Scientists find cancer cell defense method

October 5, 2005

A Seoul, South Korea, research team says it's identified the defense mechanism used by cancer cells to fight therapeutic chemicals.

Team leader Kim Kun-hong of Yonsei University told the Korea Times the discovery that enzyme protein kinase CK2 makes cancer cells resistant to cancer-specific therapeutic chemicals, such as "Trail," is a step toward developing effective treatments for the disease.

Kim said the enzyme influences a protein called procaspase-2 to become phosphate, which keeps the cells from dying and makes them resistant to medication.

However, when Trail was injected in the cancer cells with certain chemical substances the cells became sensitive to Trail and entered the normal death-inducing process.

The researchers tested 31 types of cancer cells and found that by suppressing PKCK2, Trail successfully killed the cancer cells in all the 31 types, regardless of the developmental stage of the cancer cell, Kim told the Korea Times.

The research appears in the online edition of the journal of the European Molecular Biology Organization.

Copyright 2005 by United Press International

4.5 /5 (2 votes)  

Rank 4.5 /5 (2 votes)
Tags

Related Stories
Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

Employers feel no love for unscrupulous practice of 'service sweethearting'

A new study led by two Florida State University marketing professors finds that some frontline service employees who are rewarded for hikes in customer loyalty and satisfaction also may engage in "service ...

Other Sciences / Economics & Business

created 18 hours ago | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 7

Sonic Cradle lands spot in TED exhibition

A Simon Fraser University graduate student project that melds music, meditation and modern technology has landed a rare spot as an exhibit at TEDActive 2012 in Palm Springs, California this month.

Other Sciences / Other

created 20 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

A frank discussion of the power law and linking correlation to causation

(PhysOrg.com) -- Michael Stumpf a mathematics professor at Imperial College in London, and Mason Porter a lecturer at Oxford have teamed together to write and publish a perspective piece in Science regarding the in ...

Other Sciences / Mathematics

created Feb 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 8 | with audio podcast report

US workers are 'giving away the store,' costing firms billions

Nearly 70 percent of the nation's service employees give away free goods and services – from hamburgers to cable TV – costing companies billions of dollars a year, according to a groundbreaking study.

Other Sciences / Economics & Business

created Feb 09, 2012 | popularity 3.3 / 5 (3) | comments 10

New insights into how to correct false knowledge

The abundance of false information available on the Internet, in movies and on TV has created a big challenge for educators.

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Feb 07, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (7) | comments 9 | with audio podcast


Anonymous knocks CIA website offline (Update)

The website of the Central Intelligence Agency was inaccessible on Friday after the hacker group Anonymous claimed to have knocked it offline.

New power source discovered

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and RMIT University have made a breakthrough in energy storage and power generation.

The power of estrogen -- male snakes attract other males

A new study has shown that boosting the estrogen levels of male garter snakes causes them to secrete the same pheromones that females use to attract suitors, and turned the males into just about the sexiest ...

Fool's gold may prove an unlikely alternative to overexploited catalytic materials

Catalytic materials, which lower the energy barriers for chemical reactions, are used in everything from the commercial production of chemicals to catalytic converters in car engines. However, with current catalytic materials ...

Could Venus be shifting gear?

(PhysOrg.com) -- ESA’s Venus Express spacecraft has discovered that our cloud-covered neighbour spins a little slower than previously measured. Peering through the dense atmosphere in the infrared, the ...

Google users warned of threat to smartphone wallets

Users of Google smartphone wallets were being warned on Friday that there is a way to crack pass codes intended to thwart thieves from going on illicit shopping sprees.