Innviertler researchers discover new way to fight cancer

"Cancer, which was previously incurable, has become partially curable thanks to immunotherapy, and I hope that progress will continue," said Josef Penninger, 54, one of the world's best researchers. to the roots of Innviertler, in an interview with OÖNnachrichten. Six months later, in the journal Nature, he presents new insights into the biology of immune cells that can be used to fight against cancer and autoimmune diseases.

In collaboration with colleagues at the Molecular Biotechnology Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA) and Clifford Woolf of the "Boston Children's Hospital at Harvard", Penninger discovered that the immune cells of our body, called T cells, via the molecule "BH4" are activated, which plays an important role in the metabolism of our nervous system. Until now, it was only known that tetrahydrobiopterin, also called "BH4", was necessary for the production of messengers such as "happiness hormones", serotonin and dopamine. Result of the current research: "BH4" controls the growth of T cells, the "soldiers of our immune system", on the regulation of iron metabolism and the functioning of the mitochondria, the "central" cells.

T cells patrol our body and expose pathogens or degenerate cells that could become tumors. During such encounters, the T cells are activated, they multiply and move to a kind of attack mode to target intruders or targeted cancer cells. "BH4" is therefore an important candidate for future cancer immunotherapies because activated T cells detect and fight cancer cells. Researchers have now discovered in mice that "BH4" helps T cells target the targeted tumor.

From cancer to arthritis

But also in autoimmune diseases such as colitis, asthma, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, some skin diseases and allergies, one hopes new treatment options "BH4". "The inhibition of BH4 can inhibit the mode of attack of these self-aggressive immune cells, so that they do not destroy healthy tissue and do not cause chronic inflammation", said Shane Cronin scientist from IMBA in Vienna. His boss, Josef Penninger, will lead the Institute of Life Sciences in Vancouver, Canada, starting in December. With him, Austria loses one of the leading figures in domestic science whose discoveries have attracted the attention of the international community for years. One of his biggest successes was the discovery of the RANKL protein, which led to the development of the drug "Denosumab". This has been used successfully for years against osteoporosis and bone metastases.

It is being tested – also in Austria – if the "Denosumab" is also able to prevent the development of bad cancer. (Bar)

"back to health"