Nov 28, 2012 - Could a Cold Virus Kill Mesothelioma?
New research from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies shows that cold-like adenoviruses could very well be engineered to help fight deadly cancers such as mesothelioma. The key to this potential anti-cancer ally is the way in which these cold viruses interact with microscopic components within the cellular structure.
Adenoviruses have evolved over the years to develop proteins which allow them to override a cell’s natural molecular “machinery” and in essence overwrite the cells programming. The virus basically puts the brakes on natural cell operations and effectively disrupts replication, creating the potential to effectivley fight cancer.
Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. All cancers, mesothelioma included, are cellular disorders in which the natural replication of cells is disrupted. Theses afflicted cells grow abnormally, display deformations, and often time refuse to stop growing. What’s more, these cancerous cells can then communicate with healthy cells and sometimes affect similar changes in previously unaffected tissues.
The Salk researchers discovered that the viruses themselves create long chains (polymers) which form a “web” inside the diseased cells. With a little forward thinking, the researchers postulated that it would be possible to engineer such a web that affected only cancerous cells. By doing so, the engineered virus would effectively stop abnormal cell growth and contribute to slowing of cancerous metastasis and could even aid in killing the damaged cells themselves.
Specifically, the team examined the role of a protein called p53. This protein normally causes damaged cells to self-destruct thereby limiting the ability of cancers to grow and spread. When p53 is fully functioning, cancers are nipped in the bud. However, in almost every cancer known to affect humans the p53 protein is inactive. This means that the natural “quality control” mechanism of cellular reconstruction is broken. Damaged cells can replicate and cause cancerous tumors without anything but the body’s immune system to hold them back.
Essentially the revelation that’s so exciting about the Salk research is that though cold viruses create a protein which functions differently than a normal p53 protein they produce similar results.
One key element to engineering a mesothelioma treatment is to design it so that only malignant and not healthy cells are targeted. Without giving the treatment a specific element on which to focus researchers would be unleashing a foreign body that would attack damaged and healthy cells alike. However, by creating an engineered virus that attacks only cells in which the p53 protein is not present or active, scientists can effectively limit the scope of attack so that the new adenovirus works against cancerous cells and only cancerous cells.
There are a number of huge hurtles to overcome, such as limiting the ability of these engineered viruses to turn the p53 protein off by themselves, but the theory is sound and the groundwork has already been laid.
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