Natural plant compound may help overcome cancer drug resistance
A natural plant compound may help overcome a built-in defense that allows many cancers to resist a class of drugs designed to restore normal gene activity, according to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center.
A natural compound derived from a plant called thunder god vine may help to overcome cancer resistance to certain drugs, according to new research from Johns Hopkins University. The compound, triptolide, works by blocking an enzyme called DCTPP1 that cancer cells use to break down DNA methyltransferase inhibitors, or DNMT inhibitors.
When triptolide is combined with the drug decitabine, it boosts the drug's ability to reactivate tumor suppressor genes and kill cancer cells in laboratory models. The findings, published in the journal Nature Communications, suggest that triptolide or similar compounds could be used in combination with DNMT inhibitors to overcome resistance and expand their use in treating more types of cancer.
DNMT inhibitors work by removing abnormal methylation patterns in DNA, allowing cancer-fighting genes to be turned on. However, cancer cells can hijack this process to shut down these genes. Triptolide inhibits the enzyme DCTPP1, which is involved in this process, allowing the DNMT inhibitors to work more effectively. While the study is preclinical and more research is needed to develop safe and effective DCTPP1 inhibitors for human use, the researchers believe that combining standard treatments with triptolide could help to overcome drug resistance and make epigenetic therapies more widely applicable.
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