America of a famous hospital Scientists by Cancer A cell-killing drug has been developed that destroys solid tumors through ‘targeted chemotherapy‘.
The pill contains a protein, for example, that acts like a ‘blizzard that can shut down an airline’s main hub and thus stop the flow of only planes carrying cancer cells.’
The protein was developed by a research team at City of Hope Hospital, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States.
A molecule called AOH1996 works by targeting the cancer variant of PCNA, a protein important for DNA replication and tumor growth.
Developed over the past two decades, this drug has proven effective in clinical research to treat breast, prostate, brain, ovarian, cervical, skin and lung cancers.
In this study, published in the medical journal ‘Cell Chemical Biology’, this protein was tested on more than 70 cancer cell lines.
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The results showed that the AOH1996 molecule selectively killed cancer cells by disrupting the normal reproductive cycle of the cell. The next step is to advance these findings through clinical trials in humans.
Dr. Linda Malkas, PhD, Professor of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics at City of Hope and MT&BA Professor of Molecular Oncology, Ahmadineja said: ‘PCNA is like a big airline terminal hub with multiple air gates. The data showed that PCNA is uniquely mutated in cancer cells and this fact helped us develop a drug that would target only the mutated form of PCNA in cancer cells. is.’
He added: ‘Our cancer-killing drug is like a blizzard that shuts down a major airline hub only to stop all flights carrying cancer cells.’
According to him: ‘The results have been promising. AOH1996 can inhibit tumor growth as a monotherapy without inducing toxicity in cell and animal models. The investigational chemotherapy is currently in a phase one human clinical trial at City of Hope.’
The study’s lead author, Long Guo, associate research professor in the Department of Molecular Diagnostics at Beckman Research Institute in the City of Hope, added: ‘No drug has ever targeted PCNA therapeutically. was made because it was considered ‘untreatable’ but clearly City of Hope was able to develop an investigational drug to target a challenging protein.’
According to him: ‘We discovered that PCNA is one of the possible causes of increased nucleic acid replication errors in cancer cells. Now that we know the specific part of the problem and can prevent it, we will go deeper to understand the process to develop more personalized and targeted cancer drugs.’
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**What are the next steps in the clinical development of AOH1996 at City of Hope Hospital?**
**Interview with Dr. Linda Malkas, City of Hope Hospital**
**Host:** Welcome, Dr. Malkas, and thank you for joining us today. You and your team at City of Hope Hospital have made significant strides in cancer treatment with the development of a new drug known as AOH1996. Can you explain to our audience what this drug does?
**Dr. Malkas:** Thank you for having me! AOH1996 is a groundbreaking drug designed to target and kill solid tumors through a process we refer to as “targeted chemotherapy.” The molecule specifically targets a cancer variant of the PCNA protein, which plays a critical role in DNA replication and tumor growth. By exploiting the unique characteristics of cancer cells, AOH1996 selectively disrupts their reproductive cycle, effectively leading to their demise.
**Host:** That’s fascinating! You mentioned that this drug is akin to a “blizzard” affecting an airline hub. Could you clarify that analogy for our listeners?
**Dr. Malkas:** Absolutely! Imagine an airline hub where planes are constantly coming and going. Our drug acts like a blizzard that shuts down this hub, halting only those planes that carry cancer cells. In this way, we are able to cut off the flow and proliferation of cancerous cells while sparing healthy ones, which is a huge advancement in chemotherapy treatments.
**Host:** After developing this drug over the past two decades, what sort of results have you seen in your studies?
**Dr. Malkas:** We conducted extensive testing on over 70 different cancer cell lines, including those for breast, prostate, brain, ovarian, cervical, skin, and lung cancers. The results were very promising, indicating that AOH1996 selectively killed cancer cells without harming normal cells. This selective action is essential for reducing side effects commonly associated with traditional chemotherapy.
**Host:** That’s impressive! What are the next steps for AOH1996?
**Dr. Malkas:** The next step is to progress to clinical trials in humans. We are very excited about this phase as it will help us confirm the efficacy and safety of AOH1996 in clinical settings. Our goal is to make this treatment available as a viable option for cancer patients soon.
**Host:** Thank you, Dr. Malkas, for sharing your insights and the innovative work being done at City of Hope. This research gives hope to many suffering from cancer.
**Dr. Malkas:** Thank you for having me. It’s a pleasure to share our progress, and we remain committed to advancing cancer treatment for better patient outcomes.
