Over the centuries, the venom of animals has had its range of uses, from cosmetics to the treatment of various illnesses. Quite some years ago, there was a mortality study conducted on beekeepers, which showed that there was a slightly lower mortality incidence of cancer in beekeepers than in normal people [1]. This sparked and interest into the venom of honeybees (Apis meliffera) [2] and its effects on cancerous cells. Bee venom is used to treat a variety of conditions. One condition that seems to be most popular in all the research is cancer. Cancer is a condition widely known as the rapid and uncontrolled division of cells. The venom of bees contains a peptide called Melittin (MEL), a major constituent of bee venom [1] that has potential to work as an anti-cancer drug. It is unknown what is the major pathway in which this peptide works; however, scientists are discovering multiple pathways in which the peptide works. The main effects that MEL has on tumor cells are that it: causes cell cycle alterations, effects growth and proliferation and it also induces apoptosis [1]. This essay aims to review and evaluate the different pathways through which MEL targets and kills cancer cells.
Bee venom, like most venom, contains a very complex mixture of peptides. Aside from peptides, bee venom also contains enzymes such as phospholipase A2, lipids, carbohydrates and other biological amines [1]. Studies show that the majority of the bee venom is composed of MEL, phospholipase A2 (PLA2) and other small amino acids [1]. MEL is composed of 26 amino acids (NH2-Gly-Ile-Gly-Ala-Val-Leu-Lys-Val-Leu-Thr-Th-Gly-Leu-Pro-Ala-Leu-Ile-Ser-Trp-Ile-Lys-Arg-Lys-Arg-Gln-Gln-CONH2) [1] [3] forming two alpha helices creating an overall “bent-rod” shape [3]....
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...s. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B. 2013; 117 (17): 5031--5042.
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Jae-Moon Shin Y. Melittin Suppresses HIF-1α/VEGF Expression through Inhibition of ERK and mTOR/p70S6K Pathway in Human Cervical Carcinoma Cells. 2013; 8 (7) Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3720276/ [Accessed 8 Mar 2014].
Huh J, Kang J, Nam D, Baek Y, Choi D, Park D, Lee J. Melittin Suppresses VEGF-A-Induced Tumor Growth by Blocking VEGFR-2 and the COX-2-Mediated MAPK Signaling Pathway. Journal of natural products. 2012; 75 (11): 1922--1929.
Earlier in movie, one of the characters described queen wasps as being on the same level as black widows; they are carnivorous, paralyze their victims and kill their mates. They are wrong on a few counts. Wasp stings don’t paralyze victims, neither do black wi...
The beet Lab experiment was tested to examine bio-membranes and the amount of betacyanin extracted from the beets. The betacyanin is a reddish color because it transmits wavelengths in red color and absorbs most other colors. The membrane is composed of a phospholipid bilayer with proteins embedded in it. The phospholipid bilayer forms a barrier that is impermeable to many substances like large hydrophilic molecules. The cells of beets are red and have large vacuoles that play a big role for the reddish pigment. This experiment aimed to answer the question, “How do cell membranes work?” The hypothesis we aim to test is: Cell membranes work as a fluid mosaic bilayer of phospholipids with many embedded proteins. We predicted that the 50% Acetone will break down the most betacyanin. Our hypothesis was proven wrong by our data collected. We could test our predictions by doing the experiment multiple times and compare the
Rockmann, H., and D. Schadendorf. "Drug Resistance in Human Melanoma: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Opportunities" Onkologie 26 (December 2003): 581–587.
Specifically “TP53, p16INK4A, and SMAD4. The p53 nuclear protein activates transcription of a cyclin kinase inhibitor p21WAF1/CIP1. Following genomic stress, inappropriate growth factor stimulation or expression of oncogenic ras increased expression of p53, and thus p21WAF1/CIP1 resulted in inactivation of specific CDK/cyclin complexes” (MedScape). If this transformed cell can escape internal and external fail-safe mechanisms, receive nutrients, and activate its proliferative program, it can form a mass of cancerous cells. Tumor growth can cause the loss of pancreatic functions. Another characteristic of pancreatic cancer is metastasis happens early in tumor growth, which is most likely responsible for pancreatic cancer’s aggressive
The studies will continue to prove that the use of pesticides are dangerous for people, places and pollinators all over the world. The Colony Collapse disorder should be a high priority for everyone. Hold the big corporations accountable such as Bayer for the damage their products create all for profit. They will find ways to keep pushing the use of pesticides that continue wrecking a bee’s immune system. “Neonicotinoids affect insect’s central nervous system in ways that are cumulative and irreversible” (Mercola par.4) Bayer’s good intentions to enhance the amount of crops needed to be produced, but the end result has detrimental consequences on the honey bee’s
Works Cited Cox-Foster, D. L., Conlan, S., Holmes, E. C., Palacios, G., Evans, J. D., Moran, N. A.,. Quan, P. (2007). A metagenomic survey of microbes in honey bee colony collapse disorder. Science, 81(5848), 283-287. Timbrell, J. (2002).
Chemotherapy is the treatment of a tumor with chemical agents to reduce mass or eradicate a tumor completely. There are certain mechanisms by which chemotherapy inhibits cancer. The first mechanism is cell death by cytotoxicity. Some chemical agents in certain amounts are toxic to cells. The cells die due to the toxic...
Cancer starts when certain cells in the body are mutated or changed and begin to divide. Cancerous cells grow differently than normal cells, instead of progressing through the normal cell lifecycle, cancer cells continue to grow and create more abnormal cells. A specific trait of cancer cells is that they have the ability to infiltrate and grow into surrounding tissues, developing out of control and causing serious damage to the host (Vincent, 2008). Cells become cance...
Tumors are formed by the alteration of the body’s own cells. This can be caused by environmental factors such as radiation, like UV exposure, chemicals or viruses 1. These can disrupt genes that control growth and cause an increase in cell division and proliferation. Proto-oncogenes are those genes that control normal but essential cell processes that keep cell growth and death in check. Two important categories are apoptosis genes, which regulate cell death, and tumor suppressor genes, which decrease cell propagation 1 . If these genes were mutated to the point where they cannot produce a functioning protein, cell division would continue far past what it was supposed to and unhealthy cells would be allowed to live and continue to multiply. This is what creates a malignant tumor. Certain conditions in the body can also promote the growth of cancer cells. One of these is a deficiency of natural killer (NK) cells, which are able to kill cancer cells by creating a pore in the cell membrane with perforin and releasing granzymes into the cell. Low levels of perforin allow for tumor growth 1. Chronic inflammation can also ...
As an inducer of HIF-1 production, it’s been used to study the apoptotic effects in HepG2 cells.
... Lipkin, W.I.. A Metagenomic Survey of Microbes in Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder. Science. Volume 318, Number 58848, 6 September 2007, Pages 283 – 287.
...wth of both normal and malignant cells. The limited research that has been performed using these cells has yielded contradictory results: some results say that the alpha5beta1 integrins destroy cancer cells, other results have shown that cell division and other necessary cell functions have been encouraged by the integrin. But the research has predominantly shown that the results of the expression of alpha5beta1 integrins yield beneficial results in terms of cancer tumor reduction. More research needs to be done, but the knowledge obtained from this experiment that alpha5beta1 integrin prevents premature cell death is an excellent step forward in the fight against cancer. There are untold possibilities of the medical applications of not only alpha5beta1 integrins, but all of the many integrins and cell adhesion molecules that play important roles in cell function.
Flavonoids are widely distributed in plants, fulfilling many functions. Flavonoids are the most important in plant pigments for flower coloration, producing yellow, red, or blue pigmentation in plants designed to attract pollinators. In higher plants, flavonoids are involved in UV filtration, symbiotic nitrogen fixation and floral pigmentation. They may also act as chemical messengers, physiological regulators, and cell cycle inhibitors. Flavonoids, which are polyphenolic compounds, are a class of plant secondary metabolites possessing a broad spectrum of pharmacological activity including anti-cancer activities. Among the various natural products, flavonoids have attracted much attention due to their remarkable spectrum of pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, antimutagenic, antibacterial, antiangiogenic,anti-inflammatory, antiallergic, modulators of enzymatic activities and anti-cancer activity. Flavonoids have been found act as protein kinase inhibitors which can prevent alterations in phosphorylation that result in uncontrolled cell division, inhibition of apoptosis, and other abnormalities. Flavonoids can be known as angiogenesis agents. Angiogenesis is a physiological process resulting in formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels. Antigiogenesis cause rapid growth of solid tumor and tumor metasta-sis are promoted by uncontrolled tumor angiogenesis. The flavonoids can control this growth of tumor. Besides that, flavonoids also can act as antioxidants which known as substances that delay, prevent or remove oxidative damage to a target molecule (Ravishankar et al., 2013).
Uterine cancer is an important women health problem developing rapidly, killing over 200,000 women each year. No one has discovered the actual cause, but there is a leading factor that has great suspicions to what is causing this cancer to grow rapidly.
Bees are small flying insects, buzzing around with its painful stings which always make people afraid and annoyed. What generally relate with bees are their roles in pollination and producing honey and beeswax. So it seems that bees might be nothing to human as it’s easy to find substitutes for honey as flavoring. However, this perception is mistaken. Without bees, aftermath.