Scientists discover a link between cancerous cells and aging.
The Journal of Biological Chemistry published an online article on May 10th by scientists at Hollings cancer center at Medical University of South Carolina that found human lung cancer cells can resist death by controlling certain parts of the aging processes. This discovery may help us understand aging, and could eventually lead to new cancer treatments.
Scientists are still trying to find out why cancer is more prevalent as we age. Besim Ogretmen Ph.D. is the SmartState Chair in Lipidomics and Drug Discovery at Hollings Cancer Center. He leads research on the connection between aging and a cancerous condition. Ogretmen and his team discovered that cancer cells resist death in a way similar to normal cells. They protect the tips of chromosomes that contain our DNA from damage caused by age.
Ogretmen studies the differences between cancer cells and normal cells in order to better understand how cancer spreads throughout the body. His research is funded by an $8.9-million program project grant for the study of how changes in lipid metabolism can affect cancer treatment. The grant will help fund a clinical study of an anticancer drug that inhibits cellular signaling, which helps cancer to survive. In the new research paper, the drug was shown to be effective against cancer.
Source:
https://phys.org/news/2018-06-scientists-link-cancer-aging-cells.html
