A Role for Alpha-2-Macroglobulin in the Cancer Immunity of Naked Mole-Rats

Naked mole-rats are near immune to cancer, in addition to living far longer and with far less of a functional decline over the course of a lifetime than is the case for other, similarly sized rodent species. Research into this cancer resistance has so far led to evidence for greater efficiency in cancer suppression genes, particularly with regard to being triggered by cell crowding of the sort that takes place in tumors, and higher prevalence of high molecular weight hyaluronan in naked mole-rat tissues. These are unlikely to be the only factors involved. Here researchers outline a role for alpha-2-macroglobulin (A2M) in cancer suppression; it appears to inhibit tumor growth in multiple mammalian species through a variety of mechanisms that are as yet not all that well characterized. Naked mole-rats are found to have a very high level of A2M in their tissues, which may be an important component of their resilience to cancer. Older humans exhibit lower levels of A2M than their younger counterparts, which may be one of the numerous contributions to age-related vulnerability to cancer. Unfortunately, A2M interacts with a sizable number of other proteins, which will no doubt ensure that confirmation of its mode of action will require significant further time and investment. Even absent that confirmation, however, there is now evidence of significant tumor suppression in mice through delivery of A2M. That seems quite promising. The naked mole-rat (NMR), a subterran...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs