CLEVELAND, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- Researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland say they've found a gene that resembles Celebrex and suppresses the growth of colon cancer.
The scientists from the university's School of Medicine, University Hospitals of Cleveland and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute discovered the gene, called 15-PGDH, is found in normal cells, but is virtually undetectable in colon cancer cells.
The gene 15-PGDH acts as an antagonist to control an enzyme called COX-2. An increase in COX-2 is a major early event in the genesis of human colon tumors.
The gene may represent the first of a "one-two punch" in colon cancer, one researcher said. In colon cancers a dramatic increase of COX-2 is seen. COX-2 activity is checked by 15-PGDH, and without 15-PGDH present, unchecked COX-2 goes on to cause abnormal changes on the cellular level, which may lead to tumor development.
Celebrex, an arthritis drug that Merck just pulled from the market, is also a COX-2 inhibitor.
The team's work is summarized in Tuesday's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
