Scientists Discover Malaria Protein Can Be Used To Kill Cancer Cells
Scientists from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver, Canada have discovered that malaria protein can be used to kill cancer cells and they have published their research[1] in the journal Cancer Cell.
The scientists were actually looking for a way to protect pregnant women against malaria and stumbled upon a connection that looks promising in the fight against cancer.
Women who are pregnant are especially vulnerable to malaria because it contain the VAR2CSA protein that readily attaches to sugar molecule in the placenta.
The scientists realized the “oncofetal chondroitin sulfate” sugar molecule found in the placenta is very similar to the chondroitin sulfate found in cancer cells and thought the malaria protein could be used to target and attach to cancer cells.
The scientists’ hunch was correct and the protein also attached to cancer cells, and it appears the protein only attaches to placenta cells and cancer cells.
They were then able to combine the VAR2CSA protein used is malaria vaccine and attach a toxin to it kills cancer cells. Mice were implanted with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, prostate cancer, and metastatic bone cancer.
The protein and toxin combination reduced non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma to a quarter of its original size, totally killed the prostate cancer, and it kept five out of six mice that had metastatic bone cancer alive compared to all the mice in the control group that died.
The scientists said the mice showed no adverse side effects from the treatment and their organs were unharmed by it. The next step is to design human clinical trials.
