jueves, 21 de agosto de 2014

Chloroquine's anti-cancer effect works in more than one way

Chloroquine's anti-cancer effect works in more than one way

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Chloroquine's anti-cancer effect works in more than one way

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For decades, chloroquine has been used in malaria therapy and rheumatoid arthritis. However, trials with animal models have now shown that it is also very effective when used in combination with chemotherapy. Until now, it was assumed that chloroquine increases the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapy by means of a direct effect on the cancer cells. However, in a recent study, Belgian scientists found that it has other anti-cancer effects. The findings were published in "Cancer Cell".
Chloroquine blocks autophagy, which cancer cells use to survive anti-cancer treatments. Blocking autophagy would reduce the resistance of the cancer cells to chemotherapy. The researchers at the University of Leuven have now found that chloroquine also normalizes the abnormal blood vessels in tumours. This blood vessel normalization results in an increased barrier function on the one hand - thereby blocking cancer cell dissemination and metastasis- and in enhanced tumour perfusion on the other hand, which increases the response of the tumour to chemotherapy.
As chloroquine is a well-established agent with a good safety profile, the study authors consider it suitable for cancer therapy, emphasising that the effects on the tumour vasculature were even observed at low chloroquine concentrations. This could result in combination therapy with decreased toxicity.

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