Scientists discover anti-tumor gene
A new anti-tumor gene called SARI has been discovered and identified by scientists from the Virginia Commonwealth University. The gene can suppress a key protein that is overexpressed in 90% of human cancers. This is a huge discovery, since this could lead to finding a working cure for cancer.
The whole project was successfully finished in the Fisher laboratory by using a technique called subtraction hybridization. Interferon was used as a immune system modulator.
The scientists delivered the gene through a virus to infected cancer cells, and they stopped dividing and died.
“Additionally, IFNs are powerful immune modulating agents that contribute to the immune response to cancer and they are effective inhibitors of new blood vessel formation, the process of angiogenesis, which is obligatory for the growth of both primary and metastatic cancers,” said Fisher, a member of VCU Massey Cancer Center.
IFNs are currently being used in treatment of many diseases, such as melanoma, malignant glioma, leukemia and more. “We have uncovered a new way by which interferon can induce anti-tumor activity. The identification of SARI also provides a new potential reagent for the selective killing of tumor cells,” said Fisher.
This work was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation and the National Foundation for Cancer Research.
Source: vcu.edu
