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蛋白质可引发癌细胞的新陈代谢2015-08-10来源：sciencedailyNewresearchfromtheUniversityofCentralFloridahasshedlightontheworkingsofaparticularproteinfoundinthehumanbodythatcouldhavefutureimplicationsforthetreatmentofcancerandneurodegenerativeconditions.PreviousresearchbyMariaC.FrancoandAlvaroEstevezoftheBurnettSchoolofBiomedicalSciencesatUCF'sCollegeofMedicineshowedthatamodifiedversionofaproteinknownasheatshockprotein90orHsp90isatriggerforkillingcellsinthenervoussysteminneurodegenerativedisorders.Now,Franco'slatestfindingsshowthatHsp90doesn'ttreatallcellsthesame.Infact,thesameproteinthatkillssomecellsmayhelpcancercells,accordingtoresearchpublishedintheJournalofBiologicalChemistryonJuly31.Wehavefoundaproteinthatismodifiedonlyinpathologicalconditions,saidFranco,anassistantscientistattheBurnettSchoolwholedtheresearchteam.Inthenervoussystem,itistoxictothecellsthatareaffectedbyneurodegenerativediseases,whileintumorcellsitmayactuallybeactingasapro-survivalagent.Inbothcases,targetingthisoxidizedproteinmaybeapotentialtherapeuticalternative.Hsp90isoneofthemoststudiedproteinsintermsofpotentialcancer-fightingdrugs,butprogresshasbeenslow.Franco'sworkprovidesmoreclarityonthecomplexnatureoftheprotein'simpactoncells.HerresearchteamdiscoveredthatanitrationofHsp90limitsoxygentothecell'smitochondria,decreasingitsenergyproduction.Itsoundslikeadeathknellforthecell,butthereductionofoxygenconsumptionmayactuallyhelpthecancerouscellsbyincreasingtheirresistancetohypoxiasincethesecellsrelyonotherenergysources.FrancohasbeenstudyingtheroleofHsp90andotheroxidizedproteinsintheregulationofcellularmetabolismforthepasteightyears,withthegoalofidentifyingnewtargetsfordrugstocombattumorcells.Sheiseagertofindwaystocombattumorcellswhilekeepinghealthycellsintact.AnativeofBuenosAires,FrancohasbeenatUCFforthepastfiveyearsandhasmultipledegreesfromtheUniversityofBuenosAires.Shecompletedpost-doctoralworkatCornellUniversityandOregonStateUniversity.Franco'sotherworkfocusesonfreeradicals,oxidativestressandmitochondrialmetabolism.StorySource:TheabovepostisreprintedfrommaterialsprovidedbyUniversityofCentralFlorida.Note:Materialsmaybeeditedforcontentandlength.JournalReference:MariaC.Franco,KarinaC.Ricart,AnalíaS.Gonzalez,CassandraN.Dennys,PascalA.Nelson,MichaelS.Janes,RyanA.Mehl,AimeeLandar,AlvaroG.Estévez.NitrationofHsp90onTyrosine33RegulatesMitochondrialMetabolism.JournalofBiologicalChemistry,2015;290(31):19055DOI:10.1074/jbc.M115.663278