New cancer treatment strategies may be on the horizon, following a groundbreaking discovery involving beer yeast by researchers at the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Medicine.
In collaboration with scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Germany, UVA researchers have identified a novel adaptation in yeast cells that enables them to enter a dormant state during periods of nutrient scarcity. This hibernation-like response closely resembles the survival tactics employed by cancer cells, which often endure nutrient shortages as they grow uncontrollably.
Ahmad Jomaa, a researcher from the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics at UVA, emphasized the significance of this finding. “Cells can take a break when things get tough by going into deep sleep to stay alive, then at a later point, they seemingly just come back,” he explained. “Understanding how cells adapt to starvation and how they become dormant could provide insights into making cancer cells more susceptible to treatment.”
The yeast in question, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, has been utilized for centuries in brewing beer and serves as a vital research tool due to its similarity to human cells. By gaining a deeper understanding of S. pombe, scientists hope to uncover fundamental cellular processes that are applicable to both healthy and cancerous cells.
Jomaa and his team, alongside Simone Mattei and colleagues from the European lab, made a striking discovery about how yeast cells hibernate to avoid stress. They found that during this dormant state, the yeast cells’ mitochondria—often referred to as the cell’s powerhouses—become coated with inactive ribosomes, the cellular machinery responsible for protein synthesis.
Mattei noted, “There could be different explanations for this phenomenon. A starved cell might start digesting itself, so the ribosomes could be protecting the mitochondria or initiating a signaling cascade within them.”
Using advanced techniques such as single-particle cryo-electron microscopy and cryo-electron tomography, researchers visualized the ribosomes attaching to the mitochondria in a previously unseen manner. Remarkably, they found that the ribosomes attached themselves “upside down,” utilizing a small subunit of their structure. This unprecedented interaction could shed light on the mechanisms by which cells enter and exit dormancy.
Graduate student Maciej Gluc, co-first author of a recent paper detailing the findings, stated, “We knew that cells would try to save energy by shutting down their ribosomes, but we were not expecting them to attach in this inverted position on the mitochondria.”
Cancer cells, characterized by their relentless growth, frequently face nutrient shortages and often slip into dormancy to evade detection by the immune system. Understanding the mechanisms behind this dormancy may pave the way for innovative approaches to target these resilient cells, ultimately improving patient outcomes and reducing the likelihood of relapse.
Looking ahead, Jomaa expressed the team’s goal of deciphering both the regulation of dormancy and the awakening process of cells. “For now, we will use yeast because it is much easier to manipulate. We are also exploring this in cultured cancer cells, which presents additional challenges,” he said.
“Ultimately, I hope our research will lay the groundwork for identifying new markers to detect dormant cancer cells,” Jomaa concluded. “These cells often go undetected in diagnostic settings, but we are optimistic that our findings will spark greater interest and contribute to our objectives.”
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