PhD Student Found Something That May Help Stop The Spread Of Cancer Cells
A doctorate student in Ontario has made a discovery that may have the potential to prevent cancer cells.
Caitlin Miron, a Ph.D. student in the chemistry department at Queen's University, has identified a chemical compound that may be able to "turn off" cancer cells to stop them from dispersing.
Studying in Bordeaux, France, Miron was able to use advanced screening technologies to examine Several compounds at Queen's University. During her internship, she was able to discover one compound which binds to DNA structure.
By comparing a single-stranded DNA to a necklace with beads that move along it till they hit a knot she clarified her discovery. The beads would be the cell machinery that moves along the necklace Miron said.
"You can go in and disentangle that knot, but in this case, someone has worked in there first, and they've applied superglue to secure it together," Miron said. "What we've found in that case is that glue."
By joining the newly identified mixture or "superglue" to the quadruplex to tighten the "knot" in the chain, experts might be able to defend against the cell engine from moving to a specific part of the DNA to prepare it, which would stop the growth and spread of cancer cells, Miron stated.
Scientists have been researching quadruplex binders the Ph.D. student clarified. But lots of the famous binders haven't yielded results as the one Miron has identified as promising.
"It's really exciting. It is exciting to be at the forefront of the field," she said. "There are other quadruplex binders on the market, but what we are seeing is that ours is quite high-performing."
Miron's discovery remains in its early stages regarding commercial development. Her research group has filed a patent for it, and it will be another year until they are in a position to arrange it into an official patent, she said.
"We are still, at this point, considering creating the initially struck chemicals to see, 'Can we enhance targeting to cancer cells? Can we improve entry through a membrane into the cells? ''' Miron said.
The Ph.D. student expects it will take another five to eight years until the chemical is designed enough for this to be used.
Meanwhile, Miron has been honored with an award for Outstanding Innovation by Mitacs, a nationwide not-for-profit firm promoting Canadian research, which will be presented to her at a ceremony in Ottawa on Tuesday.
