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News
January 30, 2012
NEW TARGET FOR CANCER THERAPY IDENTIFIED, PRECLINICAL STUDY SHOWS
TDO Enzyme Enables Tumors to Avoid Detection and Rejection by the Immune System
New York, NY, January 30, 2012 - Scientists from the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR) in Brussels identified a new target for cancer therapy, an enzyme which prevents the immune system from recognizing and destroying certain types of tumors. Called tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase or TDO, the enzyme works by depriving immune cells of tryptophan, an amino acid essential to their activity. TDO is produced by a significant number of human tumors. Scientists also show that blocking TDO activity with a novel TDO inhibitor promotes tumor rejection in mice. The study findings were published online today in the January 30 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
