Self-Assembling Molecules Killed Cancer Cells in Hours

Using a newly developed drug against a key energy source of cancer cells, scientists from

The Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research has developed a new way to destroy them in a matter of hours. The method is based on the self-assembly of molecules. Discuss

The technology behind this research isis aimed at one of the key metabolic functions of the cells of all living beings – ATP. This molecule is the primary carrier of energy in cells, capturing chemical energy from the breakdown of food molecules and distributing it to power other cellular processes. The authors of the new study tried to stop the supply of ATP, which is produced when mitochondria absorb oxygen and convert it into a molecule.

The team was able to achieve this with the help of recentlydeveloped drug, described as a platinum(II)-containing tripeptide. When the drug enters the cellular environment, it reacts with endogenous hydrogen peroxide, binding its molecules together to form tiny hairs thousands of times thinner than a human hair.

By observing this process, the team found,that the hairs block the conversion of oxygen to ATP. Testing this method in the laboratory on untreatable metastatic lung and breast cancer cells resulted in the cells dying within four hours. This portends the development of new treatments for these types of incurable cancers that are able to adapt to treatment and continue to evolve, the scientists report.