Scientists discover new way of triggering cell death, can be used for treating cancer and autoimmune diseases

Q.  Scientists discover new way of triggering cell death- what is the natural process of programmed cell death to remove unwanted cells from the body called?
- Published on 30 May 16

a. Apoptosis
b. Oxytocin
c. Sepsis
d. Osmosis

ANSWER: Apoptosis
 
Scientists have discovered a new way of triggering cell death, a finding that may lead to drugs for treating cancer and autoimmune diseases
  • Programmed cell death, also called apoptosis is a natural process to remove unwanted cells from the human body
  • Failure of apoptosis allows cancer cells to grow unchecked or immune cells to incorrectly attack the body
  • Protein called Bak is central to apoptosis. Researchers from Australia’s Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research have discovered a novel way of activating Bak to trigger cell death
  • This can lead to development of drugs that trigger Bak activation to treat diseases such as cancer where apoptosis has gone awry
  • Researchers used information about Bak 3D structure to ascertain how the antibody activated Bak

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