Latest news with #p53
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Scientists May Have Finally Figured Out How Bats Avoid Cancer
Some bat species live surprisingly long lives for their diminutive size, and they might be able to teach us a thing or two about resisting cancer as we age. Cancer is the price we pay for living longer. As we accumulate genetic mutations from a lifetime of stressors, each cell division raises the risk that something will go wrong. But many bat species seem to cheat the system. Some can live as long as 40 years – almost 10 times longer than what would be predicted based on their body size. If humans had the same longevity, we might be regularly cramming 180 candles on our birthday cakes. A new study, led by researchers at the University of Rochester in the US, investigated how bats seem to avoid cancer crimping their extensive lifespans. It turns out that they strike a very careful balance between two competing forces. Several bats species have been found to possess multiple copies of a known tumor-suppressing gene called p53. Humans have just a single copy, while other cancer-resistant animals, like elephants, boast up to 20. Mutations in this gene are linked to more than half of all human cancers. But a mechanism that's too aggressive at killing cells is obviously not desirable either. Thankfully, bats compensate with an overactive enzyme called telomerase, which allows their cells to continue to proliferate. Again, in isolation too much telomerase activity would lead to increased risk of cancer, but the heightened p53 action mops it up. It's a remarkable balancing act that's hard not to envy. The cherry on top is the extreme efficiency of bats' immune systems, which seem to be able to kill off rogue cancer cells effectively, with little inflammation to show for it. At this early stage, it's hard to know how much of this could work in humans, but the team says that the study confirms p53's role in cancer prevention, which lends weight to the many drugs in development targeting the gene. The research was published in the journal Nature Communications. 'Off Switch' in The Brain to Stop Binge Drinking Discovered in Mice One Weight Loss Strategy Is 5x More Effective Than Ozempic, Trials Show There's a Shocking Reason Ticks Are So Dangerous (It's Us)
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Scientists make new discovery that could help prevent diet-related liver cancer
New research has identified a pathway that may prevent fatty liver disease, often caused by diets high in fat and sugar, from progressing to liver cancer. Experts have noted an increase in cases of liver cancer arising from fatty liver disease. Currently, there are no effective treatments to halt the progression of fatty liver disease to liver cancer, largely due to a lack of understanding of the mechanisms involved. Researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University, the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute, and The Francis Crick Institute previously identified the tumour suppressor gene p53 as crucial for protecting the liver against toxins. They have now discovered that p53 also shields the liver from the harmful effects of high-fat, high-sugar diets through a gene called TIGAR. TIGAR acts as an antioxidant and detoxifies lipids in a fatty liver. Experts said the breakthrough suggests antioxidant therapy could be developed to mimic the protective response of p53 and TIGAR, which would prevent the development of some of the key features of fatty liver disease. Dr Timothy Humpton, who leads the 'Liver p53 lab' at Glasgow Caledonian University, worked on the research paper with his PhD student Celine Wittke, who is co-first author with Dr Eric Cheung, from The Francis Crick Institute. Dr Humpton said: 'This research has established a key role for p53 and TIGAR in protecting against the progression from liver disease to liver cancer. Targeting this through the use of antioxidants is of great interest for future therapies aiming to prevent liver cancer. 'Many people still don't realise that a bad diet full of fat and sugar, and the lack of exercise, can actually cause fatty liver disease which can progress to liver cancer, so it's not just people who drink alcohol that are susceptible.' 'Fatty liver disease is hard to diagnose because it's asymptomatic for the most part. 'That's why liver cancer prognosis is so poor in these patients. It's frequently not flagged until it's advanced cancer. 'We are hoping that an antioxidant therapy can be developed through the results of our p53 and TIGAR research to help reverse some of the damage done to the liver by the Western diet high in fat and sugar.' The research is published in JHep Reports, a leading journal in the field of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Click below to see the latest Scotland headlines
The Independent
11-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
The therapy that could help prevent food-related liver cancer
New research has identified a pathway involving the genes p53 and TIGAR that may prevent fatty liver disease from progressing to liver cancer, a condition for which there are currently no effective treatments. Researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University, the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute, and The Francis Crick Institute discovered that p53 protects the liver from high-fat, high-sugar diets through the gene TIGAR, which acts as an antioxidant and detoxifies lipids in a fatty liver. The breakthrough suggests that antioxidant therapy could be developed to mimic the protective response of p53 and TIGAR, potentially preventing the development of key features of fatty liver disease. Dr. Timothy Humpton noted that the research establishes a key role for p53 and TIGAR in protecting against the progression from liver disease to liver cancer, suggesting that targeting this pathway through antioxidants is of great interest for future therapies. He also highlighted that fatty liver disease, often caused by poor diet and lack of exercise, is hard to diagnose due to its asymptomatic nature.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Scientists find new pathway which could help prevent diet-related liver cancer
Researchers have discovered a scientific pathway that could prevent fatty liver disease, caused by a Western diet high in fat and sugar, from progressing to liver cancer. Scientists said that cases of the cancer arising from underlying fatty liver disease are on the rise. However currently there are said to be no effective therapies to stop fatty liver disease from progressing to liver cancer due to a lack of understanding of the mechanisms involved. Glasgow Caledonian University cancer experts along with scientists from the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute and The Francis Crick Institute previously identified the tumour suppressor gene p53 as crucial in protecting the liver against toxins. They have now discovered that p53 also protects the liver from the damaging effects of a high-fat, high-sugar diet. Scientists found that it does so through a gene known as TIGAR, which acts as an antioxidant and detoxifies lipids in a fatty liver. Experts said the breakthrough suggests antioxidant therapy could be developed to mimic the protective response of p53 and TIGAR, which would prevent the development of some of the key features of fatty liver disease. Dr Timothy Humpton, who leads the 'Liver p53 lab' at Glasgow Caledonian University, worked on the research paper with his PhD student Celine Wittke, who is co-first author with Dr Eric Cheung, from The Francis Crick Institute. Dr Humpton said: 'This research has established a key role for p53 and TIGAR in protecting against the progression from liver disease to liver cancer. Targeting this through the use of antioxidants is of great interest for future therapies aiming to prevent liver cancer. 'Many people still don't realise that a bad diet full of fat and sugar, and the lack of exercise, can actually cause fatty liver disease which can progress to liver cancer, so it's not just people who drink alcohol that are susceptible.' 'Fatty liver disease is hard to diagnose because it's asymptomatic for the most part. 'That's why liver cancer prognosis is so poor in these patients. It's frequently not flagged until it's advanced cancer. 'We are hoping that an antioxidant therapy can be developed through the results of our p53 and TIGAR research to help reverse some of the damage done to the liver by the Western diet high in fat and sugar.' The research is published in JHep Reports, a leading journal in the field of Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
