Latest news with #MCL-1
Sinar Daily
5 days ago
- Health
- Sinar Daily
Research explains why promising cancer treatments trigger serious side effects
SYDNEY - Research is shedding new light on the causes of serious side effects linked to some promising cancer treatments, reported Xinhua. Scientists have discovered that the protein MCL-1, a key target in cancer drug development, plays not only a role in preventing cell death in cancer cells but also supplying energy to normal cells, according to a statement released Tuesday by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI) in Melbourne. As a result, drugs that inhibit MCL-1 can inadvertently damage healthy tissues that rely on this protein for energy, especially in organs with high energy demand like the heart and liver, leading to the severe side effects observed in clinical trials, WEHI said. The new findings clarify that these side effects may be linked to the protein's critical role in cellular energy production, which enables the development of safer, more targeted cancer therapies that reduce harm to healthy tissues while staying effective against cancer. "If we can direct MCL-1 inhibitors preferentially to tumour cells and away from the cells of the heart and other healthy tissues, we may be able to selectively kill cancer cells while sparing healthy tissues," said the study's co-senior researcher Andreas Strasser, a WEHI laboratory head. The study, published in Science, also paves the way for safer combination therapies by enabling smarter dosing and pairing of MCL-1 inhibitors with other treatments to reduce toxicity. - BERNAMA-XINHUA
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Protein That Calms Waking Hair Follicles Could Lead to Alopecia Treatment
A new study has identified a protein that appears to be essential for hair growth and hair follicle protection. Called MCL‑1, it could potentially be targeted by treatments for certain kinds of baldness such as alopecia. Led by a team from the Duke‑NUS Medical School in Singapore and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Australia, researchers found that when MCL-1 production was blocked in mice, the animals lost their hair later in life. Hair follicles go through cycles of quiescence and growth, with MCL-1 playing a critical role in the latter phase. The protein doesn't seem to affect the resting phase or the initial development of hair follicles, however. "Acute MCL‑1 deletion rapidly depletes activated hair follicle stem cells and completely blocks depilation‑induced hair regeneration in adult mice, while quiescent hair follicle stem cells remain unaffected," write the researchers in their published paper. It was already known that MCL-1 played an important role in protecting a number of different kinds of tissue from apoptosis; the programmed death of redundant or damaged cells to keep the body functioning. When it comes to hair, MCL-1 prevents follicle stem cells from being stressed and damaged as they 'reawaken' from rest. Without MCL-1 to protect them, these cells stop functioning. The team was also able to reveal new details on MCL-1's function, identifying ways it suppresses another protein called BAK and how MCL-1 is regulated by a signaling pathway called ERBB. These details could be useful in developing new methods of hair loss treatments. "These findings suggest that ERBB signaling modulates MCL‑1 expression through translational control mechanisms, particularly during periods of heightened apoptosis and regression in the hair cycle," the researchers write. The study was based solely on mice, so while there's good reason to think the same processes are happening on the top of our own heads, the findings will need to be replicated in clinical research on humans. It's also worth bearing in mind that there are several different kinds of alopecia, all with a variety of contributing causes: if treatments are one day developed that focus on boosting MCL-1, they're not going to work for all types of hair loss. Those limitations aside, this one protein's handiwork is a significant revelation concerning hair follicles' ability to grow hair. The findings could also inform future studies into other processes affected by MCL-1, including cancer cell death. "This study advances our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying hair follicle regeneration and offers new insights into how stem cell survival and tissue regeneration are orchestrated," write the researchers. "These findings may have broader implications for controlling the survival of stem and progenitor cells in tissue regeneration and cancer expansion." The research has been published in Nature Communications. Woman's Brain Implant Turns Her Thoughts Into Speech in Real Time Sometimes Alzheimer's Strikes Early. This Experimental Drug May Help. Dangerous Fungal Infection Sees a Dramatic Increase in US Hospitals
