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President's ColumnExtractsResearch Briefs Research Links Lampreys, Sharks and HumansSatellite System Tracks Firefighters, SoldiersManure System Benefits Environment, & NosesDrake Passage Tied To Antarctic CoolingGene Helps Crops Fight Heat StressMolecular Force Field Protects Cancer CellsAlligator Farmers Cash In On Fashion Trend
Swarm TrackersThe Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory is on the front lines in the battle between humans and mosquitoes. Border GuardsA world-renowned Canadian virologist heads south to join UF's Emerging Pathogens Initiative and continue his groundbreaking research on viruses. Racing FluUF veterinary researchers discover a new influenza in dogs. Understanding AnthraxResearchers show how anthrax paralyzes the body's "first responders." Expertise
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Molecular Force Field Protects Cancer Cellsdownloadable pdfMuch as the famed starship Enterprise would deploy a deflector shield to evade enemy attack, tumor cells are capable of switching on a molecular force field of their own to fend off treatments aimed at killing them. Now University of Florida researchers have found a chink in their armor. The cells churn out an enzyme that bonds with a protein, creating a protective barrier that deflects damage from radiation or chemotherapy and promotes tumor cell survival. But in laboratory experiments, UF scientists were able to block the union, and the malignant cells died. The findings are opening new avenues of research that could lead to improved cancer therapies, the researchers reported in the journal Cancer Research. “We have found a gene called focal adhesion kinase which is produced at very high levels in human tumors, and this makes the tumors more likely to survive as they spread throughout the body and grow,” said Dr. William G. Cance, chair of the Department of Surgery in the College of Medicine. “It also makes them more resistant to our attempts to kill them.” Focal adhesion kinase, or FAK, has spawned a flurry of research to develop new drug therapies. These medicines would prevent FAK from linking with another protein tied to the growth of channels in the lymph system that serve as cellular superhighways for cancer. “If you block the binding of these two proteins, the tumor cells are more prone to being killed,” Cance said. “We think it’s one of the Achilles’ heels for tumor cells.” William Cance, cance@surgery.ufl.edu
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