Novel drug preventing protein recycling shows potential for treating leukemia
April 19, 2007Researchers from the Children's Cancer Hospital at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center have found that a novel targeted therapy effectively treats acute leukemia in animal models by preventing cancer cells from being purged of damaged proteins.
In the March online issue of the journal Blood, investigators reported that the new proteasome inhibitor, NPI-0052, not only successfully kills leukemia cells, but also shows greater efficacy than its predecessor bortezomib when combined with other agents in animal models.
According to researchers, proteasomes clean out mutated or damaged proteins within cells, which promotes cell growth and allows cancer cells to rapidly reproduce. Proteasome inhibitors block this process, resulting in apoptosis, or cell death, of the malignant cells.
Bortezomib is the first and only FDA-approved proteasome inhibitor. Although it is effective for treating multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma, it was proven to be ineffective as a single agent against leukemia in clinical trials. NPI-0052 varies from bortezomib in ways that researchers at M. D. Anderson hope will make NPI-0052 effective in a human clinical trial.
"NPI-0052 targets the proteasome through different intermediaries and is more potent than bortezomib in leukemia cells," says senior author Joya Chandra, Ph.D., assistant professor of pediatrics from the Children's Cancer Hospital at M. D. Anderson. "Therefore we can use less of the drug to inhibit the proteasome."
NPI-0052 inhibits the main enzymatic activity of the proteasome three times more effectively than bortezomib as a single agent. When combined with a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, another anti-cancer agent, NPI-0052 achieves four-fold greater synergistic effects than bortezomib.
M. D. Anderson currently has a Phase I clinical trial led by principal investigator Razelle Kurzrock, M.D., to test NPI-0052 on adult patients with solid tumor malignancies and recurrent lymphoma. Chandra's group is the first group to be studying the effects of the drug in acute leukemia models.
"This drug, so far, has shown efficacy in animal models of leukemia, myeloma and colon cancer, and it has worked to kill multiple myeloma cells resistant to bortezomib," says Chandra. "As a result of our research, we're looking at the feasibility of combining NPI-0052 with HDAC inhibitors in the future to treat leukemia."
Source: University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
-
Combination drug therapy urged to battle lung cancer
Feb 02, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
New drug extends survival in patients with drug-resistant prostate cancer
Feb 01, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
Metabolic errors can spell doom for DNA
Jan 31, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Researchers discover the processes leading to acute myeloid leukemia
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
Genetic breakthrough for brain cancer in children
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (31) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (3) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
Classical and Quantum Mechanics via Lie algebras
Apr 15, 2011
- More from Physics Forums - Independent Research
More news stories
Study finds that anti-diabetic medication can prevent the long-term effects of maternal obesity
In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that show that short therapy with the anti-diabetic medication ...
18 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
1
FDA-approved drug rapidly clears amyloid from the brain, reverses Alzheimer's symptoms in mice
Neuroscientists at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have made a dramatic breakthrough in their efforts to find a cure for Alzheimer's disease. The researchers' findings, published in the journal Science, show t ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Feb 09, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (51) |
20
|
Steroid injections prove effective in treatment of lumbar disc herniations
The use of epidural steroid injections may be a more efficient treatment option for lumbar disc herniations, according to research presented today at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's Specialty Day in ...
18 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
Amateur football players not always keen on returning to play after ACL injuries
Despite the known success rates of reconstructive Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) surgery, the number of high school and collegiate football players returning to play may not be as high as anticipated, say researchers presenting ...
18 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
PRP treatment aids healing of elbow injuries say researchers
As elbow injuries continue to rise, especially in pitchers, procedures to help treat and get players back in the game quickly have been difficult to come by. However, a newer treatment called platelet rich plasma (PRP) may ...
18 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
Walney offshore wind farm is world's biggest (for now)
(PhysOrg.com) -- The Walney wind farm on the Irish Sea--characterized by high tides, waves and windy weather--officially opened this week. The farm is treated in the press as a very big deal as the Walney ...
GPS court ruling leaves US phone tracking unclear
A US Supreme Court decision requiring a warrant to place a GPS device on the car of a criminal suspect leaves unresolved the bigger issue of police tracking using mobile phones, legal experts say.
Europeans protest controversial Internet pact
Tens of thousands of people marched in protests in more than a dozen European cities Saturday against a controversial anti-online piracy pact that critics say could curtail Internet freedom.
Europe stakes billion-dollar bet on new rocket
A pencil-slim rocket is scheduled to lift into space from South America on Monday, carrying a billion-dollar bet that Europe can grab a juicy slice of the market to place satellites in low orbit.
Netflix settlement trims 14 pct off 4Q earnings
(AP) -- Netflix pressed the rewind button on its fourth-quarter earnings after settling allegations that the video subscription service violated a consumer-privacy law.
Navy to begin tests on electromagnetic railgun prototype launcher
The Office of Naval Research (ONR)'s Electromagnetic (EM) Railgun program will take an important step forward in the coming weeks when the first industry railgun prototype launcher is tested at a facility ...
