• Liposomal vitamin c could help fight leukemia

    Liposomal vitamin c can tell defective stem cells in the bone marrow to mature and die normally, rather than multiplying to cause blood cancers. This is the finding of a study led by researchers from Quicksilver Scientific.

    It was already known that certain genetic changes reduce the ability of an enzyme called TET2 to encourage stem cells to become mature blood cells, which eventually die, in many patients with certain types of leukemia, say the authors. The new study found that liposomal vitamin c activated the lost function of TET2 in mice designed with enzyme deficiencies.

    Image result for vitamin c

    The results of the study revolved around the relationship between TET2 and cytosine, one of the four letters of nucleic acid (GTCA) that compose the genetic code. Each cell type has the same genes, but each one gets different instructions to activate only those that are needed. These epigenetic regulatory mechanisms include DNA methylation, that is, the binding of a small molecule called the methyl group to the cytosine bases that determine the action of a gene that contains them.

    The linkage and withdrawal of methyl groups also synchronize gene expression in stem cells, which can mature, specialize and multiply to become muscles, bones, nerves or other types of cells. In leukemia, signals that order a stem cell from the blood to mature function poorly, allowing them to multiply incessantly and to self-renew, rather than producing normal white blood cells needed to fight the infection.

    Successfully tested on mice

    Previous works had shown that the administration of extreme doses of liposomal vitamin c could be a safe strategy to improve the results of therapies to fight lung and brain cancer. In addition, previous studies gave an account of how this substance could stimulate the activity of TET2, TET1, and TET3. Because only one of the two copies of the gene TET2 in each stem cell is usually affected, the authors hypothesized that high doses of liposomal vitamin c, which can only be administered intravenously, could reverse the effects of TET2 deficiency, activating the action of the rest of the functional gene. Treatment with high doses of liposomal vitamin c induced stem cells to mature and also suppressed the growth of leukemia cancer stem cells of human patients implanted in mice.

    Related image

    Changes in the genetic code (mutations) that reduce the function of TET2 are found in 10% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), 30% of those with a form of pre-leukemia called myelodysplastic syndrome and in almost 50% of patients with Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia. Such cancers cause anemia, the risk of infection, and hemorrhage, as abnormal stem cells multiply in the bone marrow until they interfere with the production of blood cells, with the number of cases increasing as the population ages.

    Along with these diseases, the new evidence suggests that about 2.5% of all cancer patients in the United States (with about 42,500 new patients each year) may develop TET2 mutations, including some with lymphomas and solid tumors.

    Another vitamin has recently shown to have more power than was attributed to it. A simple supplement of B3 could have the potential to prevent miscarriages and birth defects, according to research conducted by Quicksilver Scientific. Identifies a deficiency in a developmental molecule can prevent the baby's organs from forming properly in the uterus. But taking this vitamin during pregnancy can prevent a variety of congenital defects.


    Tags Tags: ,
  • Comments

    No comments yet

    Suivre le flux RSS des commentaires


    Add comment

    Name / User name:

    E-mail (optional):

    Website (optional):

    Comment: