研究:蜂毒能杀死攻击性乳腺癌细胞

研究:蜂毒能杀死攻击性乳腺癌细胞

Researchers in Western Australia have discovered that venom from honeybees is a powerful anti-tumor agent, annihilating a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer cells at a staggering rate in mice subjects.

西澳大利亚的研究人员发现，蜜蜂的毒液是一种强大的抗肿瘤药物，它以惊人的速度消灭了老鼠体内一种特别具有攻击性的乳腺癌细胞。

The potentially groundbreaking study, just published in the journal NPJ Precision Oncology, was undertaken by scientists at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research in Perth.

这项突破性的研究刚刚发表在《NPJ精密肿瘤学》杂志上，由珀斯的哈里·帕金斯医学研究所的科学家进行。

“We found that the venom from honeybees is remarkably effective in killing some of these really aggressive breast cancer cells at concentrations that aren’t as damaging to normal cells,” said lead researcher Ciara Duffy.

首席研究员达菲说:“我们发现，蜜蜂的毒液在杀死一些非常具有攻击性的乳腺癌细胞方面非常有效，其浓度不会对正常细胞造成伤害。”

Duffy told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that she hoped the findings would hold promise for the 10-15% of women who suffer from triple-negative breast cancer — meaning patients whose disease lacks all three common cancer-drug receptors, which includes the hormones estrogen and progesterone, as well as the human epidermal growth factor, called HER2, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explain. Typically, these receptors might aid doctors’ fight against tumor growth through the use of targeted therapies, which help to spare patients from the full-body ravages of chemotherapy. The five-year relative survival rate for the most progressive cases can be as little as 11%, according to the American Cancer Society.

达菲告诉澳大利亚广播公司，她希望这项发现能为10-15%患有三重阴性乳腺癌的女性带来希望——那些患有乳腺癌的患者缺乏三种常见的癌症药物受体，包括雌激素和孕酮，以及人表皮生长因子，美国疾病控制和预防中心解释称为HER2。通常情况下，这些受体可能通过靶向治疗帮助医生对抗肿瘤生长，这有助于使患者免受化疗的全身损害。根据美国癌症协会的数据，大多数进展期病例的5年相对生存率只有11%。

However, the new study has revealed a precise ratio of venom that can kill 100% of triple-negative, as well as HER2-positive, breast cancer cells.

然而，这项新的研究揭示了一种精确比例的毒液可以100%杀死三阴性和her2阳性的乳腺癌细胞。

These aren’t just any bees, the Australian researchers claim. Perth bees are “some of the healthiest in the world,” said Duffy, who supplemented the local hive’s population with bees from Ireland and England. To take their nectar, the bees are induced to sleep by carbon dioxide, then preserved on ice, after which the venom is extracted and injected directly into the tumor.

澳大利亚研究人员称，这些蜜蜂并不是普通的蜜蜂。达菲说，珀斯的蜜蜂是“世界上最健康的蜜蜂之一”，他从爱尔兰和英格兰引进了更多的蜜蜂来补充当地蜂群的数量。为了摄取花蜜，蜜蜂被二氧化碳诱导进入睡眠状态，然后保存在冰中，之后将毒液提取并直接注射到肿瘤中。

But rather than suggesting a large-scale harvest of honeybees’ venom, Duffy’s team discovered that a known chemical analog of a peptide in the venom called melittin — the component, in fact, that’s responsible for the pain incurred just after a bee sting — had the same anti-cancer effects.

但达菲的研究小组并不有建议大规模采集蜜蜂的毒液，而是发现毒液中一种已知的化学类似物蜂毒肽(类似于蜂毒中的一种肽，这种物质被称为“蜂毒素”，实际上，它是导致被蜜蜂蛰伤后产生疼痛的物质)具有同样的抗癌效果。

“What melittin does is it actually enters the surface, or the plasma membrane, and forms holes or pores and it just causes the cell to die,” said Duffy, who further found that the molecule may also facilitate the impact of chemotherapy drugs, such as docetaxel. When combined, she explained, the melittin would first puncture the cancer membrane, permitting chemo better entry into the malignant mass.

达菲说：“蜂毒肽的作用是它实际上进入细胞表面，或者质膜，形成洞或孔，导致细胞死亡，”他进一步发现，这种分子也可能促进化疗药物，如多西他赛的影响。她解释说，当两者结合时，蜂毒肽会首先刺穿癌细胞膜，让化疗更好地进入恶性肿瘤。

“We found it was interfering with the main messaging or cancer-signaling pathways that are fundamental for the growth and replication of cancer cells,” she said.

她说：“我们发现它干扰了癌细胞生长和复制的主要信息传递或癌症信号传导途径。”。

Globally, honeybees have long been under threat, despite efforts to boost their populations. Nevertheless, bee products have been used for cosmetic and medicinal purposes for thousands of years thanks to their anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral and antioxidant properties.

在全球范围内，尽管人们努力增加蜜蜂的数量，但它们长期以来一直受到威胁。尽管如此，由于蜜蜂产品具有抗炎、抗菌、抗真菌、抗病毒和抗氧化等特性，数千年来一直被用于化妆品和医药用途。

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that Duffy was reticent to call it a “breakthrough.”

澳大利亚广播公司(Australian Broadcasting Corporation)报道称，达菲不愿称这次研究为“突破”。

“There’s a long way to go in terms of how we would deliver it in the body and, you know, looking at toxicities and maximum tolerated doses before it ever went further,” she said.

她说：“在我们如何将其送入体内，以及在进一步研究毒性和最大耐受剂量方面还有很长的路要走。”。