The therapy that could help prevent food-related liver cancer
New research has identified a pathway involving the genes p53 and TIGAR that may prevent fatty liver disease from progressing to liver cancer, a condition for which there are currently no effective treatments.
Researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University, the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute, and The Francis Crick Institute discovered that p53 protects the liver from high-fat, high-sugar diets through the gene TIGAR, which acts as an antioxidant and detoxifies lipids in a fatty liver.
The breakthrough suggests that antioxidant therapy could be developed to mimic the protective response of p53 and TIGAR, potentially preventing the development of key features of fatty liver disease.
Dr. Timothy Humpton noted that the research establishes a key role for p53 and TIGAR in protecting against the progression from liver disease to liver cancer, suggesting that targeting this pathway through antioxidants is of great interest for future therapies.
He also highlighted that fatty liver disease, often caused by poor diet and lack of exercise, is hard to diagnose due to its asymptomatic nature.
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