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Page 37
Nano Research & Applications
ISSN 2471-9838
September 11-12, 2017 Amsterdam, Netherlands
20
th
International Conference on
Advanced Nanotechnology
Notes:
Advanced Nano 2017
Targeting the reprogrammed energy generation
system of cancer cells
T
he aspiration to achieve efficacious cancer targeted
therapy involves intenseglobalR&Defforts.Blockage
of fundamental processes like the unique reprogramed
energy generation system of malignant cells, combined
with a nano-technology approach, should offer new
tools for efficient interference with cancer progression.
While deciphering the energy generation systems
of cancer cells, we found that two related enzymes
(kinases), termed Fer and FerT, which normally
reside in the cell energy power-station-mitochondria
of sperm cells, are harnessed to the reprogrammed
mitochondria of cancer cells. Both enzymes potentiate
the generation of energy by mitochondria in cancer
cells subjected to stress conditions like nutrient and
oxygen deprivation. This enabled the survival of cancer
cells under harsh conditions which are prevalent in solid
tumors. To translate these findings into a novel anti-
cancer therapy we have combined, synthetic-chemistry,
robotic, and high throughput screening approaches, for
the development of a synthetic low molecular weight
compounds which binds and inhibit the kinase activity
of both Fer and FerT. Such a compound termed E260
was then formulated and incorporated into nano-
micelles to selectively target Fer and FerT in the
mitochondria of malignant cells. Notably, the formulated
E260 compound selectively perturbs mitochondrial
functioning in malignant cells thereby imposing energy
crisis and consequent necrotic death in cancer but not
in normal cells. The anti-cancer potency of the E260
formulation is also manifested using human tumors
derived-xenografts models in mice, thus portraying it as
a new potential anti-cancer drug.
Biography
Uri Nir leads the cancer and inflammatory diseases research lab in the Faculty of
Life- Sciences at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. He completed his PhD degree from
Weizmann Institute of Sciences in Israel. He then went for a Post-doctoral training
at Hormone-Research Institute, University of California San-Francisco, USA. Since
1988, he is a faculty member at Bar-Ilan University.
Uri.Nir@biu.ac.ilUri Nir
Bar-Ilan University, Israel
Uri Nir, Nano Res Appl 2017, 3:3
DOI: 10.21767/2471-9838-C1-001