New technology induces tumors to produce therapeutic substances by themselves
It is expected to provide a solution for the treatment of new coronary pneumonia
Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, May 18 (Reporter Liu Xia) According to the official website of the University of Zurich, Switzerland on the 17th, researchers from the University of Zurich have developed a new technology that enables the human body to produce therapeutic drugs on demand at the exact location where treatment is needed.
This innovation can reduce the side effects of cancer treatment, and is also expected to better deliver drugs to the lungs, providing a solution for the treatment of new coronary pneumonia.
In the latest research, scientists have modified a common respiratory virus called adenovirus so that it can, like a Trojan horse, deliver cancer-treating genes directly to tumor cells.
Unlike chemotherapy or radiotherapy, this method does no harm to healthy cells.
Moreover, once inside the tumor cells, these delivered genes "incarnate" as templates for therapeutic antibodies, cytokines and other signal substances, guiding cancer cells to produce the above-mentioned therapeutic substances by themselves, eliminating the tumor from the inside out.
As the latest research leader Xie Na Smith pointed out: "We use the tumor itself to produce anti-cancer drugs to induce it to eliminate itself."
The researchers call this technology "shielding and relocating adenovirus" (SHREAD), and it is based on the key technology designed by the team of the other person in charge of the study and the professor of the school’s Department of Biochemistry, Andres Pluckton. Above, these key technologies include directing adenovirus to specific parts of the body so that it will not be detected by the immune system.
The experimental results showed that using the SHREAD system, scientists caused the tumor to produce a clinically approved breast cancer antibody-trastuzumab in the mouse mammary gland.
And they found that after a few days, SHREAD produced more antibodies in the tumor than directly injected drugs.
In addition, the concentration of SHREAD in the blood and other tissues where side effects may occur is significantly lower.
In addition, they also used a sophisticated high-resolution three-dimensional imaging method to render body tissues completely transparent to show how the therapeutic antibodies produced in the body form pores in tumor blood vessels and destroy tumor cells.
According to the researchers, SHREAD is not only suitable for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer, but also for the delivery of various so-called biological agents-powerful protein-based drugs.
They are applying this technology to a project to treat new coronary pneumonia.
They explained that adenoviral vectors have been used in several new coronavirus vaccines. “The use of inhaled aerosols to carry out SHREAD therapy for patients can target the production of new viral antibody therapy in the lung cells that are most needed, which will reduce Cost, increase the accessibility of new coronary pneumonia treatment".
Editor-in-chief
I believe that friends who are concerned about the new crown vaccine are no strangers to the term adenovirus.
The adenovirus vector vaccine inserts the new coronavirus spike protein gene. After the reassembled virus enters the human body, it will replicate this protein, allowing the immune system to initiate an immune response and remember the appearance of the new coronavirus.
The new technology developed by the researchers this time allows the adenovirus to escape detection by the immune system, sneak into a specific part of the body, recruit soldiers in that part, produce antibodies, and induce cancer cells to "rebel" and treat themselves.
Both mouse experiments and three-dimensional imaging show that this method has been successful.
It can treat cancer and is also expected to better treat new coronary pneumonia.