Glucocorticoid Inhibition of Skin Cancer

Chicago Illinois -

Chebotaev et al reported today that overexpression of glucocorticoid receptor in the skin of mice inhibits carcinogenesis.

The paper (The tumor suppressor effect of the glucocorticoid receptor in skin is mediated via its effect on follicular epithelial stem cells. Oncogene. 2006 Dec 4) provided evidence suggestive of the role of follicular epithelial stem cells in cancer formation and that transgenic overexpression of the receptor using the keratin 5 promoter inhibited carcinogenesis by acting at the level of the stem cell.

This paper makes us wonder whether glucocorticoid receptor has other physiological effects on other stem cells besides those in the skin.