Will suppressing alternative telomere lengthening help in the fight against cancer?
A new strategy for the treatment of aggressive forms of cancer has been found
Weekly Pharmacy www.apteka.ua according to the materials of MedicalNewsToday
According to scientists from the Cancer Center of the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Boston University School of Medicine (Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Boston University School of Medicine), USA, a new strategy for the treatment of several types of aggressive forms of tumors (Boston University Research, A New Tactic for Fighting Cancer) has been discovered.
The details of this study were published in the journal "Science", namely: how limiting the proliferation (proliferation – proliferation of body tissue by cell division) of cancer cells can lead to inhibition of tumor growth (Flynn et al., Alternative lengthening of telomeres renders cancer cells hypersensitive to ATR inhibitors). Identification of new genetic markers that predict which cancer cells will be vulnerable can help in the selection of suitable medications for the treatment of oncological pathology.
Cancer cells, unlike normal ones, avoid such natural processes as aging and death. In normal cells, these processes are controlled by telomeres. Telomeres are specialized structures of a DNA molecule located at its ends. They are necessary for the protection of chromosomes and ensure the safety of genetic information during cell division. Over time, telomeres break down and contract. When their length becomes critically short, it is a signal that the cell stops dividing, the genetic information is no longer protected and the cell soon ceases to exist. Cancer cells, on the contrary, try to prolong "immortality" by lengthening telomeres.
There are two main pathways that allow cancer cells to extend telomeres. The first is with the help of a special enzyme telomerase. The second way is called ALT (alternative lengthening of telomeres, alternative lengthening of telomeres). In this case, elongation occurs due to recombination (recombination is the exchange of genetic material by breaking and joining different molecules) with DNA sequences in other chromosomes. The scientists' research was focused specifically on the ALT-path. The obtained results can be used to search for new directions of treatment of patients with ALT-positive cancer (some pancreatic tumors, glioblastoma, osteosarcoma).
Scientists have studied some key proteins involved in the ALT pathway. They identified a protein called ATR (ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related protein), which plays an important role in the ALT pathway, namely regulates DNA recombination and repair. It was also determined that there are two ATR protein inhibitors – VE-821 and AZ20.
The study showed that inhibition of the ATR protein can be used as a new strategy for the treatment of pathology. Scientists plan to conduct further studies of VE-821 and AZ20. These inhibitors can be used to diagnose diseases, as well as as a target for new drugs.
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