An updated version of a bacteria-derived compound called the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine could block cancer cells from using glutamine (which is important for metabolism) without the severe side effects of its today predecessor, researchers from DON in Dallas have found. When DON was administered to mice with colon cancer, the tumours shrank and almost disappeared compared with a more than five growth in tumours in the control group. With the new DON version, “we disable the ability of the tumor to proliferate and to evade the immune system,” Powell says. In addition, T cells—important in destroying cancer cells—were able to switch to alternative sources of raw materials, whereas tumour cells could not.
An updated version of a bacteria-derived compound called the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine could block cancer cells from using glutamine (which is important for metabolism) without the severe side effects of its today predecessor, researchers from DON in Dallas have found. When DON was administered to mice with colon cancer, the tumours shrank and almost disappeared compared with a more than five growth in tumours in the control group. In addition, T cells—important in destroying cancer cells—were able to switch to alternative sources of raw materials, whereas tumour cells could not.