Cancer-New Agent
Against Cancer Cells
New Agent Against Cancer Cells
Nov. 26, 2013 —
Freiburg scientists have discovered a substance that suppresses unchecked cell
division in leukemia cells Scientists of the University of Freiburg and the
Freiburg University Medical Center from the collaborative research center
Medical Epigenetics (SFB 992) have discovered a new active substance that inhibits cell division in
leukemia cells and could play an important role in the fight against cancer.
Share This:
?
Junior professor Dr.
Stefan Günther was in charge of the research project, which also included
research groups participating in SFB 992 Medical Epigenetics led by Prof. Dr.
Manfred Jung from the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Prof. Dr. Oliver
Einsle from the Institute of Biochemistry, and Prof. Dr. Roland Schüle from the
Freiburg University Medical Center. The team published their findings in the
journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition.
The substance XD14 suppresses the
function of several proteins from the BET family also known as epigenetic reader proteins:
They identify epigenetic changes in so-called histones and pass on this signal, for instance in
order to trigger cell division. In the case of leukemia, genetic mutations can
cause a disturbance in signaling transduction: The cells continue to divide
unchecked, causing damage to the entire organism.
The scientists
detected the new agent with a method called virtual screening: The Pharmaceutical
Bioinformatics Research Group, headed by Stefan Günther, studied the
characteristics of roughly ten million molecules in a computer model. The goal
was to identify the few substances whose binding affinity is so great that they
can prevent certain proteins of the BET family from passing on signals. The
complex calculations involved in this endeavor were made in a computer network
maintained by the universities of Baden-Württemberg, the bwGRID. The scientists
tested one of the substances on 60 different types of cancer cells. The
experiment proved that the agent can significantly suppress cell division in
leukemia cells. They are now investigating whether the molecule is suitable for
use as a drug.
Around 20 different
research groups from the University of Freiburg, the Freiburg University
Medical Center, and the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics
are collaborating on the study of epigenetic mechanisms in SFB 992 in order to
develop new strategies for fighting diseases. The DNA stores information on
genetic features and passes them on by means of cell division. Epigenetic
features, on the other hand, are passed on without being part of the genetic
code.
Share this story on
Facebook,
No comments:
Post a Comment