tip compare to the Interphase of the cell cycle diagram above?
 


It is shorter on the onion root tip diagram

2. Some cells in the human body reach a point when they become so specialized that they usually lose their ability to divide, such as brain cells, called neurons, or even most skeletal muscle cells.  If these cells are “suspended” in the cell cycle, at what stage would you expect to see them?
 


Interphase

3. Cancer can also result when a cell’s genome, or DNA, is unstable.  This can happen from having too few or too many chromosomes.  Can you think of a mutation involving one of the key players (organelles) in mitosis that could result in abnormal numbers of chromosomes in daughter cells?
 


   A mutation in a gene that controls the productionof centrioles

Nicotine Connection

1. Nicotine and nitrosamines bind to what type of cell membrane proteins?

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors 


2. Akt is a protein kinase that activates other molecules (“substrates”) that then go on to influence cellular processes.  What are the three different cellular processes mentioned that Akt can indirectly influence?

Cell cycle, apoptosis, protein translation 


3. What effect does nicotine activation of Akt have on a cell?

Increases proliferation and survival  


4. When DNA damage is not repaired, Akt probably plays a role in deciding whether or not to undergo which cellular process?

Apoptosis

Prevention

Use the information Dr. Glorian Sorenson presents as she discusses an anti-smoking campaign to answer the following questions.

1. Who is the audience public health researchers are targeting for their anti-smoking campaigns?

Blue-collar workers

2. What was one reason these people gave for why they were not concerned about quitting tobacco use?

They figured they were already exposed to other harmful chemicals in their work place so why bother?

3. Define the following in the study:
1. Manipulated (independent) variable: ___(health promotion) & protection___________
2. Responding (dependent) variable: __tobacco consumption______________
3. Experimental Control: __the group without the protection ______________
4. What do you suppose two controlled variables must have been? (describe/explain them) 
   
1. _____student answers may vary___________________________________________
2. ____student answers may vary_____________________________________________
5. What did researchers conclude from this study?

Blue-collar workers in the integrated group were twice as likely to quit smoking as blue-collar workers in the group that got only the health promotion piece.