Posted on 10/19/2017 8:29:50 AM PDT by SJackson
ISRAELI RESEARCHERS FIND ENZYME IN SPERM COULD HALT METASTATIC CANCER
BY JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH OCTOBER 18, 2017 17:56
Malignancies can be treated more successfully when confined to one organ, but when cancer cells spread into other parts of the body, the battle is much more difficult.
Resesearchers at Bar-Ilan University have identified an enzyme that supports the survival and dissemination of metastatic cancer cells, and developed a synthetic compound that targets it and kills the proliferating cells in mice.
Prof. Uri Nir, of the Faculty of Life Sciences at the university in Ramat Gan, and colleagues have just published their research in the journal Nature Communications.
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Malignancies can be treated more successfully when confined to one organ, but when cancer cells spread into other parts of the body, the battle is much more difficult. Although immunotherapy can be effective in treating the metastatic phase of the disease, it is still applicable to a small number of patients.
When leaving the primary tumor, cancer cells have greater tools to survive in very harsh conditions, such as a shortage of basic nutrients such as glucose. Metastatic cells can safeguard against this metabolic deficiency by reprogramming their energy generation system.
The team found the existence of the enzyme, called FerT, in the energy-generating mitochondria of that cancer cells that they couldn’t find in the mitochondria of normal cells. When they targeted the enzyme in the lab, the malignant cells failed to produce energy and died. The team then began searching for the enzyme elsewhere in the body and detected it in only one specific cell – none other than sperm cells.
Sperm cells are the only cells in the body that exert their functions outside the body. “Like metastatic cells, sperm cells are unique in that they can also generate energy under very harsh conditions. Once they have entered the female birth canal, where there is no blood supply for them, they produce and expend enormous amounts of energy under very extreme or abnormal conditions,” explained Nir. “We found that very aggressive metastatic cancer cells looked for and identified this sperm-specific protein, learned how to produce it and harnessed it to increase the power of their mitochondria and produce energy under very harsh conditions. We have shown that not only do sperm initiate life, but also carry with them the potential to terminate life.”
Using advanced chemical and robotic approaches, the team developed a synthetic compound that can be given orally or by injection to animals or humans. When applied to metastatic cells in culture or mice with metastatic tumor, the compound – called E260 – enters the metastatic cells and then into the mitochondria. It then binds the enzyme FerT, distorts its activity and – not only inhibits its activity, but as a result of the inhibition – causes a complete collapse of the entire mitochondria power station. They hope to pursue Phase 1 clinical trials within 18 months.
Metastatic cells are very capable, noted Nir. When they identify the damage to the mitochondria power station they start to activate a recycling process (called autophagy) aimed at decomposing and rebuilding mitochondria. This recycling process, however, requires a lot of energy and this ongoing energy consumption leads to a severe energy depletion, metabolic crisis and death of the metastatic cells. “We have treated mice with metastatic cancer, and this compound completely cured them with no adverse or toxic affect that we can see. We have also checked several normal cells and they are not affected,” said Nir.
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WILL ISRAELI TECHNOLOGY RENDER SPERM OBSOLETE?
BY JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH OCTOBER 18, 2017 05:57 With artificial sperm same-sex female couples could produce offspring that carry the genetic information of both female partners.
It won’t happen for some time, but males may no longer be needed to produce babies because of technology for creating artificial sperm from somatic cells of women or men.
The possibility of such new fertility options through artificial sperm cells was raised in the latest issue of the free online Rambam Maimonides Medical Journal, produced at Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center.
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In the production of artificial spermatozoa, genetically related sperm cells are developed from cells that are not essentially germ (gamete or sex) cells. The process is performed in the lab rather than in the testes.
With artificial sperm, a single woman could use these spermatozoa to fertilize her own eggs. Same-sex female couples could produce offspring that carry the genetic information of both female partners.
Dr. Valentin Shabataev of the hospital’s urology department and Dr. Raanan Tal of the neuro-urology unit explained in their journal article that azoospermia – the absence of any sperm cells in ejaculated semen – poses a real challenge to the male fertility specialist. While donor sperm, embryo donation and adoption can produce babies for infertile couples when the male lacks sperm, most would-be parents still want genetically related offspring.
In cases of complete absence of sperm cells in the ejaculate, surgical options exist for retrieval of cells from the testicles. While advances in urology, gynecology and fertility lab technologies allow surgical sperm retrieval from azoospermic men for the fertilization of ova in many cases, it does not work for all couples.
“At present, there are extensive research efforts in several directions.
While these new horizons are exciting, there are significant obstacles that must be overcome before such innovative solutions can be offered to azoospermic couples,” the doctors wrote.
“These research efforts will ripen in the foreseeable future, resulting in the ability to create artificial sperm cells and provide such couples with offthe- shelf solutions and fulfilling their desire to parent genetically related healthy babies,” they predicted.
Based on current knowledge and ongoing research, the authors continued, there are several possible future directions to overcoming azoospermia and providing azoospermic men with artificial sperm cells. Those cells would carry a man’s own genetic information and could eventually be used to enable him to have genetically related offspring.
One of the major obstacles in producing artificial gametes in general, and sperm cells in particular, is the haploid nature of sperm cells. That is, cells containing half the number of autosomal chromosomes and only one sex chromosome. Creating haploid cells mandates strict division of the DNA content of precursor diploid cells.
The first and possibly most extensively studied option is the use of stem cells – undifferentiated cells with a differentiation potential that may possibly be directed to form gametes in general, and specifically, artificial sperm cells. Another option is for the cells to undergo cell division to become haploid.
At present, the urologists, concluded, genetically related artificial sperm cannot yet be used in humans to achieve pregnancy and the live birth of genetically related offspring. But as significant steps have been made to manipulate cells, this could eventually become feasible.
That scene was both gross, and a gut busting riot.
“...the team developed a synthetic compound that can be given orally or by injection to animals or humans.”
However, turning to the actual subject matter, if this works out it (the cancer treatment aspect) will be fantastic. I’m not so excited about the artificial fertilization thing - we’re treading where we ought not to, IMHO.
“Does it prevent facial skin cancer?”
If an effective treatment for cancer comes out of this every package of it should be prominently labeled “A Product of Israeli Jewish Research”. Over time the population of Muslims and other inveterate anti-Semites on this planet might be significantly reduced.
Or oral and throat cancer?
Change the old saying “Dr. [Insert name] hot protein injection” to “anti-cancer injection”...
South Korean medical researchers had already determined years ago that married women in faithful marriages with regular sex had lower incidents of cancer (not sure if it was cervical or uterine) than women of all other forms of sexual status…. And that included women who had never had sex. They also had determined that it was due to an enzyme in the male semen. I’m going to guess the research paper came out about 15 years ago.
Offspring will, of course, have 2 heads.
I miss the Days of FREEREPUBLIC IN THE LATE 90S. HEH HEH
This will be the end of the human race. Too lazy or too stupid to reproduce.
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