![\"researcher](\"https:\/\/magazines.uthscsa.edu\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2018\/01\/dna.jpg\")
Researchers have discovered epigenetic changes that contribute to one-fifth of cases of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), an aggressive cancer that arises out of the blood-forming cells in bone marrow. The mutations also play a role in a majority of low-grade gliomas, which are among the most-treatable brain tumors.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best way to treat a cancer is to understand it,\u201d said Ricardo C.T. Aguiar, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine. \u201cWe have added to the understanding of a broad swath of cancers.\u201d<\/p>\n
The cancers carry a mutation called isocitrate dehydrogenase, or IDH. In the future, cancers will be classified by genetic mutations such as these rather than by location, said Dr. Aguiar, a hematology-oncology researcher at UT Health San Antonio Cancer Center, and senior author of the study.<\/p>\n
IDH mutations alter an epigenetic process called RNA methylation, which leads to deregulation of hundreds of other genes and processes inside the tumor cell, the researchers found.<\/p>\n
Epigenetic modifications change gene activity but don\u2019t structurally change the body\u2019s genetic blueprints. Diet, aging, environmental exposure and other factors can prompt epigenetic changes that amplify or silence certain genes.<\/p>\n
A drug that inhibits these mutant enzymes is undergoing clinical trials. The discovery provides evidence for why the drug may help patients with acute myeloid leukemia and low-grade gliomas.<\/p>\n
\u201cAcute myeloid leukemia remains a very difficult-to-treat tumor and, unfortunately, the majority of patients still die of their disease,\u201d Dr. Aguiar said. \u201cBy better understanding how the IDH-dependent cancers work, we may be able to fine-tune future therapies and improve survival.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The best way to treat a cancer is to understand it. Researchers have added to the understanding of a broad swath of cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia and brain cancer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":11020,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63,219],"tags":[116,211],"ppma_author":[280],"class_list":["post-10971","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-university-in-motion","category-fall-2017-winter-2018","tag-cancer","tag-research"],"yoast_head":"\n