Salk findings on cold virus proteins may spur new cancer
treatments
Cold viruses generally get a bad rap—which they've certainly
earned—but new findings by a team of scientists at the Salk Institute for
Biological Studies suggest that these viruses might also be a valuable ally in
the fight against cancer.
Adenovirus, a type of cold virus, has developed molecular
tools—proteins—that allow it to hijack a cell's molecular machinery, including
large cellular machines involved in growth, replication and cancer suppression.
The Salk scientists identified the construction of these molecular weapons and
found that they bind together into long chains (polymers) to form a
three-dimensional web inside cells that traps and overpowers cellular sentries
involved in growth and cancer suppression. The findings, published October 11
in Cell, suggest a new avenue for developing cancer therapies by mimicking the
strategies employed by the viruses.