UNC study: Tinkering with the circadian clock can suppress can... ( CHAPEL HILL Researchers at the Univ...)

UNC study: Tinkering with the circadian clock can suppress cancer growth

Date:2/3/2009

CHAPEL HILL Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have shown that disruption of the circadian clock the internal time-keeping mechanism that keeps the body running on a 24-hour cycle can slow the progression of cancer.

The study disputes some of the most recent research in the field indicating that alteration of this daily cycle predisposes humans and mice to cancer. The UNC researchers found that genetically altering one of four essential "clock" genes actually suppressed cancer growth in a mouse model commonly used to investigate cancer. The findings could enable clinicians to reset the internal clock of each cancer cell to render it more vulnerable to attack with chemotherapeutic drugs.

"Adjusting the clock in this way could certainly be a new target for cancer treatment," said senior study author Aziz Sancar, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and Sarah Graham Kenan Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the UNC School of Medicine. Sancar is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the Turkish Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

"Our study indicates that interfering with the function of these clock genes in cancer tissue may be an effective way to kill cancer cells and could be a way to improve upon traditional chemotherapy," Sancar said. His findings appear February 2, 2009 in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Previous research has shown that the disruption of the body's natural circadian rhythms affects people's health. One of the largest epidemiological studies ever performed, the Nurses' Health Study, found that nurses who worked the night shift had a higher incidence of breast cancer than those who worked days. Another study of flight attendants whose internal biological clocks had been wrecked by travel on transatlantic flights produced similar find
'/>"/>

Contact: Leslie Lang
llang@unch.unc.edu
919-966-9366
University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Source:Eurekalert

0

GOOD

Page: 1 2 3
Related biology news :

1. Study: diabetic neuropathy costs billions per year in lost work time
2. Study: Fountain of youth for your heart?
3. First-ever study: lack of critical lubricant causes wear in joints
4. Mayo Clinic study: Ossurs collars superior in immobilization and reduction of pressure
5. Study: weight-loss tips differ in African-American, mainstream magazines
6. Smithsonian study: Sediment prediction tools off the mark
7. Mouse study: When it comes to living longer, its better to go hungry than go running
8. Geisinger study: Inflammatory disease causes blindness
9. Stanford study: Bioenergy potential of reviving abandoned agricultural land
10. U-M study: Herceptin targets breast cancer stem cells
11. Study: Future snowmelt in West twice as early as expected; threatens ecosystems and water reserves

Post Your Comments:

UNC study: Tinkering with the circadian clock can suppress can...( CHAPEL HILL Researchers at the Univ...)