Researchers may have found a way to reverse several forms of cancer by going to the root of the problem. Cancer is a result of uncontrolled cell proliferation. It occurs when the organelles called mitochondria — responsible for cell respiration and energy production — fail and cause abnormal proliferation, which leads to malignant tumours.
Researchers from the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III (CNIC) and the Spanish network for research into frailty and healthy aging (CIBERFES) found that baker’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, carries an enzyme called ScURA, which helps yeast survive without oxygen while evolving alternative metabolic pathways to produce the molecular building blocks required for RNA and DNA synthesis. Instead of oxygen, ScURA uses fumarate, a metabolite derived from nutrients.
When the team extracted the gene encoding this enzyme and inserted it into affected human cells, it enabled DNA and RNA synthesis even when the mitochondrial respiratory chain was blocked.
Unlike the equivalent human enzyme, which is physically linked to the mitochondria, the yeast version used an alternative metabolic pathway to ensure the normal function of the human cells. They found the diseased cells grew under normal conditions, just like cells from healthy individuals, opening avenues for future treatments for diseases that currently have no cure.