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Statesman article....
Statesman article....
Protein shows promise against HIV, cancer & malaria
Savita Verma/SNS
NEW DELHI, Dec. 9. - In a significant development, scientists have isolated a compound from a bacterium, converted it into a candidate drug, and claim it can act against three killer diseases ~ HIV, cancer and malaria.
The scientists led by Prof Ananda M Chakrabarty from the University of Illinois at Chicago, have applied to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for permission to start phase I clinical trials on humans to test the candidate drug against cancer. The team is also looking at partners in India to monitor the activity of the drug, which has been found to be effective against breast and cervical cancer, one of the most common cancers among Indian women, in animal trials. The compound, a protein called “azurinâ€, has been patented by the university. It would take about three years for the clinical trials to begin, Prof Chakrabarty told The Statesman.
The team found that if breast cancer cells are added to bacteria in the laboratory, a protein comes out of it and kills cancer cells by attacking multiple pathways of growth of cancer cells. Instead of testing the whole bacteria, Dr Chakrabarty’s team isolated the protein from the bacteria called “Pseudomonas aeruginosaâ€. The candidate drug was injected in mice and found to regress cancer by 60-85 per cent within four weeks. “The protein specifically seeks out cancer cells and kills them,†he said, and added the drug did not show any toxicity in mice.
Prof Chakrabarty claimed that the protein has shown activity against three strains of HIV ~ Indian, American and African. The action against HIV was tested in Pittsburgh on monocytes (kind of blood cells). “Monocytes were infected with HIV and then the protein was added to the HIV-infected blood cells. We found 90 per cent suppression of HIV,†he said. The protein also acted on the brain-malaria causing parasite, “plasmodium falciparumâ€, by forming a complex with the parasite surface thus preventing its entry into the red blood cells. The tests were carried out at Northwestern University, Chicago, on human blood cells. Prof Chakrabarty said there was a need to develop new drugs against malaria. Even if the candidate drug does not have high levels of activity, it might be used in combination with other drugs.
The team has published several papers in scientific journals such as Cell Cycle, Oncogene and Cellular Microbiology and has been working on the protein since 2000. The patent has been licensed to a company, CDG Therapeutics.
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Savita Verma/SNS
NEW DELHI, Dec. 9. - In a significant development, scientists have isolated a compound from a bacterium, converted it into a candidate drug, and claim it can act against three killer diseases ~ HIV, cancer and malaria.
The scientists led by Prof Ananda M Chakrabarty from the University of Illinois at Chicago, have applied to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for permission to start phase I clinical trials on humans to test the candidate drug against cancer. The team is also looking at partners in India to monitor the activity of the drug, which has been found to be effective against breast and cervical cancer, one of the most common cancers among Indian women, in animal trials. The compound, a protein called “azurinâ€, has been patented by the university. It would take about three years for the clinical trials to begin, Prof Chakrabarty told The Statesman.
The team found that if breast cancer cells are added to bacteria in the laboratory, a protein comes out of it and kills cancer cells by attacking multiple pathways of growth of cancer cells. Instead of testing the whole bacteria, Dr Chakrabarty’s team isolated the protein from the bacteria called “Pseudomonas aeruginosaâ€. The candidate drug was injected in mice and found to regress cancer by 60-85 per cent within four weeks. “The protein specifically seeks out cancer cells and kills them,†he said, and added the drug did not show any toxicity in mice.
Prof Chakrabarty claimed that the protein has shown activity against three strains of HIV ~ Indian, American and African. The action against HIV was tested in Pittsburgh on monocytes (kind of blood cells). “Monocytes were infected with HIV and then the protein was added to the HIV-infected blood cells. We found 90 per cent suppression of HIV,†he said. The protein also acted on the brain-malaria causing parasite, “plasmodium falciparumâ€, by forming a complex with the parasite surface thus preventing its entry into the red blood cells. The tests were carried out at Northwestern University, Chicago, on human blood cells. Prof Chakrabarty said there was a need to develop new drugs against malaria. Even if the candidate drug does not have high levels of activity, it might be used in combination with other drugs.
The team has published several papers in scientific journals such as Cell Cycle, Oncogene and Cellular Microbiology and has been working on the protein since 2000. The patent has been licensed to a company, CDG Therapeutics.
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