Professors discover possible
cure for cancer; lack funding
Potential cure found in
green tea leaves and
existing cancer cells
By Ian Clift
Summer Reporter
A potential cure for cancer may lie in the leaves
used in green tea and a protein found on all cancer cells.
In 1998 a husband and wife team at Purdue found
that a protein was on the surface of all cancer cells. It can be used
in potential diagnostic and therapeutic targeting of cancers.
"We want to do some clinical trials," said Dorothy
Morré, professor of foods and nutrition, The trails may be delayed
because of a lack of funding. "It's going to take a large amount of
money so people are going to have to help us with that."
Dorothy's husband, James Morré, professor
of medical chemistry, said that they receive limited funding from the
National Cancer Institute, but declined to comment further on the issue.
The protein, a form of the NOX protein found commonly
in all cells, is only found in fetal tissue and cancer cells. The link
to fetal tissues indicates the protein's use in cell growth, said the
Morré's.
"It's called an onco-protein, a fetal protein that
is re-expressed in cancer," said James.
Cancer cells are cancerous because of unregulated
cell growth. "The tendency in cancers is to go back to this early undifferentiated
state," he said, "Some become so differentiated that (they) look like
embryonic tissue."
Dorothy said, "We know that cancer cells just grow
and grow and grow. Cancer cells are not regulated. If you could just
target something to it; it can either slow down it's growth or stop
it's growth."
One example of a compound that can target this
protein is a substance called EGCg, a polyphenol found in the leaves
of green tea.
"Right now," she said, "there is some epidemiological
data that shows that if you consume 10 cups of green tea, you can slow
down cancer growth."
Cell cultures conducted in Dorothy's lab indicate
that the substance can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Depending
on dosage and time, the use of this target substance can slow or stop
the growth of cancer cells leading to apoptosis, or programmed cell
death.
James said that the protein's position in cancer
cells makes it ideal for the fight to cure cancer.
"Everybody is looking for the magic bullet and
if there ever was a magic bullet this could be it," he said.
The protein was discovered in 1984, but it wasn't
until 1998 that it was found to be in cancer cells.
With proper funding the next step is in expansive
trials of the substance and other potential markers in living organisms.
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