Scientists may have taken a giant leap forward in its search for a cure for cancer after discovering unpredictably a malaria protein that might be an effective weapon against the life threatening disease.
Danish researchers were researching methods of providing protection to pregnant women against malaria, which can be extremely harmful because it attacks the placenta. At the same time, however, they found that it attacks cancer too. This new discovery might lead to a new approach to cure the disease.
Some of this protein (which is used in the malaria vaccine to bury into cells) was combined with a toxin. This combination could then be buried into cancer cells, and the release of the toxin would kill the cells.
The scientists conducting the research found that in both of the cases, the malaria protein attaches to the same type of carbohydrate. It is these types of similarities that could be exploited to create a cure.
This particular carbohydrate encourages the growth of the placenta. However, the team also found that it seems to serve the same type of function in tumors. The malaria cell also tends to attach itself to the cancer cells in the same manner, and have the ability to kill them.
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