I have subscribed to Harvard Magazine since graduation (let’s see, that would add up to more than, yikes!, a couple of decades ago 😉 )…but not to the Harvard Gazette, so that explains why I didn’t read a Gazette article on JQ1 back in September. Luckily, yesterday an attentive blog reader sent me the link…many thanks, DP!!! Here it is: http://goo.gl/wRLzH
As you listen to the interview with Dr. Bradner, please keep in mind that “Mick” is not the name of his next door neighbour 😉 , but rather is the “Myc” gene that I have written about in my JQ1 posts.
A lovely image: JQ1 cuts the cable between “Mick” and the (cancer) growth genes, Dr. Bradner says at one point. Meaning, cancer cells can’t grow anymore. Thumbs UP!
But the following is most definitely far from…lovely. Dr. Bradner states (at minute 2:40, more or less) that myeloma cells can become resistant to JQ1…that basically, their cellular operating system shuts down in the presence of JQ1. Ooooooh. Not good, of course. We all know that myeloma cells eventually become resistant to chemo drugs…and, to be honest, I’d hoped that things would be different with JQ1. But it seems that those crappy little cells have a cunning little “brain” of their own…
But hey, the JQ1 research is still in an early phase, and, food for thought!, perhaps this resistance could be overcome by using curcumin or other non-toxic compounds, which are known to chemosensitize even the most stubbornly resistant cancer cells. Here is an example…On October 21st I reported on this bortezomib (=Velcade)-curcumin study: http://goo.gl/UrDj1 And there are dozens of similar studies in PubMed…dozens…
Anyway, HOPE with capital letters is still the name of the game….And this is mainly thanks to the Harvard team’s Open Access philosophy, which is the most exciting thing I’ve heard or read about in ages, but OK I’ve written enough about that… In the meantime, do your research, take your curcumin and vitamin D and whatnot, avoid stress, laugh a belly laugh every day, eat your watercress and celery…aaaaaaaah, speaking of which!, stay tuned for tomorrow’s post, which will discuss yet another important veggie that we should add to our intake…Hint hint hint: it’s the main ingredient in a popular kind of pie…hehe.
Exciting times…lots of information pouring in…mostly thanks to y’all! 🙂
I sent the article to a friend, as this was his reply.
“The scientists will have to find an additional drug to stop the resistance
of the myeloma cell JQ1…
They call that a Jocktail drug combo…”