Scientists are Expected to Develop New Targeted Drugs for Cancer Cure

According to a study published in an international magazine, ACS Chemical Biology, Researchers from the University of California said that cancer researchers and drug manufacturers often ignore a series of studies on tumor targeting specific cell proteins. Each cell in the body each other's function. The healthy balance between the two proteins is a natural process. For instance, damaged cells will produce more to promote the death of protein, resulting in natural elimination disease cells, which is known as apoptosis, so these two proteins were named as pro-apoptotiwill promote and degrade the death of protein that the two effects can interact so as to offset c proteins and anti-apoptotic proteins.

In cancer cells, genetic changes can lead to excessive production of anti-apoptotic proteins, ultimately leading to cancer cells’ continual growth and certain tolerance and that’s why anti-apoptotic protein can be used as a target of new anti-cancer drugs. As one of six kinds of anti-apoptotic protein, Bcl-2 was used as the target of the drug Venetoclax approved by FDA in 2016.

But what if cancer cells are resistant to the drug? Does this drug only take Bcl-2 as a target? Researchers and pharmaceutical companies have locked their eyes on a new generation of anti-apoptotic proteins, Mcl-1, based on previous studies using mouse protein. When cancer cells are exposed to chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and even immunotherapy, pro-apoptotic signals, such as toxin NOXA, are produced to induce cancer cell death. Both anti-apoptotic proteins Mcl-1 and Bfl-1 are able to counteract NOXA effect, so the two anti-apoptotic protein inhibitors may be able to complement the drug Venetoclax to restore cancer cell apoptosis. At present, many studies are only concerned about Mcl-1, because a large number of studies on the use of mouse proteins indicate that NOXA can interact closely with Mcl-1 and isolate it.

The researchers said that we should also need to focus on another different anti-apoptotic protein, Bfl-1. When the researchers found that NOXA, Mcl-1, and Bfl-1 in the mice body can be corrected, they realize that this may not be fully applicable to human body protein, perhaps because the NOXA and Bfl-1 in the human body are different from the mouse bodies. And the researchers also found that NOXA can effectively resist the human body's anti-apoptotic Protein, perhaps Bfl-1 has a higher affinity, which is its ability as a new drug target to help develop new drugs.

Researchers Pellecchia's laboratory previously found that NOXA can interact with Bfl-1 through a special chemical bond that does not exist in the other five anti-apoptotic proteins. Researchers Pellecchia said that understanding the mechanism of the interaction between NOXA and Bfl-1 can help us to design a substitute for NOXA-like molecules in the laboratory to tightly bind and inhibit the function of Bfl-1, In patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, the results of the study show that if the ability to block Bfl-1 with innovative inhibitors, then the cells can respond to therapy and die.

The results of POC on tolerant chronic lymphocytic leukemia in patients’ body indicated that if innovative inhibitors can be used to block Bf-1, the cells can respond to therapy and die.

For this reason, the researchers strongly believe that Bfl-1 can serve as a new drug target. At present, researchers have spent a lot of effort to find Mcl-1 antagonists, which can often be used in certain diseases, And the related disease will become worse due to the excessive production of Mcl-1, so the researchers said that we can turn to the study of Bfl-1. This research reveals the cancer resistance to chemotherapy, a new mechanism, but also confirmed that Bfl-1 can indeed serve as a new drug target. The future researchers are expected to use the target to develop more new drugs for the treatment of diseases.

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