Catch me if you can
Skin cancer, caused by excessive exposure to UV rays, spreads through the body faster than other forms of cancer, and kills almost 1,000 Canadians each year. Researchers at MIT have traced the extreme malignancy of skin cancer to a gene called Slug. When activated, the Slug gene allows cells to move freely around the body. Usually, Slug is only activated in embryos, where cells must move around and clump together to form the body’s tissues. However, in skin cancer, the Slug gene is turned on, allowing the cancerous cells to get around, implant, and grow throughout the body. When researchers artificially knocked out the Slug gene in cancerous cells, they lost their ability to migrate to other bodily tissues.
-Chris Damdar
Source: Nature Genetics
Targeting tumours
The human body has a natural defense against cancer: genes in our DNA produce proteins that search and destroy aberrant, malignant cells. When these genes get damaged, our bodies become susceptible to cancer. Scientists have recently uncovered the importance of another of these genes, dubbed Reprimo. This gene was found to be inactive during the primary stages of many tumors-especially those of the gastrointestinal system. In normal cells Reprimo, codes for a protein that teams up with another powerful protein, p53; together, they are effective in suppressing tumors.
Reprimo seems to be one of the first suppressor genes that get inactivated in a cancerous growth. This occurs through methylation-the addition of a -CH3 group to the gene. This knowledge could be applied in detecting certain cancers early on, by looking for methylated versions of the Reprimo gene.
-Jennifer Bates
Source: International Journal of Cancer
No sugar for us thanks, we’re felines
It is no wonder cats are cranky: they can’t taste sweets, and have to resign themselves to an Atkins-like diet of meat and fat. Sweet taste buds are composed of proteins produced by two genes: Tas1r2 and Tas1r3. Researchers at the Monell Chemical Senses Center, in Pittsburgh, have found that in domestic cats-also known as Felis silvestris catus-the former gene is active, while the latter is not. Unfortunately, this raises more questions than it answers. For instance, when and why did cats lose the ability to taste sugars? And which came first: this obvious handicap or their carnivorous diet? Watch this space.
-Mike Ghenu
Source: Public Library of Science Genetics
