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

Hydrogen peroxide-producing drug boosts cancer-killing effect of radiotherapy

Drug simultaneously protects healthy tissue from harmful radiation side-effects

2021-05-13
(Press-News.org) A small drug molecule that appears to protect normal tissue from the damaging effects of radiation, may simultaneously be able to boost the cancer-killing effect of radiation therapy, according to a new study led by scientists at University of Iowa, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, and Galera Therapeutics, Inc.

The study, published online May 12 in Science Translational Medicine, suggests that the drug's dual effect is based on a fundamental difference between the ability of cancer cells and healthy cells to withstand the damaging effects of a highly reactive molecule called hydrogen peroxide, which is produced during the dismutation of superoxide.

The drug, known as Avasopasem manganese, is made by Galera Therapeutics. It acts like a natural enzyme called superoxide dismutase and converts superoxide into hydrogen peroxide. Based on its ability to "mop up" damaging superoxide molecules, which are produced by radiation treatment, the drug is currently in clinical trials to test its ability to protect mucosal tissue from the side-effect of radiotherapy.

Since radiation generates large amounts of superoxide, combining the drug with radiation therapy can generate high levels of hydrogen peroxide. This does not harm normal tissue because healthy cells have metabolic systems that remove hydrogen peroxide. In contrast, cancer cells, which are biologically abnormal, can be overwhelmed by high levels of hydrogen peroxide.

"Cancer cells and healthy cells respond very differently to the increased amount of hydrogen peroxide," says Douglas Spitz, PhD, UI professor of radiation oncology and co-lead author of the study. "Our study shows that Avasopasem manganese interacts synergistically with high doses of radiation to create hydrogen peroxide that selectively kill cancer cells but is relatively harmless to normal tissue."

The study showed that in mouse models of lung and pancreatic cancer the drug synergized with radiotherapy to such an extent that the treatment was able to destroy the tumors. The study also showed the greatest synergy occurred with high daily dose radiotherapy, similar to the doses delivered with Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) currently used to treat some patients with cancer.

The researchers used several experiments to confirm that hydrogen peroxide was the key component in the synergistic effect. They showed the effect was blocked by adding in an enzyme that removes hydrogen peroxide and was enhanced when hydrogen peroxide breakdown was prevented.

"These findings are the result of collaborative efforts over several years by scientists primarily at Iowa, UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Galera, and are already being translated into several ongoing clinical studies," adds Spitz, who is a member of Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center at the UI. "One of those early phase trials recently reported that Avasopasem manganese in combination with high daily dose radiotherapy appears to nearly double overall survival in patients with pancreatic cancer compared to a placebo plus the same radiotherapy. Our study lays out the novel scientific basis for this potentially ground-breaking therapy for patients."

INFORMATION:

In addition to Spitz, the study team included co-lead author Michael Story, PhD, at UT Southwestern Medical Center, and colleagues at UI, UTSW, and Galera Therapeutics, Inc.

The research was funded in part by grants from the National Cancer Institute and a sponsored research agreement with Galera Therapeutics.



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Market report: Rising stock wealth does boost spending, employment

2021-05-13
The stock market is a staple of business news, but it is unclear how meaningful stock prices are to the larger economy. Do changes in stock prices directly affect shorter-term consumption, or are they just leading indicators for subsequent economic activity? The U.S. Federal Reserve, for its part, usually seems to act as if stock-based wealth does help drive spending and employment. But is this correct? A new study co-authored by an MIT economist brings data to the discussion and finds that increased stock market wealth has moderate but clear economic effects. After looking at the U.S. on a county-by-county basis, the study finds that after large market ...

Call for scientific community to increase diversity and inclusivity in medical research

Call for scientific community to increase diversity and inclusivity in medical research
2021-05-13
Sydney, Australia; New York City, USA (May 13, 2021)--In a collaborative report published today in Cell, scientists from Sydney and New York describe the critical worldwide need to improve the diversity of cells used in medical research. Currently, 95% of all human cell lines used in research are of European descent. The authors provide actionable steps that researchers and the biomedical community can take to promote more inclusivity in preclinical and basic science research. The commentary, "Ancestry Matters: Building inclusivity into preclinical study design," is co-authored by Sophie Zaaijer, PhD, who co-founded FIND Genomics (findgen.bio), a company that aims to improve reproducible ...

After near extinction, new genome data bodes well for condors' future

After near extinction, new genome data bodes well for condors future
2021-05-13
The once-abundant California condor briefly went extinct in the wild, with only 22 individuals living in captivity by 1982. Today, 300 condors live freely in the wild and another 200 are in captivity. But, despite the condor's struggles, a new study of the California condor genome reported in the journal Current Biology on May 13 has found a surprising amount of genetic diversity. The study is the first to begin quantifying diversity across the entire California condor genome, which offers researchers needed baseline information to inform future research and conservation of this iconic species, ...

Food dyes may cause disease when the immune system is dysregulated, researchers report

2021-05-13
New York, NY (May 13, 2021)-- Artificial food colorants can cause disease when the immune system has become dysregulated, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai researchers report. The study, published in Cell Metabolism in May, was the first to show this phenomenon. The study, conducted in mice, found that the mice developed colitis when they consumed food with the artificial food colorants FD&C Red 40 and Yellow 6 when a specific component of their immune system, known as cytokine IL-23, was dysregulated. While it remains unclear whether food colorants have similar effects in humans, researchers plan to investigate exactly how cytokine IL-23 promotes the development of colitis after food colorant exposure. Colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and cytokine ...

Prehistoric footprints suggest mammals did like to be beside the seaside

2021-05-13
Fossilised footprint tracks, recently discovered within the Hanna Formation in Wyoming, USA, which have been dated to 58 million years ago, may represent the earliest evidence of mammals gathering by the sea, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. The findings suggest that mammals may have first used marine habitats at least 9.4 million years earlier than previously thought, in the late Paleocene (66-56 million years ago), rather than the Eocene (56-33.9 million years ago). Drs. Anton Wroblewski and Bonnie Gulas-Wroblewski examined and photographed over 1,000 metres of fossilised footprints in an area dated back to 58 million years ago by plant and pollen fossils. The authors identified various different tracks. One set showed relatively large, five-toed ...

Archaeology: Climate change may be accelerating ancient rock art degradation

2021-05-13
Climate change may be accelerating the degradation of ancient rock paintings in Indonesia, including the oldest known hand stencil in the world which dates back to 39,900 years ago, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. Rock paintings made using red and mulberry-coloured pigments in the limestone caves and rock shelters of Maros-Pangkep, Indonesia have been dated to between 20,000 and 45,000 years old. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the paintings have been deteriorating at an accelerated rate in recent decades, but the reasons for this have been unclear. Jillian Huntley and colleagues investigated the potential causes of accelerated rock art degradation at 11 cave art sites in Maros-Pangkep, by analysing ...

Kelp, maggots and mycoprotein among future foods that must be mass-farmed to combat malnutrition

Kelp, maggots and mycoprotein among future foods that must be mass-farmed to combat malnutrition
2021-05-13
Radical changes to the food system are needed to safeguard our food supply and combat malnutrition in the face of climate change, environmental degradation and epidemics, says new report. Researchers at the University of Cambridge say our future global food supply cannot be safeguarded by traditional approaches to improving food production. They suggest state-of-the-art, controlled-environment systems, producing novel foods, should be integrated into the food system to reduce vulnerability to environmental changes, pests and diseases. Their report is published today in the journal Nature Food. The researchers say that global malnutrition could be eradicated by farming foods including spirulina, chlorella, larvae of insects such as the house fly, mycoprotein (protein derived ...

Cancer has ripple effect on distant tissues

2021-05-13
A new study with zebrafish shows that a deadly form of skin cancer -- melanoma -- alters the metabolism of healthy tissues elsewhere in the body. The research from Washington University in St. Louis suggests that these other tissues could potentially be targeted to help treat cancer. "Tumors rely on a constant supply of nutrients to grow. Instead of competing with tumors for nutrients, other tissues can reprogram their metabolism to be complementary. In some instances, this may even allow healthy tissues to feed the tumor," said Gary Patti, the Michael and Tana Powell Professor of Chemistry in Arts & Sciences at Washington University and a professor of chemistry and medicine at the School of Medicine. Patti is the corresponding author of the study published May 13 in Cell Metabolism. Cancer ...

Trace gases from ocean are source of particles accelerating Antarctic climate change

2021-05-13
Scientists exploring the drivers of Antarctic climate change have discovered a new and more efficient pathway for the creation of natural aerosols and clouds which contribute significantly to temperature increases. The Antarctic Peninsula has shown some of the largest global increases in near-surface air temperature over the last 50 years, but experts have struggled to predict temperatures because little was known about how natural aerosols and clouds affect the amount of sunlight absorbed by the Earth and energy radiated back into space. Studying data from seas around the Peninsula, experts have discovered that most new particles are formed in air masses arriving from the partially ice-covered Weddell Sea - a significant source ...

Fossilized tracks show earliest known evidence of mammals at the seashore

Fossilized tracks show earliest known evidence of mammals at the seashore
2021-05-13
Today, the rocks of the Hanna Formation in south-central Wyoming are hundreds of miles away from the nearest ocean. But around 58 million years ago, Wyoming was oceanfront property, with large hippo-like mammals traipsing through nearshore lagoons. In a study published in Scientific Reports, geologist Anton Wroblewski, an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics, and applied biodiversity scientist Bonnie Gulas-Wroblewski of the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, report the discovery of several sets of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

Antibiotic resistance among key bacterial species plateaus over time

‘Some insects are declining but what’s happening to the other 99%?’

Powerful new software platform could reshape biomedical research by making data analysis more accessible

Revealing capillaries and cells in living organs with ultrasound

American College of Physicians awards $260,000 in grants to address equity challenges in obesity care

Researchers from MARE ULisboa discover that the European catfish, an invasive species in Portugal, has a prolonged breeding season, enhancing its invasive potential

Rakesh K. Jain, PhD, FAACR, honored with the 2025 AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research

Solar cells made of moon dust could power future space exploration

Deporting immigrants may further shrink the health care workforce

Border region emergency medical services in migrant emergency care

Resident physician intentions regarding unionization

[Press-News.org] Hydrogen peroxide-producing drug boosts cancer-killing effect of radiotherapy
Drug simultaneously protects healthy tissue from harmful radiation side-effects