Two recent studies on carbohydrate molecules by Taiwan’s Academia Sinica may hold the key to developing effective vaccines for prostate cancer and meningitis, according to the Taipei-based research institute Aug. 9.
The first study synthesized an antigen that can be used to develop a vaccine for prostate cancer. Results showed that it is capable of inducing effective antibodies that can help destroy prostate cancer cells.
Based on a study by Japanese scientist Senitiroh Hakomori in 2005, the research indicated that antigen RM2 positively correlates with the degeneration of the prostate and is an ideal biomarker in cancer treatment.
The second study synthesized an antigen that can be used to develop a vaccine for meningitis. Results showed that it can induce antibodies with bactericidal activity.
Published in the July 31 issue of Journal of the American Chemical Society and July 10 issue of Angewandte Chemie International Edition, respectively, the studies were conducted by two teams under the supervision of Academia Sinica President Wong Chih-huey and Wu Chung-yi, associate research fellow at the institution’s Genomics Research Center.
Wu said most cells are coated with layers of carbohydrate molecules, with those on bacteria and diseases exhibiting different structures from those found on healthy human cells.
“Such molecules help disease cells survive under harsh circumstances, fighting attacks from the host’s immune system and increasing the disease cells’ pathogenicity.”
As celluar differentiation and diseases induce significant anomalies in these molecules, scientists are working to identify such special molecules and use them to develop antibacterial agents, cancer vaccines or early stage testing tools, Wu added.
According to Academia Sinica, scientific know-how developed under the two studies has been transferred to the private sector for product development. (SFC-JSM)
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