Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin-Milwaukee said they have applied for a patent on the protein, CXCL12, which is known as a chemokine. Chemokines are proteins that regulate the movement of cells into tissues and recruit infection-fighting white blood cells to infected and injured sites, the scientists said.

The study was led by Associate Professor Brian Volkman and was based on seminal reports by Associate Professor Michael Dwinell.

"We hope that stable synthetic versions of CXCL12 will allow us to conduct proof-of-concept studies about cancer prevention," Volkman said. "It's clear that CXCL12 is an important molecule for designing new ways to treat cancer."

The research that included Christopher Veldkamp, a biochemistry graduate of the Medical College's Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the study's lead author, is reported in the online journal Science Signaling.