DOCTORS USE GENETICALLY MODIFIED ADENO VIRUS TO ATTACK TUMOR CELLS.

Researchers in Argentina say they have genetically modified an adenovirus – which can cause colds, conjunctivitis and bronchitis – to home in on cancer, killing tumor cells in patients without harming healthy tissue. Scientific journal Nature reported in October last year that cancer-fighting viruses had started to win approval. Dr. Osvaldo Podhjacer, Chief of the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Therapy at the Fundacion Instituto Leloir in Buenos Aires, and his team developed an ‘oncolytic’ virus designed to target both malignant cells and tumor-associated stromal cells. This is a virus, which, by genetic modification, we have restricted their infectivity exclusively to malignant cells. In spite of the fact that originally, the virus can infect normal cells and cause colds, conjunctivitis and bronchitis. There is need for immunotherapy, because in addition to the changes made to restrict the infection only to malignant cells, it also has a gene that exacerbates the immune response. Then there is a direct attack on the tumor initial and an additional immunological response which in principle eliminates the residual tumor, which was not eliminated by the virus and disseminated metastases. “These viruses are very effective in pre-clinical models of cancer, we have tested and in particular, ovarian cancer and melanoma but we also have other viruses for pancreatic and colon rectal cancer. These are non-toxic and they are as important as their therapeutic efficacy, where we have managed to reverse the levels of liver enzymes to a normal level with animals that have a tumor. These levels become very high due to the toxicity. In general terms, it allows us to qualify this virus as an ideal candidate to be taken to a clinical trial in humans beings, Read more at http://newsdaily.com/2016/04/gm-adenovirus-used-by-doctors-to-attack-tumor-cells/#mFksmxHRsSPdOXiV.99