MOLECULE IN PAAN MAY TREAT
BLOOD CANCER
A group of scientists in the centre for Scientific and Industrial Research here have claimed to have made a major break through in cancer studies when they sruck upon a molecule in betel (paan) leaf that targets and kills leukemia cells and holds the promise of becoming the world''s first herb based,cheap therapeutic drug for blood cancer. A multi- disciplinary team from CSIR''S premier lab Indian Institute of chemical Biology here is ecstatic with the serendipitous find since there is just one exorbitant drug currently available across the world for the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia, a severe type of blood cancer. The molecule, identified as chlorogenic acid, code - named ICB - 101 throughout the three - year hush- hush study, came as a chance discovery while the team was conducting immuno - modulatory studies on betel leaf and its effect on human cell lines. Team leader santu Bandyopadhyay said , we found that chlorogenic acid induced programmed cell death in human cancer cells transplanted in experimental nude mice. The 12 - member team, including IICB director and cell biologist Samir Bhattacharya, has applied for the US and global patents for the molecule. The molecule, tested on human cancer cell lines obtained from America, Milan - based Instituto Nazionale Tumori and Meikai University,Japan,showed no effect on the growth of non - cancerous cells. IICB ----------> INDIAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL BIOLOGY.
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