Univ. researchers stunt cell growth with virus

The mosaic virus, which damages cells that comprise plant leaves, is one of the tobacco crop's worst enemies. In the future, it may become a cancer patient's best friend.

University researchers are using the virus to develop a way of interfering with cell growth, meaning the method has the potential to treat cancer and other illnesses. But don't expect this method to be practiced by doctors anytime soon.

"It actually would need a lot of work before it can go into the market," said Chi-Wei Hung, a graduate student and researcher on the project. "If everything works out, we can ... maybe not cure the cancer but at least have the cancer cells in control."

By hollowing out the mosaic virus and filling it with a special type of RNA, the virus could then be sent into the human body, where the RNA will slow down the growth of disease-causing cells, Hung said.

But Hung added this technique is only in the experimental stages, and his team has not tested it on any living creatures yet. He has tried it on the kidney cells of human embryos with some success: Their growth rates slowed down by 10 percent. Testing on cervical cancer cells is next on the agenda.

One hazard of using this potential treatment on humans is that it will not only slow the growth of disease-causing cells but will also inhibit the multiplication of friendly cells as well, Hung explained. He hopes, one day, they will develop a way to avoid collateral damage.

Hung said it could be 10 to 20 years before doctors might use this technique as a way of dealing with cancer.

The research team began working on this project in 2005, Hung said. They chose the tobacco mosaic virus because it was the first virus ever discovered, so scientists know the most about how it works to harm its host.

The idea of using viruses as vehicles for delivering growth-interfering RNA is relatively new, said James Culver, a biotechnology professor and adviser to the project. He added that working on this project is a great opportunity for engineers and biologists to collaborate, making the research enjoyable.

"Hopefully, these cross-disciplinary projects ... can lead to avenues to investigate real-world applications, in this case, new mechanisms for controlling disease," Culver said. "I think it's a growing area, and we certainly are contributing to that."

Culver said he is hesitant to predict just how effective this treatment will be for humans, adding that it's too early to determine side effects and other limitations. The goal at this point in the research is not to cure anything, he said, but rather to learn more about how the process works. He hopes research in this field will help create a model to which other scientists can refer.

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