New substance blocks cell death
Scientists at the Medical Faculty of the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg have discovered a new approach for the treatment of neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases.
The " Translational Inflammation Research" working group, led by CDS member Prof. Dr. Inna Lavrik, developed a new substance to block the controlled cell death (apoptosis) of cancer cells. In collaboration with the Institute of Molecular and Clinical Immunology (IMKI), the Institute of Experimental Internal Medicine (IEIM), and ACTREC, TATA Memorial Centre, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, computer-based methods were used in combination with experimental analyses. The research findings could contribute to the development of new drugs against neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases .
“All diseases in our body are associated with a dysregulation of apoptosis. In order to develop new, specific therapies, it is crucial to develop substances that either inhibit or promote apoptosis,” explains Prof. Dr. Inna Lavrik.
The study successfully designed a synthetic peptide that blocks procaspase-8, the key regulatory protein of apoptosis. This finding could offer new possibilities for therapies against diseases with a high rate of apoptosis.
The study by the research team led by first authors Corinna König, Nikita Ivanisenko and Laura Hillert-Richter was published in the renowned journal Cell Chemical Biology.
The interdisciplinary research of the "Translational Inflammation Research" working group unites the fields of apoptosis, inflammation, structural biology, pharmacology, and systems biology. Researchers from various faculties of the Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg and the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems collaborate at the Research Center for Dynamic Systems – Biosystems Engineering (CDS) .