Learning on the Fly: The Interplay between Caspases and Cancer

Figure 4

Schematic diagram showing a recently developed model of clonally induced tumours in Drosophila eye imaginal discs. During early stages of tumorigenesis, cancerous cells (in green) activate JNK signalling. This induces the production of ROS (in red) and the attraction of hemocytes (in blue) into the transformed areas (green). Upon interaction with the tumour, hemocytes become activated, releasing the TNF ligand Eiger (in magenta). Eiger goes on to stimulate further JNK activity, creating a positive feedback loop that promotes tumour growth and inflammation.