Researchers report promising gene that forces self-destruction of cancer cells

Researchers Report Promising Gene That Forces Self-Destruction of Cancer Cells

One of the principle problems with finding viable cancer treatments is being able to target cancer cells without harming the body's normal cells. A new approach currently under study at the University of Rochester shows remarkable promise for doing just that.

At the college, assistant professors Vera Gorbunova and Andrei Seluanov, along with graduate student Christopher Hine, were looking into the inner workings of a protein known as Rad51. The team was interested in the protein because its prevalence is five times more pronounced in cancer cell than in normal cells. The difference is a result of Rad51's importance for DNA repair, which cancer cells require more of due to their accelerated growth rates.

By replacing the Rad51 gene with a marker protein DNA, the team was completely surprised to see the levels of the altered protein grow to as much as 12,500 times in a single cancer cell. Initially thought to be a mistake, further studies replicated the astounding results. Upon reflection, the team believes that elements related to the monitoring of the protein production were stripped out during the process of introducing the marker protein DNA.

Because the elevated Rad51 levels only affect cancer cells, it is hypothesized that a "toxic bomb" could be implanted into to the gene, causing cancer cells to self-destruct. Early tests performed by the team on breast cancer, fibrosarcoma and cervical cancer cells show encouraging results.

The next step for testing the effectiveness and safety of this new cancer treatment approach is developing a way to integrate the gene into a benign virus and injecting it into cancerous tumors present in lab mice. If such studies are successful, cancer patients may one day be able to rid themselves of the disease by way of a simple shot in the arm.

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