SUMMARY: Researchers will study chemoresistance in osteosarcoma cell lines to learn more about why this occurs and how it could be overcome.
THE PROBLEM: Osteosarcoma is a highly aggressive bone cancer that affects both dogs and humans. In dogs, it is most common in large breeds and often leads to poor outcomes due to its rapid spread (metastasis) and resistance to standard chemotherapy treatments. Even with aggressive therapies like surgery and chemotherapy, many dogs experience tumor relapse, making it critical to find new ways to overcome this resistance and improve survival rates.
THE PROJECT: This project aims to address this challenge by studying why osteosarcoma cells become resistant to chemotherapy and identifying new treatment strategies to overcome this resistance. Using cutting-edge laboratory techniques, the team will create chemotherapy-resistant canine osteosarcoma cell lines in the lab to better understand the mechanisms driving resistance. They will then test a library of over 1,800 approved drugs to find compounds that work in combination with standard chemotherapy to kill these resistant cancer cells. In addition, they will analyze the gene activity in resistant cells to uncover the molecular changes that make them resistant to chemotherapy.
POTENTIAL IMPACT: The team’s goal is to identify promising new drug combinations that can improve treatment outcomes for dogs with osteosarcoma. By focusing on this devastating disease, they hope to improve the quality of life for affected dogs. This project has the potential to pave the way for better therapies, reduce the risk of tumor relapse, and offer hope to families and veterinarians caring for dogs with osteosarcoma.
Study ID
25CAINPS-0022
Study Status
Active
Grant amount awarded
$19,332
Grant recipient
University of Saskatchewan
Study country
Canada
Investigator
Behzad Toosi, DVM, PhD