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Kangaroo Clues to Skin Cancer Cure December 4, 2009
Understanding how kangaroos repair their DNA could be the key to preventing skin cancer in the future, according to new research by Linda Feketeová and Uta Wille at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Free Radical Chemistry and Biotechnology at The Univ. of Melbourne, Australia.
Together with scientists from The Univ. of Innsbruck, Austria, Feketeová and Wille are working toward reducing the number of skin cancer-related cases by investigating the chemistry behind potential skin cancer therapies.
The teams are investigating a DNA repair enzyme found in kangaroos and many other organisms, but not humans. This enzyme is very effective in repairing a particular type of DNA damage linked to many skin cancers.
"As summer approaches, excessive exposure to the sun's harmful UV light will see more than 400,000 Australians diagnosed with skin cancer," says Feketeová.
"Other research teams have proposed a 'dream cream' containing the DNA repair enzyme which you could slap on your skin after a day in the sun. We're now examining whether this would be feasible by looking at the chemistry behind the DNA repair system."
Using sophisticated technology, the groups are simulating the skin's UV exposure in the laboratory, and then analyzing the DNA repair process in a specialized mass spectrometer instrument.
"We were quite surprised that the DNA's repair process also resulted in a number of chemical by-products, which have never been seen before," says Wille.
"Our plan is to study these products to understand if the DNA repair enzyme could be incorporated into a safe and effective method for skin cancer prevention."
"But there's still much to investigate before this 'dream cream' will be available at the pharmacy, so don't throw out your sunscreen just yet," adds Feketeová.
Source: The University of Melbourne, The Scotsman
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