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03/09/2002
Queen's scientists make breast cancer breakthrough
Scientists at Queen's University Belfast believe they have made a breakthrough in explaining how a single gene can trigger breast cancer.
Researchers at the Queen's say that a fault in the BRCA1 gene can prevent the body's immune system from fighting cancer cells.
Dr Paul Harkin and his colleagues at the university used cutting-edge technology to look at thousands of genes at once to find out which ones are switched on under different circumstances.
After comparing normal cells with cells that had an overactive BRCA1 gene they found that when the gene was faulty the immune system was unable to attack cancer cells.
However, by adding a healthy copy of the BRCA1 gene they were able to restore the observation system.
Commenting on the results, Professor Patrick Johnston, director of the Cancer Research Centre at Queen¹s University in Belfast, said they were beginning to shed light on why some women have such a high risk of developing breast cancer.
He concluded: "Now we can see that the faulty gene also impairs the body's ability to spot cells that are becoming cancerous. This combination of problems may explain the gene's devastating effects."
(MB)
Researchers at the Queen's say that a fault in the BRCA1 gene can prevent the body's immune system from fighting cancer cells.
Dr Paul Harkin and his colleagues at the university used cutting-edge technology to look at thousands of genes at once to find out which ones are switched on under different circumstances.
After comparing normal cells with cells that had an overactive BRCA1 gene they found that when the gene was faulty the immune system was unable to attack cancer cells.
However, by adding a healthy copy of the BRCA1 gene they were able to restore the observation system.
Commenting on the results, Professor Patrick Johnston, director of the Cancer Research Centre at Queen¹s University in Belfast, said they were beginning to shed light on why some women have such a high risk of developing breast cancer.
He concluded: "Now we can see that the faulty gene also impairs the body's ability to spot cells that are becoming cancerous. This combination of problems may explain the gene's devastating effects."
(MB)
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