"This study reveals the targets of a specific form of the progesterone receptor, called PRA, in mammary cell development," said microbiology professor Richard Schwartz, a co-author of the paper and associate dean in the College of Natural Science. "The linkages identified provide targets for future work in reducing the influence progesterone has on developing breast cancer.

"Understanding the genes that regulate inflammation in the mammary gland will help us to better understand normal breast growth and also may help us devise better treatments for the abnormal growth in cancer."

A collaborative team of 10 scientists in MSU's departments of Physiology and Microbiology and Molecular Genetics contributed to the findings. The team's work was published in the July 2009 issue of the journal.

The team of faculty is part of MSU's Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Center, one of four centers nationwide funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Cancer Institute. The center brings together researchers from MSU's colleges of Natural Science and Human Medicine to study the impact of prenatal-to-adult environmental exposures that may predispose a woman to breast cancer, as well as researchers in the College of Communication Arts and Sciences to study how to best communicate breast cancer health messages to the public.

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