Cancer treatment revolution potential with new drug

A revolution in cancer treatment could soon be underway following a breakthrough that may lead to a dramatic improvement in cancer survival rates.

A new study at the University of Warwick, published today in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition, has developed a new drug that can manipulate the body's natural signalling and energy systems, allowing the body to attack and shut down cancerous cells.

Called ZL105, the drug is a compound based on the precious metal iridium. The study has found ZL105 could potentially replace currently used anticancer drugs, which become less effective over time, cause a wide-range of side-effects and damage healthy cells as well as cancerous.

Commenting on the breakthrough, University of Warwick researcher and study co-author Dr Isolda Romero-Canelon said "The energy-producing machinery in cancer cells works to the limit as it attempts to keep up with quick proliferation and invasion. This makes cancer cells susceptible to minor changes in the cell 'power-house'. Our drug pushes cancer cells over the limit causing them to slow and shut down, whilst normal cells can cope with its effects."

Preliminary data indicate that the novel drug may be ten times more effective in treating ovarian, colon, melanoma, renal, and some breast cancers, according to data obtained by the US National Cancer Institute. The researchers now aim to expand the study to cancers that are inherently resistant to existing drugs and to those which have developed resistance after a first round of chemotherapy treatments.

Study co-author Professor Peter J. Sadler said "Existing cancer treatments often become less effective after the first course, as cancer cells learn how they are being attacked. The drug we have developed is a catalyst and is active at low doses. It can attack cancer cells in multiple ways at the same time, so the cancer is less able to adapt to the treatment. This means the new drugs could be much more effective than existing treatments."

"Platinum-based drugs are used in nearly 50% of all chemotherapeutic regimens, exert their activity by damaging DNA and cannot select between cancerous and non-cancerous cells, leading to a wide-range of side-effects from renal failure to neurotoxicity, ototoxicity, nausea and vomiting.

"In contrast, the new iridium-based drug is specifically designed not to attack DNA, but to have a novel mechanism of action, meaning that it could not only dramatically slow down and halt cancer growth, but also significantly reduce the side effects suffered by patients" argues Professor Sadler.

This research could also lead to substantial improvements in cancer survival rates. "Current statistics indicate that one in every three people will develop some kind of cancer during their life time, moreover approximately one woman dies of ovarian cancer every two hours in the UK according to Cancer Research UK .It is clear that a new generation of drugs is necessary to save more lives and our research points to a highly effective way of defeating cancerous cells" said Dr Romero-Canelon.

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The above story is based on materials provided by University of Warwick. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Survey identifies the incurable, a rare type of soft tissue cancers of a potential therapeutic target.

Research published in the online mobile report, UT Southwestern Medical Center （ Harold, C, Simmons Cancer Center home ） from scientists discovered that inhibits the action of a protein known as BRD4 cancer cells in a mouse model of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs) caused the death. MPNSTs are formed around an aggressive Sarcoma nervous. About half of the cases in patients with a genetic disorder called these tumors can develop sporadically, but with 1 to 3,500 people affect nerve fiber of the types （ NF1 ） 1.

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Researchers find potential new treatment approach for pancreatic cancer

Dec. 20, 2013 — Scientists from The University of Manchester -- part of Manchester Cancer Research Centre believe they have discovered a new way to make chemotherapy treatment more effective for pancreatic cancer patients.

Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive cancer with poor prognosis and limited treatment options and is highly resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

But researchers believe they have found an effective strategy for selectively killing pancreatic cancer while sparing healthy cells which could make treatment more effective.

Dr Jason Bruce, from the Physiological Systems and Disease Research Group, who led the research, said: "Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive and deadly cancers. Most patients develop symptoms after the tumour has spread to other organs. To make things worse, pancreatic cancer is highly resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Clearly a radical new approach to treatment is urgently required. We wanted to understand how the switch in energy supply in cancer cells might help them survive."

The research, published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry this month, found pancreatic cancer cells may have their own specialised energy supply that maintains calcium levels and keeps cancer cells alive.

Maintaining a low concentration of calcium within cells is vital to their survival and this is achieved by calcium pumps on the plasma membrane.

This calcium pump, known as PMCA, is fuelled using ATP -- the key energy currency for many cellular processes.

All cells generate energy from nutrients using two major biochemical energy "factories," mitochondria and glycolysis. Mitochondria generate approximately 90% of the cells' energy in normal healthy cells. However, in pancreatic cancer cells there is a shift towards glycolysis as the major energy source. It is thought that the calcium pump may have its own supply of glycolytic ATP, and it is this fuel supply that gives cancer cells a survival advantage over normal cells.

Scientists used cells taken from human tumours and looked at the effect of blocking each of these two energy sources in turn.

Their study, funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre and AstraZeneca, shows that blocking mitochondrial metabolism had no effect. However, when they blocked glycolysis, they saw a reduced supply of ATP which inhibited the calcium pump, resulting in a toxic calcium overload and ultimately cell death.

Dr Bruce added: "It looks like glycolysis is the key process in providing ATP fuel for the calcium pump in pancreatic cancer cells. Although an important strategy for cell survival, it may also be their major weakness.

"Designing drugs to cut off this supply to the calcium pumps might be an effective strategy for selectively killing cancer cells while sparing normal cells within the pancreas."

Maggie Blanks, CEO of the national charity, the Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund said: "These findings will certainly of great interest to the pancreatic cancer research community and we'd be keen to see how this approach progresses. Finding weaknesses that can be exploited in this highly aggressive cancer is paramount, so we want to congratulate the Manchester team for their discovery."

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B cells can provide a potential treatment of RNA has changed a bit.

California College San Diego medical Moores Comprehensive Cancer Center (home) of researchers successfully different kinds of white blood cells, and designed to provide a bit of a non-coding RNA or microRNA (miRNA)-it plays a central role in the immune response of the body – is targeting the T lymphocytes. Achieved in the mouse study published in this week National Science Academy Journal online early Edition are probably used for genetic recombination miRNA therapeutic purposes, the first step of the prominent vaccine and cancer treatment.

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Adjust the cells of the USC scientists ID protein anticancer therapy, human trafficking and potential.

Molecular microbiologist South California University （ USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center home ） but could lead to treatment for cancer and other disease treatment within a cell complex control mechanisms have been found. Have significance over the years on basic understanding of cell biology, their findings appear in the journal nature cell biology.

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Protein identified that regulates cellular trafficking, potential for anti-cancer therapy

Sep. 22, 2013 — Molecular microbiologists at the University of Southern California (USC) have uncovered intricate regulatory mechanisms within the cell that could lead to novel therapeutics for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. Their findings, which have long-standing significance in the basic understanding of cell biology, appear in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

"Our research reveals a new regulatory mechanism that coordinates two distinct intracellular processes that are critical to cellular homeostasis and disease development," said Chengyu Liang, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and principal investigator of the study.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus are cellular organelles in eurkaryotic organisms where proteins are synthesized and packaged for secretion through the body. The trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi must be tightly modulated to maintain the health of the cell and prevent diseases like cancer from taking hold.

"Interest in the role of ER-Golgi network during cancer cell death has been gaining momentum," said Shanshan He, Ph.D., research associate at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and one of the study's first authors. "In this study, we identified a novel regulatory factor for the Golgi-ER retrograde transport and a new mechanistic connection between the physiological trafficking and the autophagic transportation of cellular material."

The researchers discovered that the UV irradiation resistance-associated gene protein (UVRAG), which has been implicated in the suppression of colon and breast cancer, coordinates trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi apparatus and also autophagy, the natural process of breaking down cellular components.

"Given that the ER-Golgi network is often dismantled in malignant conditions and that UVRAG is intensively involved in different types of human cancers, this study gives us a new avenue to investigate anti-cancer agents that target UVRAG and/or the ER-Golgi pathway in cancer and other relevant diseases," Liang said.

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Protein identified that regulates cellular trafficking, potential for anti-cancer therapy

Sep. 22, 2013 — Molecular microbiologists at the University of Southern California (USC) have uncovered intricate regulatory mechanisms within the cell that could lead to novel therapeutics for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. Their findings, which have long-standing significance in the basic understanding of cell biology, appear in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

"Our research reveals a new regulatory mechanism that coordinates two distinct intracellular processes that are critical to cellular homeostasis and disease development," said Chengyu Liang, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and principal investigator of the study.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus are cellular organelles in eurkaryotic organisms where proteins are synthesized and packaged for secretion through the body. The trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi must be tightly modulated to maintain the health of the cell and prevent diseases like cancer from taking hold.

"Interest in the role of ER-Golgi network during cancer cell death has been gaining momentum," said Shanshan He, Ph.D., research associate at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and one of the study's first authors. "In this study, we identified a novel regulatory factor for the Golgi-ER retrograde transport and a new mechanistic connection between the physiological trafficking and the autophagic transportation of cellular material."

The researchers discovered that the UV irradiation resistance-associated gene protein (UVRAG), which has been implicated in the suppression of colon and breast cancer, coordinates trafficking of proteins between the ER and Golgi apparatus and also autophagy, the natural process of breaking down cellular components.

"Given that the ER-Golgi network is often dismantled in malignant conditions and that UVRAG is intensively involved in different types of human cancers, this study gives us a new avenue to investigate anti-cancer agents that target UVRAG and/or the ER-Golgi pathway in cancer and other relevant diseases," Liang said.

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Potential immune therapy target for the treatment of malignant melanoma of the identification of seven

Use your own digital technology to count the NCI scientists and tumor tissue of small RNA molecules for identifying melanoma treatment of seven potential immune therapy target. Immunotherapy works by that increase the body's immune system or by using immune cells to attack the cancer cells of a particular type. Overexpression of the success of this treatment for melanoma and cancers of all forms, or very active, is contingent upon finding a protein target cancerous tumor cells have limited expression in normal tissues. 7 That is identified in this work meets the requirements of these gene target. The results of this study led by NCI Division of Cancer Research Center for tumor immunology, surgery branch Morgan Dr. Richard a. 9/10/2013, appeared in clinical cancer research.

Designed a genetic probe containing 97 Morgan and his colleagues looking for a target on the new treatment for malignant melanoma, 72, was considered immune therapy for potential candidate genes and gene sets. Genetic probes for each permit individual RNA molecules accurately count NCI research team, a unique fluorescent barcode had. 59 By using probe isolated researcher in melanoma tumor samples and genetic material RNA to protein, the code sets, and counted each time the barcode gene have been observed. The results of this experiment, scientists concluded 33 of 72 potential target genes overexpression of more than 20% of the malignant melanoma tumor samples. 20 And is expressed in normal tissue samples of tumors of those genes, different methods were identified. Based on this analysis, the researchers conclusions 7 gene warrant potential as a target for immunotherapy of further consideration: found high expression in a large percentage of CSAG2, MAGEA3, MAGEC2 and IL13RA2, PRAME, CSPG4, and SOX10, tumor samples that had limited expression in normal tissues.

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