Works Cited: Harvard University. "Toxin-secreting stem cells treat brain tumors, in mice." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 October 2014. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141024124613.htm>.
The Harvard Stem Cell Institute has developed a way to use stem cells to battle brain cancers. The leader of this team, Khalid Shah, recently showed the importance of stem cells that were filled with a cancer-killing herpes virus. He and his team now have developed a method to genetically engineer stem cells so they can produce cancer-killing toxins. This team has used these stem cells on mice, who have had their main tumor removed, in order to kill any remaining cancer cells. These stem cells are placed at the site of the removed tumor and they are covered by a biodegradable gel. This is a new method of delivery might fix the issues with delivery that have been tried with this type of stem cell delivery into people’s brains. These stem cells have been successful with types of blood cancers, but have not worked as well with solid tumors because of the extremely short half-life of the toxins and density of the tumors. When Shah and his team realized that stem cells could be used to consistently deliver these toxins, their main issue was how to ensure the stem cells would not be killed themselves by the toxins. Shah started genetically engineering their stem cells and stated, "Now, we have toxin-resistant stem cells that can make and release cancer-killing drugs." These stem cells are engineered to not allow the toxin to work inside the cell. Therefore, these stem cells are never killed by their toxins, but are also genetically engineered to make and secrete these toxins. Then the toxins, which are tagged, enter the cancer cells without also entering the normal cells. They stop the cancer cells from producing proteins, which kill off the cells. These toxins are called cytotoxins. Shah and his team have tried this therapy on mice with resected brain tumors. The trials were successful showing the toxins killed the cancer cells and therefore prolonged the lives of these mice. Shah wants to use the toxin-secreting stem cells with other therapies that he and his team developed to continue their success with glioblastomas and other common types of brain tumors. Shah thinks that this therapy could go to clinical trial within the next 5 years.
Almost everyone is affected by cancer in one way or another, whether is is having cancer or knowing someone affected by cancer, it is a vicious disease. While standard treatments work for some people, others do not respond to them. It is cutting-edge research like this that can lead to new therapies and therefore successful treatment for those who aren’t responding to regular treatment. It gives these people knew hope for a cure to their disease and more time on Earth.
I thought this article was very well written and thorough. The author did a good job of using quotes from Shah and explaining the positive implications that is discovery could have on the treatment of certain brain tumors. The author did leave out talking about how Shah and his team actually engineer the cells, which I think would be interesting. Other than that, it was very well written and extremely informative.
Ansley,
ReplyDeleteI thought you did a great job, once again, with your current event review. One thing you did nicely is that you summarized the article in a very organized, thorough, and thoughtful manner. You walked the reader through, step by step, how stem cells have been used to treat brain tumors in mice and how this may be applicable to humans and other types of brain tumors going forwards. Also, you did an excellent job of explaining how these studies relate to the world. Experimental drugs and procedures go through an enormous amount of experiments before even making it to clinical trials, and I thought you did a very good job of sifting through this and creating a cohesive argument applicable to our lives. Lastly, I thought you wrote to your audience very well. You used an academic vocabulary that is still in the vocabulary of your peers; thus creating a sophisticated argument that is easily understood. Again, great job.
One small thing your review may have been lacking is quantitative data or statistics. Although you did an excellent job of describing the process of the treatments and how they can be applied, you did not provide any statistics regarding how long the procedure takes or the mortality rate. However, this treatment is still in early testing, so it is understandable that you did not include these statistics as they may be irrelevant or unavailable. Also, you integrated an excellent quote into your review, but you failed to identify the author of the quote. I think identifying the author of the quote, even if it is the same as the author of the piece, would enhance your argument.
Overall, I thought you did an excellent job writing this review and in my opinion, you picked a fascinating topic. One thing I learned from your review is how successful these studies using stem cells have proved to be. I find it astounding that the researchers have progressed so fast with this study, to the extent of which it will likely be considered for clinical trial very soon.
Again, great work.
Ansley, I really enjoyed reading this review. Your summary of the article clearly laid out the the main points of the article, which made it easy to read. I really liked how you took the time to lay out the steps of the procedure and how it worked to the reader. It was interesting to read about how they took lots of time experimenting with mice to finally produce the genetically modified stem cells that can kill cancerous tumors without killing themselves. Lastly, I liked how you related this new discovery to the world today and its relevance; this made your review more authentic. It does take many trials and years of research to get a drug or method approved in today's world. Hopefully, this use of stem cells will be a hit and help scientists progress to find a true cure for cancer.
ReplyDeleteAlthough your review was overall very positive and informative, there are areas for improvement. I think in your first paragraph, you could use a little more statistical data to support and further enhance your review. Knowing that the trials are in an early stage, it would have been nice to see some data to truly show the extensive trials that were needed to support this research and an estimate in either the cost, number of trials, mortality rate, or how long the whole process takes. Statistical data always enhances an argument or review and I believe that is the only thing that your review is lacking. The only other thing that I would have liked to see in your article would have been your personal experience. Knowing that you worked in labs before, I think it would have behooved you to include the extreme precision needed in a lab.
I was initially drawn to this article because I think the evolution of stem cells is riveting. It’s amazing what scientists can do to genetically modify the way these cells function. To turn them into cancer killing beasts is very interesting and I hope to read more about it in the future.
Works Cited: Harvard University. "Toxin-secreting stem cells treat brain tumors, in mice." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 October 2014. .