Cell Immortality Revoked: Novel Method for Removing Gene Inhibitors from DNA to Induce Apoptosis to Kill Cancer Cells

Overview

Cell immortality sounds good but is root cause of most cancers. This happens when certain functional tags attach to DNA periphery, suppressing apoptosis (self-dead), allowing uncontrollable cell replication. What if functional groups can be removed chemically from DNA, allowing cancer cell to act like normal cells and induce self-death? My idea uses valproic acid (VPA) sodium-salt, to remove gene inhibitors suppressing apoptosis in DNA of cancer cells. Literature shows VPA can re-express certain genes suppressed by DNA methylation. I studied pancreatic and brain cancer cells, both grown for 4 weeks with biweekly growth media change. Next, VPA cells treatment was done, dose ranged 3x10^5 to 0.3 µg/mL in steps of 0.1 dilution; followed by addition of fluorescent marker. Most cancer cells were live (90-91%) prior to VPA treatment as per marker color observed under an optical microscope. After VPA treatment, majority of both types of cancer cells died. At 3x10^5 µg/ml VPA dose, live cancer cells dropped to 31-33%. Optical and confocal laser scanning microscope images showed cell blebbing, C-shaped and cell-fragmentation, all signs of cell apoptosis. Flow cytometry also supported apoptosis by reduction in front-side-scatter area of the cells at higher VPA dose due to cell fragmentation. The results were very positive and open a new method of treating cancer by changing the molecular configuration of DNA of the cancer cell to self-destruct instead of using brute force to kill cancer cells by chemotherapy or radiation which also kills normal healthy cells.

Competition history

• ISEF 2015 Biomedical Engineering · Entry BMED107I

Resources

• ISEF abstract page ↗

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