Scientists have discovered the ‘holy grail’ chemical, which destroys all solid cancer tumors while leaving healthy cells alone.
The City of Hope, one of the major cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States, made the breakthrough against the protein proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA).
AOH1996, a chemical produced by the researchers, targets and kills the mutant PCNA, which is crucial in DNA replication and repair in all growing tumors.
Previously, PCNA was thought to be too difficult to target for therapy, however preclinical research showed that AOH1996 appears to eradicate all solid tumors while having no effect on other bodily cells.
The team is continuing to research the processes that allow this cancer-fighting medication to operate in animal models, while a Phase 1 clinical trial in people is also underway.
However, it is unknown if the medicine will be taken in pill form once completely developed and approved for usage.
The novel medication is the result of 20 years of research and development, and it is named after Anna Olivia Healey (AOH), a young girl born in 1996 who did not survive cancer.
‘Most targeted medicines target a particular pathway, allowing cancer to adapt and eventually develop resistant,’ said research leader Dr Linda Malkas, a professor in City of Hope’s department of molecular diagnostics and experimental therapeutics.
‘PCNA is similar to a huge airline terminal hub with several plane gates.
‘Data suggests that PCNA is particularly changed in cancer cells, and this fact allowed us to build a medication that targeted only the kind of PCNA seen in cancer cells.
‘Our cancer-killing drug is like a snowstorm that shuts down a major airport hub, halting all flights in and out of planes carrying cancer cells.’
According to the study, AOH1996 has proven beneficial in preclinical studies treating cells derived from breast, prostate, brain, ovarian, cervical, skin, and lung malignancies.
‘The results have been positive,’ Dr Malkas stated. In cell and animal studies, ‘AOH1996 can reduce tumor growth as a monotherapy or combo treatment without causing harm.
‘At City of Hope, the investigational chemotherapeutic is currently in a Phase 1 clinical trial in people.’
AOH1996 was examined in over 70 cancer cell lines and several normal control cells by the researchers. They discovered that the chemical specifically kills cancer cells by interfering with the normal cell reproduction cycle.
The study discovered that AOH1996 inhibited cells with damaged DNA from reproducing and from generating a copy of flawed DNA, resulting in cancer cell death – known as apoptosis – but did not interfere with healthy stem cells.
‘No one has ever targeted PCNA as a therapy because it was viewed as ‘undruggable,’ said study co-author and associate research professor Dr Long Gu, but City of Hope was able to design an exploratory treatment for a tough protein target.
‘We observed that PCNA could be one of the causes of increased nucleic acid replication mistakes in cancer cells.
‘Now that we have identified the issue location and are able to inhibit it, we will go deeper into the process in order to produce more personalized, targeted cancer therapies.’
Experiments revealed that the experimental pill rendered cancer cells more vulnerable to chemical substances that induce DNA or chromosome damage, implying that AOH1996 could be effective in combination therapies and novel chemotherapeutics.
‘City of Hope has world experts in cancer research,’ said co-author Professor Daniel Von Hoff. They also have the capacity to move translational drug development from the lab to the clinic for patients who require it.’
In October, the Phase 1 clinical trial began.
The researchers will then try to better understand the mechanism of action in order to improve the ongoing human clinical trial.
READ MORE https://studyfinds.org/holy-grail-anti-cancer-molecule/
