2023-08-21 16:09:38
A new drug can kill malignant solid tumors without harming other cells, early research has found. (123RF)
Text/Reporter Wen Hui
A new drug kills malignant solid tumors without harming other cells, scientists have found in earlier research.
The new molecule targets a protein present in most cancers, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), which helps tumors grow and multiply in the body and was previously considered an “undruggable” target. But the drug was tested in the lab on 70 different cancer cells, including those from the breast, prostate, brain, ovary, cervix, skin and lung; both work.
The new drug is the culmination of 20 years of research and development at City of Hope Hospital (City of Hope Hospital) in Los Angeles, one of the largest cancer centers in the United States. It is code-named AOH1996. Named following Anna Olivia Healy.
The new drug has been tested on more than seventy cancer cell lines and several normal human cells, according to the latest study, published in the journal Cell Chemical Biology. Pharmacological molecules selectively kill cancer cells by disrupting their normal reproductive cycle, preventing the division of DNA-damaged cells, and preventing defective DNA replication.
The drug is currently in Phase 1 human clinical trials at City of Hope, with a research team led by Dr. Linda Malkas, a professor in City of Hope’s Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics. Marcas explained how pharmacological molecules selectively disrupt DNA replication and repair in cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unaffected.
Dr. Markas met Ana’s father back in the days of Ana’s final days while studying at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Markas was researching breast cancer, but Ana’s father asked her if she might do something for neuroblastoma, a cancer that occurs in children, and wrote her lab a check for $25,000 .
Dr Marcas said that moment changed her life and she wanted to do something special for that little girl.
Next, the researchers will learn more regarding its mechanism of action to improve ongoing human clinical trials. ◇
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