Two New Studies Use Mother Nature to Combat Mesothelioma
What a week it’s been for mesothelioma research. In the past two days alone, there have been reports on two separate and promising studies that could have excellent implications for victims of this brutal cancer.
The first was reported on Suriving Mesothelioma yesterday and pertains to a study conducted by researchers at the School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences at The University of Western Australia. Researchers studied the effects of Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) oil and terpinen-4-ol (a substance widely believed to be the active ingredient in tea tree oil) on a mesothelioma cell in vitro. The result: dead mesothelioma cells. In addition, the more tea tree oil and terpinen-4-ol the researchers added, the more significantly inhibited the growth of the mesothelioma cells turned out to be. The substances not only caused the cells to die, but they stopped them from reproducing. What’s more, the added mixture seemed to be significantly less dangerous to non-tumor cells, which makes these extracts more viable as potential bases for mesothelioma-fighting techniques.
The second study, conducted by University of Washington researchers and reported on today at Mesothelioma.com, might be even more extraordinary. There, scientists tapped into the rapidly burgeoning field of nanotechnology to deliver a potential blow to mesothelioma. The researchers are investigating the potential of a toxin known as melittin, which is found in bee venom, to combat the cancer. Although melittin would destroy cells indiscriminately if left to its own devices, scientists are working on equipping the toxin in tiny nanoparticles known as “nanobees” (so named due to their cargo) to specifically target cancer cells. The delivery system, while sounding incredibly sci-fi, is actually similar to a technique already being developed to combat ovarian cancer, and it represents a further potential application of the technology.
Obviously, these are just studies, which means that any commercial use of these findings is still a ways off. Still, they offer encouraging hope for people suffering from the effects of asbestos exposure.
Tags: asbestos exposure, bee venom, cancer research, medical research, melaleuca alternifolia, melittin, mesothelioma, mesothelioma diagnosis, mesothelioma research, nanobees, nanotechnology, tea tree oil, terpinen-4-ol
