June 13, 2022
Keio University
The Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research
Institute of Quantitative Biosciences, The University of Tokyo
Hirosaki University
Naoaki Kurisawa (a third-year student in the Doctoral Programs) and Kazuya Teranuma (a second-year master's student) of the Graduate School of Science and Technology, Keio University, and Senior Assistant Professor Arihiro Iwasaki and Professor Kiyotake Suenaga of the university's Faculty of Science and Technology, have discovered a potent cell proliferation inhibitor from marine cyanobacteria collected from the coral reefs of Ie-jima Island (Ie Village, Okinawa Prefecture), which is expected to be applied to anticancer drugs.
Substances produced by living organisms include those with properties effective in treating diseases. To discover new substances of this kind, the research team has been conducting an ongoing search targeting marine organisms in the Okinawa and Amami regions. As a result, they discovered a new chemical substance from marine cyanobacteria collected from the coral reefs of Ie-jima Island that suppresses cell proliferation at extremely low concentrations, and named it iezoside. Detailed analysis revealed that iezoside has a potent inhibitory effect on the function of the calcium ion pump (SERCA) on the endoplasmic reticulum membrane within cells, and that its potency is the second strongest among all chemical substances discovered by humankind to date. Furthermore, the research team has also succeeded in the chemical synthesis of iezoside, paving the way for a mass supply route. SERCA is a protein that has recently attracted attention as a therapeutic target for cancer, and in fact, the development of drugs for prostate cancer targeting SERCA is underway. Therefore, it is expected that the newly discovered iezoside will be applied to the development of anticancer drugs.
This research was conducted in collaboration with Dr. Shingo Dan of The Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, Project Professor Chikashi Toyoshima of the Institute of Quantitative Biosciences at The University of Tokyo, and Professor Masaru Hashimoto of Hirosaki University. The results of this research were published in the online edition of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, published by the American Chemical Society, on June 8.
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