In the world of cancer biology, not all biomarkers are the same. These molecules can remind doctors that abnormal processes in the patient's body may be underway, and they will appear in the form of a series of abnormal proteins, such as hormones, enzymes Class or signal molecule, etc., and it varies from person to person. Because it is a group of mixtures, there is no drug that can effectively target it. Recently, in a research report published in the international journal Scientific Reports, scientists from institutions such as the University of Houston have studied cancer A new type of biomarker has been found in stem cells, which may be able to direct the survival and spread of cancer. The related research results may hope to help researchers develop new drugs to target cancer stem cells and thereby suppress cancer progression.

Researcher Gomika Udugamasooriya said that we have discovered this new type of biomarker called plectin in cancer stem cells, which may serve as a new type of target to help researchers develop available anticancer drugs; reticulin It is a special structural protein that is mainly expressed in cells, but its susceptibility to tumors on the cell surface is directly related to tumor invasion and metastasis.

All cancerous tumors contain tumor infiltrating cells or cancer stem cells. These cells are a small group of cells that are resistant to drugs, self-renewing, and highly metastatic. These tumors are directly related to the death of 90% of cancer patients. The process for researchers to discover biomarkers and drug leaders is not the same as the traditional two-step discovery. Generally speaking, researchers first discover biomarkers and then develop new drug therapies. In this study, researchers In two steps at once, they developed 400,000 potential synthetic compounds (peptoids) and could use them to capture special peptide biomarkers with characteristics. In almost 500,000 compound libraries, researchers found There are only three types of peptides that can target cancer stem cells, but not residual cancer cells from the same patient. After in-depth analysis, the researchers found a biomarker called reticulin, which may be used as a cancer stem cell. Special biomarkers.

Researcher Udugamasooriya said that our results suggest that there may be a genetic and phenotypic association between reticulin and lung cancer stem cells, and that high levels of reticulin are often directly related to lower survival rates in patients with lung adenocarcinoma, which indicates that Reticulin may be a special biomarker for lung cancer stem cells. Reticulin can help reshape cells, which is essential for cancer to spread and can help cancer stem cells spread throughout the body.

Researchers are currently working hard to find new ways to eliminate stubborn cancer stem cells through research. Of course, identifying new biomarkers or helping them develop new and highly effective anti-cancer therapies to stop the progress of cancer And diffusion.

In recent years, with the in-depth study of the application of biomarkers, a number of excellent biomarkers, including procalcitonin (PCT) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) Auxiliary diagnosis of infection, guidance of rational use of antibiotics; and cardiac markers including high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTnT) and amino-terminal B-type natriuretic peptide precursor (NT-proBNP), in acute and chronic myocardial injury The clinical application value of pediatric acute and severe areas such as heart failure and heart disease is becoming increasingly prominent, and it is of great significance to continuously improve the level of pediatric clinical diagnosis and treatment and treatment effect.