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 06 July 2008 00:38 BST

Molecule hope in tumour fight

Friday, 23 Feb 2007 08:18
The study could help to target tumours, researchers claim

Health In Focus 

New research into cancer treatment has discovered a unique molecule that could help stem the development of tumours.

Researchers at Whitehead Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have discovered a new microRNA that can regulate a gene that contributes to the development of cancer in humans.

It is hoped that the molecule will help in the fight against cancer, effectively repressing tumour growth.

The use of microRNAs for medical purposes has been courted for a number of years since the first microRNA was discovered in 1993. Since then a variety of microRNAs have been discovered but the latest is the first that is thought to have benefits against cancer.

Researchers have experimented with the Hmga2 gene which is defective in a number of tumours, replacing part of the gene with a section of DNA from another chromosome. In this way the defective gene is treated and cancerous growth potentially prevented.

"Because hundreds of human genes appear to be regulated by the let-7 microRNA, we were afraid we wouldn't see any difference when we changed only one of these target genes," explained David Bartel, MIT biology professor.

"Seeing the difference encourages us to explore the biological importance of other examples of microRNA regulation."

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