PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Piggy-backing proteins ride white blood cells to wipe out metastasizing cancer

2014-01-07
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Melissa Osgood
mmo59@cornell.edu
607-255-2059
Cornell University
Piggy-backing proteins ride white blood cells to wipe out metastasizing cancer ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell biomedical engineers have discovered a new way to destroy metastasizing cancer cells traveling through the bloodstream – lethal invaders that are linked to almost all cancer deaths – by hitching cancer-killing proteins along for a ride on life-saving white blood cells.

"These circulating cancer cells are doomed," said Michael King, Cornell professor of biomedical engineering and the study's senior author. "About 90 percent of cancer deaths are related to metastases, but now we've found a way to dispatch an army of killer white blood cells that cause apoptosis – the cancer cell's own death – obliterating them from the bloodstream. When surrounded by these guys, it becomes nearly impossible for the cancer cell to escape."

Metastasis is the spread of a cancer cells to other parts of the body. Surgery and radiation are effective at treating primary tumors, but difficulty in detecting metastatic cancer cells has made treatment of the spreading cancers problematic, say the scientists.

King and his colleagues injected human blood samples, and later mice, with two proteins: E-selectin (an adhesive) and TRAIL (Tumor Necrosis Factor Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand). The TRAIL protein joined with the E-selectin protein was able to stick to leukocytes – white blood cells – abundant in the bloodstream. When a cancer cell comes into contact with TRAIL, which is nearly unavoidable in the frenzied flow of blood, the cancer cell essentially kills itself.

"The mechanism is surprising and unexpected in that this repurposing of white blood cells in flowing blood is more effective than directly targeting the cancer cells with liposomes or soluble protein," say the authors.

In the laboratory, King and his colleagues tested this concept's efficacy.

When treating cancer cells with the proteins in saline, they found a 60 percent success rate in killing the cancer cells. In normal laboratory conditions, the saline lacks white blood cells to serve as a carrier for the adhesive and killer proteins. Once the proteins were added to flowing blood that mimicked human-body conditions, however, the success rate in killing the cancer cells jumped to nearly 100 percent.

The study, "TRAIL-Coated Leukocytes that Kill Cancer Cells in the Circulation," was published online today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

###

The National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health funded the research through Cornell's Center for the Microenvironment and Metastasis.

Cornell University has television, ISDN and dedicated Skype/Google+ Hangout studios available for media interviews.

Media note: Graphics, photos and videos are available at https://cornell.box.com/Protein

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Brief fever common in kids given influenza, pneumococcal vaccines together

2014-01-07
Brief fever common in kids given influenza, pneumococcal vaccines together Findings suggest utility of text messaging to monitor safety NEW YORK, NY (Jan. 6, 2014) – Giving young children the influenza and pneumococcal vaccines together appears ...

Breastfeeding associated with lower risk of rheumatoid arthritis, according to new study

2014-01-07
Breastfeeding associated with lower risk of rheumatoid arthritis, according to new study In a new study of over 7,000 older Chinese women published online today in the journal Rheumatology, breastfeeding – especially for a longer duration – is shown to be associated ...

No 'brakes' -- Study finds mechanism for increased activity of oncogene in certain cancers

2014-01-07
No 'brakes' -- Study finds mechanism for increased activity of oncogene in certain cancers PITTSBURGH, Jan. 6, 2014 – The increased activation of a key oncogene in head and neck cancers could be the result of mutation and dysfunction of regulatory ...

'Ardi' skull reveals links to human lineage

2014-01-07
'Ardi' skull reveals links to human lineage The new work expands the catalogue of anatomical similarities linking humans, Australopithecus, and Ardipithecus on the tree of life TEMPE, Ariz.—One of the most hotly debated issues in current human origins research focuses on ...

Suburban sprawl cancels carbon footprint savings of dense urban cores

2014-01-07
Suburban sprawl cancels carbon footprint savings of dense urban cores Interactive maps of US metro areas shows striking differences between cities and suburbs According to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, population-dense ...

UW-Madison researchers link protein with breast cancer's spread to the brain

2014-01-07
UW-Madison researchers link protein with breast cancer's spread to the brain MADISON—A cancer-research team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has identified a protein that may be a major culprit when breast cancer metastasizes to the brain. Brain ...

When danger is in the eye of the beholder

2014-01-07
When danger is in the eye of the beholder UCLA anthropologists study how, why we read into potential peril They went boating alone without life vests and gave no thought to shimmying up very tall coconut trees. And although they were only ...

Novel 'attract-and-kill' approach could help tackle Argentine ants

2014-01-07
Novel 'attract-and-kill' approach could help tackle Argentine ants UC Riverside entomologists devise a technique that involves mixing a synthetic pheromone in insecticide sprays RIVERSIDE, Calif. — After being inadvertently introduced in the United States ...

RAMBO a small but powerful magnet

2014-01-07
RAMBO a small but powerful magnet Rice University system allows high-magnetic-field experiments on a tabletop HOUSTON – (Jan. 6, 2014) – Rice University scientists have pioneered a tabletop magnetic pulse generator that does the work of a room-sized machine – and more. The ...

Discovery spotlights key role of mystery RNA modification in cells

2014-01-07
Discovery spotlights key role of mystery RNA modification in cells Researchers had known for several decades that a certain chemical modification exists on messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), which is essential to the flow of genetic information. But only recently ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Not all calories are equal: Ultra-processed foods harm men’s health

Researchers use seaweed to manufacture raw materials for civil construction

Illinois analysis aims to ease GI symptoms for cancer patients

JAMA Network names new editor in chief of JAMA Cardiology 

DOD research aims to offer new solutions for ocular chemical injuries in military personnel

Novel therapy for pet cats with head and neck cancers could help humans, too

Researchers develop novel treatment for central nervous system injury

Debt, bankruptcy, and credit scores after cancer diagnosis

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and risk of uveitis

Study proposes new, more personalized methadone restart approach for opioid use disorder

Majority of oncology staff at Moroccan Cancer Institute affected by burnout

People who skip breakfast and eat late dinners may have a higher risk of osteoporosis

Pertussis resurgence in Tuscany outlines importance of timely vaccination in Italy

Innovative food processing technologies: a path to nutritional efficiency in staple crops

We must develop thinkers, not crammers and fact experts

Political polar opposites may be more alike than they think

GI tumor microbes may predict prognosis and inform treatment

Study linking depression to specific altered brain cells opens door to new treatments

How plants rot: New method decodes hidden decomposers of wood and leaves

COPD care pathway leads to shorter hospital stays, more referrals to pulmonary rehab

First global guidelines for pregnancy and inflammatory bowel disease developed

In search of the perfect raspberry

Bio-inspired, self-cleaning sweat sensors for comfortable wearable health monitoring

Chung-Ang University researchers reveal strange dynamics of nanoparticle growth and shrink

No strong evidence for alternative autism treatments, study finds

New self-assembling material could be the key to recyclable EV batteries

An ancient signpost: Minute fossils tell big story about arthropod evolution

Predictable structures in music synchronises blood pressure the most, and could be used to create personalized music-based cardiovascular therapies  

New systematic review and meta-analysis shows an association between shingles vaccination and lower risk of heart attack and stroke 

Food for thought: Using food delivery services to provide rapid cardiac arrest response and potentially save lives

[Press-News.org] Piggy-backing proteins ride white blood cells to wipe out metastasizing cancer