Lipid in Avocados May be Key to Leukemia
WATERLOO, Ontario, June 15 (UPI) — A molecule derived from avocados, avocatin B, may prove to be a powerful weapon against leukemia because it targets the disease while leaving other cells alone, a new study shows.
The discovery is important because there are few treatments aimed at leukemia stem cells, which researchers said are the root of the disease.
“The stem cell is really the cell that drives the disease,” said Professor Paul Spagnuolo, of the University of Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy, in a press release. “The stem cell is largely responsible for the disease developing and it’s the reason why so many patients with leukemia relapse. We’ve performed many rounds of testing to determine how this new drug works at a molecular level and confirmed that it targets stem cells selectively, leaving healthy cells unharmed.”
Stem cells, Spagnuolo said, are the reason that so many leukemia patients relapse. “Not only does avocatin B eliminate the source of AML,” he said, “but its targeted, selective effects make it less toxic to the body, too.”
Researchers said that a drug could increase life expectancy for patients of the disease, which is fatal within 5 years for 90 percent of seniors over age 65 who are diagnosed with it.
The study is published in Cancer Research.
