Scientists have discovered a method that allows you to block the supply of “fuel” for cancer – News

Scientists from the University of Texas at Austin (USA) discovered that an aggressive and deadly form of leukemia has the ability to spread rapidly in the body. In an experimental study, they were able to restrain the growth of cancer without harming healthy cells.

This discovery gives clues to future drug developers how to improve the effectiveness of one type of chemotherapy. The corresponding study was published in the journal Cell Metabolism, writes Medical Xpress.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is an aggressive oncological disease of the human hematopoietic system. This form of cancer is known for its rapid spread. Most cases occur in people over 65 who do not respond well to aggressive treatments such as bone marrow transplants.

Scientists have discovered that patients with AML have elevated levels of a cellular transporter called SLC25A51. In healthy cells, this transporter moves cellular fuel into the cell’s mitochondria, providing it with energy. The researchers found that SLC25A51 levels are elevated in AML cells.

By reducing the level of transporters, scientists actually put a clamp on the “engine”: cancer cells died, the disease progressed much more slowly.

“It is a new potential therapeutic target for a disease that is difficult to treat” said Xiaol Kambronn from the Department of Molecular Biological Sciences.

Knockdown of SLC25A51 did not harm normal bone marrow cells, only cancer cells.

“It appears that we can return transporter levels to normal baseline levels or even slightly lower, and healthy cells are not adversely affected“, Cambronn added.

In addition, when the reduced levels of the transporters were combined with 5-azacytidine, a type of chemotherapy used in AML patients, it increased human survival and shrank tumors. It turns out that lower levels of transporters make cancer cells more susceptible to chemotherapy, the scientists say.

Although there is currently no drug that lowers the SLC25A51 transporter, the researchers say the next step is to develop a compound that can do this safely in humans.