A group of scientists from the City of Hope, one of the main cancer research centers in the United States, presented on Tuesday (1) a study that shows the functioning and effectiveness of using a molecule to annihilate cancerous solid cells without affecting healthy cells.
The pill is already in the first phase of human trials, while researchers continue to investigate what made it effective when it was tested on animals.
The study of the AOH1996 molecule has been developed in recent decades by Linda Malkas, a professor in the Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics at City of Hope.
“Our cancer-killing pill is like a blizzard that shuts down a major airport terminal, canceling all incoming and outgoing flights only for planes carrying cancer cells,” he explained.
This is because AOH1996 targets the cancerous variant of PCNA (proliferating cell nuclear antigen), which is responsible for replicating the DNA of all cells and essential for the growth and repair of expanding tumors.
“The data suggest that PCNA is altered exclusively in cancer cells, and this fact allowed us to design a drug that only targeted the PCNA form in cancer cells,” said the researcher.
AOH1996 has been shown to be effective in pre-clinical research in the treatment of cells derived from several types of cancer, such as breast, prostate, brain, ovarian, cervical, skin and lung.
The molecule also appears to make cancer cells more susceptible to therapies that damage DNA or chromosomes. This, according to City of Hope, suggests that it may also be effective in combination therapies.
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Source: CNN Brasil
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