Another target of anti-cancer therapy
A protein important for the viability of cancer cells has been discovered
(Scientists find Achilles’ heel of cancer cells). The results of the work carried out by scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DFKZ) under the leadership of Olaf Witt are published in the International Journal of Cancer Deubzer et al., HDAC11 is a novel drug target in carcinomas).
Witt and his colleagues, in search of a new anti-cancer drug, found out that the cells of various malignant tumors produce an enzyme called HDAC11 in an unusually large number. It belongs to the histone deacetylases (HDAC) family of proteins that catalyze the removal of the acetyl group of histones (proteins necessary for the assembly and packaging of DNA strands into chromosomes). HDAC family enzymes are also involved in the regulation of gene expression.
To test how HDAC11 affects the vital activity of malignant tumor cells, the researchers "turned off" the production of this enzyme in breast, colon, prostate and ovarian cancer cells, as well as in a control line of healthy cells (all experiments were conducted in vitro). In the course of their work, they found that the viability of malignant tumor cells in which HDAC11 was not produced was reduced. In addition, these cells were much more likely to undergo apoptosis (programmed cell death). The absence of histone 11 deacetylase in ordinary cells, on the contrary, did not lead to any noticeable deviations.
Selective inhibition of one of the HDAC family proteins.
Image from the website genengnews.com .From the results of the experiment, the authors concluded that a drug selectively suppressing the activity of HDAC11 would be an effective antitumor drug without affecting normally functioning cells.
Now Witt and his colleagues, collaborating with Bayer, plan to detect a substance that selectively acts on HDAC11.
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