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Global Translational Medicine Traumatic memories in PTSD

inducing senescence in malignant cells by infecting them In 1971, Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act,
with viruses to block their replication. Moreover, people known as the “War on Cancer.” As part of this legislature,
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with SMI show a lesser increase in the number of human the US and USSR began cooperating in cancer research.
hippocampal progenitor neurons compared with that in Nevertheless, due to bilateral mistrust, the exchanged
the general population, linking the cognitive deficit to the HeLa cells were contaminated, sabotaging several research
cell cycle of these undifferentiated cells. It remains unclear projects by infecting other cell cultures in both countries
why some undifferentiated cells proliferate incessantly, and ultimately exacerbating Cold War tensions.
such as HeLa cells, whereas others do not. Pursuing this The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a new emphasis
line of research may bring progress in both cancer and on cellular proliferation and cancer, reviving the interest
mental illness. in forcing cellular senescence on cancer cells to stop

3. Cellular immortality against human proliferation. 57,58
mortality Altogether, both cancer and mental illness ignore
Hayflick’s limit, with the former driving uncontrolled
In contrast to SMI, cancer cells replicate and increase in proliferation and immortality, whereas the latter by
number for several decades, as observed in HeLa cells. deficient proliferation and premature mortality.

The term HeLa is derived from Henrietta Lacks, an
African American woman from Baltimore who had cervical 4. Role of furin in the human stress
cancer and died in the early 1950s at the age of 31 years. Cells response
taken from her body (without her knowledge or consent) Furin is rapidly becoming a significant player in the
were developed into the HeLa cell line, which has been used pathogenesis of neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric
for research and has contributed to several innovations, diseases, opening a potential avenue for new interventions.
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including the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, HIV For instance, furin inhibitors prevent N-methyl-d-
medications, and more recently, COVID-19 vaccines. aspartate (NMDA)-mediated neuronal injury; therefore,
HeLa cells, which endogenously express furin, and targeting furin may exert procognitive and possibly
Trk-B, the BDNF receptor, may be suitable for investigating antipsychotic effects. For instance, a previous study found
PTSD. 52,53 For instance, gravity can decelerate the cell cycle that furin can improve dendritic morphogenesis, memory,
of HeLa cells, suggesting that biophysical strategies, such and learning. 59
as whole-body vibration, play a role in treating cancer and Both psychological and biological stressors alter
mental illness. 54 organismal homeostasis, forcing the system to adopt
The HeLa case sparked legal and ethical debates, which behavioral or physiological changes to restore the functional
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are still ongoing, over an individual’s rights to his/her balance. The immediate response to stressors consists of
genetic material and tissues. sympathetic–adreno–medullar activation, whereas the
hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal axis responds later. 61,62
The HeLa cell line was kept alive for more than 70 years,
emphasizing that cancer cells are immortal and not subject PTSD is frequently comorbid with CVD, and the
to Hayflick’s limit. There were exciting developments and amygdala processes both psychological and biological
anecdotes regarding HeLa cells during the Cold War, stressors. 63,64 For instance, the basolateral amygdala (BLA)
which led to the discernment of the role of gravity in processes aversive stimuli, whereas the central nucleus
cancer. For instance, in the 1960s, scientists in the Soviet of the amygdala (CeA) responds to stress-associated
Union became interested in HeLa cells as they intended to changes in vital signs, such as blood pressure and redox
explore cancer behavior at zero gravity. Therefore, HeLa alterations. 65-68
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cells, obtained from the Johns Hopkins University, were Dysfunction of two opposite systems, angiotensin II
sent on the first orbit flight around the earth in 1961 with (ANG II) and oxytocin (OXT), has been implicated in both
Yuri Gagarin, the first Soviet astronaut. HeLa cells were PTSD and CVD. 69,70 Consistent with this, human CECs
sent again with other Soviet missions, including Vostok 4 express abundant OXT receptors, which are believed to
in 1962, Vostok 5 and 6 in 1963, Voskhod 1 in 1964, and protect against stroke. BDNF, expressed in the amygdala,
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Zond 5 in 1968. These space experiments concluded that opposes OXT, thereby promoting fear learning. 72,73
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compared with normal cells, which maintained average Interestingly, furin acts as a common denominator
growth at zero gravity, HeLa cells became more aggressive, for stroke and myocardial infarction, suggesting its
dividing faster with each trip, suggesting that zero or low involvement in reducing OXT levels by upregulating
gravity accelerates cancer growth. BDNF levels. 74

Volume 3 Issue 4 (2024) 4 doi: 10.36922/gtm.3974