Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

Cat Parasite Could Help Fight Cancer

posted by azrael on Thursday July 17 2014, @10:00PM   Printer-friendly
from the drop-the-defensive-shields dept.

cafebabe writes:

ScienceDaily reports that:

Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is a single-celled parasite that is happiest in a cat's intestines, but it can live in any warm blooded animal. Found worldwide, T. gondii affects about one-third of the world's population, 60 million of which are Americans. Most people have no symptoms, but some experience a flu-like illness. Those with suppressed immune systems, however, can develop a serious infection if they are unable to fend off T. gondii.

A healthy immune system responds vigorously to T. gondii in a manner that parallels how the immune system attacks a tumor.

"We know biologically this parasite has figured out how to stimulate the exact immune responses you want to fight cancer," said David J. Bzik, PhD, professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth.

In response to T. gondii, the body produces natural killer cells and cytotoxic T cells. These cell types wage war against cancer cells. Cancer can shut down the body's defensive mechanisms, but introducing T. gondii into a tumor environment can jump start the immune system.

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Cat Parasite Could Help Fight Cancer | Log In/Create an Account | Top | 24 comments | Search Discussion
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.

  • (Score: 4, Informative) by frojack on Thursday July 17 2014, @10:20PM

    by frojack (1554) Subscriber Badge on Thursday July 17 2014, @10:20PM (#70504) Journal

    TFA suggests they were digging around in the cat box.

    It does say that they deactivated the ability to replicate inside humans:

    Since it isn't safe to inject a cancer patient with live replicating strains of T. gondii, Bzik and Fox created "cps," an immunotherapeutic vaccine. Based on the parasite's biochemical pathways, they delete a Toxoplasma gene needed to make a building block of its genome and create a mutant parasite that can be grown in the laboratory but is unable to reproduce in animals or people. Cps is both nonreplicating and safe. Even when the host is immune deficient, cps still retains that unique biology that stimulates the ideal vaccine responses.

    --
    No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +2  
       Informative=1, Underrated=1, Total=2
    Extra 'Informative' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  
    Total Score:   4  

  • (Score: 1) by Zanothis on Friday July 18 2014, @02:41PM

    by Zanothis (3445) on Friday July 18 2014, @02:41PM (#70812)

    I'm suddenly reminded of a conversation in Jurassic Park:

    John, the kind of control you're attempting simply is... it's not possible. If there is one thing the history of evolution has taught us it's that life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expands to new territories and crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously, but, uh... well, there it is.

    • (Score: 2) by frojack on Friday July 18 2014, @08:01PM

      by frojack (1554) Subscriber Badge on Friday July 18 2014, @08:01PM (#70955) Journal

      Science teaches. Movies entertain.

      --
      No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.