{"id":275000,"date":"2025-10-03T16:35:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T16:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/275000\/"},"modified":"2025-10-03T16:35:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T16:35:12","slug":"genetic-trojan-horse-selectively-kills-cancer-cells-linked-to-kaposis-sarcoma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/275000\/","title":{"rendered":"Genetic \u201cTrojan horse\u201d selectively kills cancer cells linked to Kaposi\u2019s sarcoma"},"content":{"rendered":"

(SACRAMENTO) <\/strong><\/p>\n

In a preclinical study,\u00a0UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center<\/a>\u00a0scientists developed a highly targeted gene therapy that could revolutionize treatment for cancers linked to a common herpesvirus, with minimal side effects.<\/p>\n

The novel approach treats\u00a0Kaposi\u2019s sarcoma<\/a>\u00a0and related diseases caused by the Kaposi\u2019s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). The cancer-causing virus remains a major health issue, especially for people living with HIV\/AIDS in parts of the world such as sub-Saharan Africa.<\/p>\n

Findings from the research are now published<\/a>\u00a0and will appear in the December issue of\u00a0Molecular Therapy Oncology<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Flow
\nDiagram shows the therapeutics in the virus-infected cancer cells, enhancing the expression of therapy genes, which resulted in more targeted killing of virus-infected cancer cells (red arrows).<\/p>\n

The study\u2019s lead author is\u00a0Yoshihiro Izumiya<\/a>, a professor in the\u00a0UC Davis Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Department of Dermatology<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe new strategy uses a specialized gene therapy technique to selectively target and kill cancer cells infected with the virus \u2014 while leaving healthy cells unharmed,\u201d Izumiya said.<\/p>\n

Izumiya and members of his lab at UC Davis performed their research using mouse models.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe treatment significantly reduced tumor growth with no detectable side effects,\u201d Izumiya said.<\/p>\n

A smart virus that targets a dangerous one<\/p>\n

The therapy harnesses a harmless virus called adeno-associated virus (AAV) to deliver a genetic \u201cTrojan horse\u201d into infected cells. It does so by using the virus\u2019 own protein to drive the therapeutic agents into the cancer cells to kill the cells.<\/p>\n

This gene therapy is designed to become active only in cells harboring KSHV, thanks to a viral marker protein known as LANA, which is only found in KSHV-infected cancer cells.<\/p>\n

Once inside the KSHV-infected cell, the therapy delivers a gene for a modified thymidine kinase enzyme that converts a common anti-herpesvirus drug \u2014 ganciclovir \u2014 into a cancer-killing agent. When the drug is added, only the infected cells are affected, triggering their death while sparing healthy tissue.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a precision-guided approach that uses the virus\u2019s own tricks against it,\u201d said Izumiya. \u201cIt\u2019s like delivering a self-destruct signal directly into the cancer cells.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eliminating the KSHV-infected cells while preserving healthy cells
\n\"Man
\nYoshihiro Izumiya and his lab team.<\/p>\n

In tests with lab-grown human cells, the therapy successfully eliminated KSHV-infected cells while leaving uninfected ones unharmed. When tested in mice with KSHV-related tumors, the therapy \u2014 combined with ganciclovir \u2014 effectively halted tumor growth.<\/p>\n

Importantly, the treatment caused no observable side effects in mice, suggesting a high level of safety.<\/p>\n

Researchers also discovered that anti-cancer drugs known to reactivate KSHV made the therapy even more effective, boosting its impact by enhancing the delivery system’s activation.<\/p>\n

KSHV is key to several types of aggressive cancers<\/p>\n

KSHV is responsible for several aggressive cancers, including Kaposi\u2019s sarcoma and two rare lymphomas. While current treatments exist, they often come with significant side effects and are not always effective, especially in immunocompromised patients.<\/p>\n

This new gene therapy could offer a safer, more targeted option. By focusing only on virus-infected cells, the treatment minimizes the risk to healthy tissues \u2014 a major hurdle in conventional cancer therapy.<\/p>\n

Next steps could lead to personalized medicine treatment<\/p>\n

This research is still in its early stages and will require further testing before it can move to human trials. But the results offer hope for a more precise, less toxic way to treat KSHV-related cancers and possibly other cancers caused by viruses.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to turn the virus\u2019s own biology into its weakness,\u201d Izumiya said. \u201cThis is a step toward smarter, more personalized cancer treatments.\u201d<\/p>\n

This research was funded by the\u00a0National Cancer Institute<\/a>\u00a0(CA299587) and the\u00a0American Cancer Society<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For a complete list of co-authors, please read the\u00a0full paper<\/a>.<\/p>\n

UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center<\/strong><\/p>\n

UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center is the only National Cancer Institute-designated center serving the Central Valley and inland Northern California, a region of more than 6 million people. Its specialists provide compassionate, comprehensive care for more than 100,000 adults and children every year and access to more than 200 active clinical trials at any given time. Its innovative research program engages more than 240 scientists at UC Davis who work collaboratively to advance discovery of new tools to diagnose and treat cancer. Patients have access to leading-edge care, including immunotherapy and other targeted treatments. Its Office of Community Outreach and Engagement addresses disparities in cancer outcomes across diverse populations, and the cancer center provides comprehensive education and workforce development programs for the next generation of clinicians and scientists. For more information, visit cancer.ucdavis.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"(SACRAMENTO) In a preclinical study,\u00a0UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center\u00a0scientists developed a highly targeted gene therapy that could revolutionize…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":275001,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[815,159,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-275000","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-genetics","8":"tag-genetics","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115311209587547072","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275000","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275000"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275000\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}