Researchers at the University of North Carolina have
pioneered a technique of turning skin cells into cancer-hunting stem
cells that, in mice, found and killed remnant brain tumor cells.
Glioblastomas are aggressive, fast-growing tumors that form
astrocytes, cells that make up the supportive tissue of the brain.
Astrocytes reproduce quickly, and are supported by a large network of
blood vessels, which is why the relatively rare cancer can be so
difficult to treat, according to the American Brain Tumor Association.
"We wanted to find out if these induced neural stem cells would home
in on cancer cells and whether they could be used to deliver a
therapeutic agent," Dr. Shawn Hingtgen, an assistant professor at the
University of North Carolina, said in a press release. "This is the first time this direct reprogramming technology has been used to treat cancer."
For the study, published in the journal Nature Communications,
researchers reprogrammed skin cells called fibroblasts to become neural
stem cells and produce a tumor-killing protein. The cells, which in
skin produce collagen and connective tissue, hunt and kill cancer cells.
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