Developing new molecular methods for synthetizing treatments for drug-resistant cancers

Developing new molecular methods for synthetizing treatments for drug-resistant cancers

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Politics & Government Week -- Worcester, Mass. - Anita Mattson, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), has received a $1.7 million award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a new class of catalysts that could make it possible to reliably synthesize organic compounds that hold the promise of treating cancers that have become resistant to commonly used chemotherapy medications. The catalysts may also open the door to a new approach to discovering new drugs for cancer and many other diseases.

Mattson’s grant from the NIH, known as an R35, is a relatively new award reserved specifically for early stage investigators whose research shows exceptional promise. The agency says the awards are designed “to provide long-term support to an experienced investigator with an outstanding record of research productivity. This support is intended to encourage investigators to embark on long-term projects of unusual potential.”

Drug resistance is a common and intractable problem in chemotherapy. Too often, cancers that at first respond well to commonly used treatments suddenly begin to grow again. The problem is often complicated by deficiencies that inhibit the body’s own anti-cancer immune response.

Among the drugs that can lose their potency is cisplatin, which is often the first line of …

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(2017-11-30), Developing new molecular methods for synthetizing treatments for drug-resistant cancers, Politics & Government Week, 242, ISSN: 1944-270X, BUTTER® ID: 014766475