Bio_Spectrum_July_2017

(^24) SCIENCE NEWS l BioSpectrum | July 2017 | http://www.biospectrumindia.com
A team of scientists, one of them of Indian origin, at the UK’s Institute
for Cancer Research has developed a new targeted treatment for
ovarian cancer that shrinks tumours without causing any side effects.
Researchers believe the drug, which mimics the action of folic
acid to enter cells, could hold huge promise for women with advanced
ovarian cancer who have stopped responding to standard treatment.
The drug kills cells by blocking a molecule called thymidylate
synthase and causing irreparable DNA damage.
The researchers found that since the drug targets cancer cells
specifically, it did not have side-effects often seen with traditional
chemotherapy such as infections, diarrhoea, nerve damage and hair
loss.
The team tested the drug, ONX-0801, in 15 women with ovarian
cancer as part of a wider phase I clinical trial. Phase 1 trials are run in
patients who have advanced cancer as a way of testing a drug’s safety,
and it is highly unusual to see major clinical responses at this stage.
They found that the drug significantly shrunk tumours in seven of
the 15 ovarian cancer patients. This observation certainly seems very
exciting and promising.
Scientists at the Hyderabad-based
CSIR-Centre for Cellular and
Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB)
have developed a novel way to
treat fungal keratitis. Keratitis is
the inflammation of the eye, which
starts with redness and itching and
might eventually lead to blindness.
Keratitis can be caused by
both bacteria and fungi. Fungi
attach themselves to the cornea
and release enzymes that break
down the corneal proteins for their
nutritional requirements.
Treating keratitis infection is
currently a challenge because it is
difficult to maintain a therapeutic
dose at the corneal surface for
long periods as blinking and
tear formation washes off the
drug. To address this challenge,
scientists at CCMB have developed
protein-based nanoparticles that
encapsulate the drug.
The enzymes secreted by fungi
breaks down the gelatine protein of
nanoparticles that encapsulates the
drug, thus releasing the drug.
Scientists are planning to
carry out one more animal trial on
monkeys or rabbits before starting
trials on humans.
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is
one of the late complications
of diabetes and usually it
affects people who have had
diabetes for considerably
longer duration. Research
from the Madras Diabetes
Research Foundation
(MDRF), India has now
demonstrated that young
onset type 2 diabetes patients
possess an increased risk
of developing diabetic
retinopathy at an earlier stage
and at a greater frequency
accompanied by the elevated
levels of certain biomarkers
such as monocyte chemotactic
protein 1 (MCP-1) and
cathepsin-D.
Diabetes can lead to
a wide variety of health
complications, including
heart disease, nerve damage,
stroke, kidney disease, and
vision loss. Diabetes is a
risk factor for developing
glaucoma, as well as for
developing cataracts, but the
most common and debilitating
vision problem experienced
by diabetics is diabetic
retinopathy.
It appears that higher
levels of MCP-1 and
cathepsin-D in young onset
type 2 diabetes patients
represent an accelerated aging
phenotype, a driving force for
faster development of diabetic
retinopathy. It is expected
that targeting the pathways
related to these biomarkers
could be a future strategy for
preventing the heightened
risk of developing diabetic
retinopathy in young-onset
diabetic patients.
New biomarkers for
predicting diabetic
retinopathy
A promising
ovarian
cancer
treatment
Nanoparticles for
treating eye infections