Shark blood cancer cure?
- added October 13, 2008
- 46 responses
-
-
-
- oblivious
- added this
-
-
- related topics
-
- Culture (17822)
- WTF (14601)
- Earth and Science (13157)
- Health (5036)
- Animals (1775)
- World News (1660)
- Cancer (508)
- Animal Rights (204)
- Sharks (80)
- Cure for Cancer (6)
Sharks have immune systems similar to humans, but their antibodies - the molecules which actually fight disease - are exceptionally resilient.
Researchers believe this quality could be harnessed to help slow the spread of diseases such as cancer.
Potentially, it could lead to a new generation of drug treatments.
The Australian team found that shark antibodies can withstand high temperatures as well as extremely acidic or alkaline conditions.
Gut
This means they would potentially be able to survive in the harsh environment of the human gut, which is crucial to the development of a cancer-fighting pill.
Associate Prof Mick Foley from Melbourne's La Trobe University said the shark molecules can also attach themselves to cancer cells and stop them spreading.
"The cells actually grow less than where we don't add a shark antibody or we add a completely irrelevant shark antibody," he said.
"So this indicates the shark antibody that we have is binding to those cancer cells and for some reason causing them to grow more slowly and perhaps even killing them."
Sharks were chosen for the project because they have robust immune systems and rarely succumb to infections.
There is already evidence that their antibodies can slow the spread of breast cancer.
But it is also hoped that they could eventually be used to treat other conditions, such as malaria and rheumatoid arthritis.
-
Sounds like the plot to Deep Blue Sea!
-
-
- phillyharper
- 1 month ago
-
-
great now we are gonna kill off all the sharks just to save a few humans
-
what happens after people have taken the shark anti-bodies for an extended amount of time and grow gills? huh?! then what?!
-
First the virgin birth of Jawsus, now Jawsus can potentially cure cancer? IT REALLY IS JAWSUS!!
-
hey @least the researchers are trying some other resources to help us! we dont have to live our whole lives dependent on chemically made drugs!
-
-
- peaceduck25
- 1 month ago
-
-
the lord gave us animals so that we can eat them, and use them to help us. that does not mean we can go and kill them all off, but this could save thousands of lives.
-
-
- soccerchic862
- 1 month ago
-
-
A bit late - sharks are on the verge of extinction because of man.
-
-
- Vierotchka
- 1 month ago
-
-
If this is true, kill all sharks for the people who have cancer.We can regulate the kills to a point. After all humans are on the upper link of the food chain.
-
-
- GRIPEABOUTSTRIPES
- 1 month ago
-
-
No one's up in arms about their local grocer serving up la sharke in the meat section of their deli. Seeing as we're cloning I'm sure there's something we can learn about the makeup of the antibody and reproduce it. I just saw a trailer with Christian Bale going at it with a 50 foot robot armed w/ a space age anti aircraft gun. I'm sure we can make it happen, people!
-
No one said anything about killing sharks. We can learn about their immunological responses with a few vials of blood, much like immunological research with humans. That's what makes this even more fascinating.
-
is it all sharks or certain species. i bet if you take mako antibodies you become fast as lightning.
-
-
- satanskidney
- 1 month ago
-
-
Why research shark's blood when there is a perfectly good cure for cancer, it is plentiful and cheap.
-
-
- Vierotchka
- 1 month ago
-
-
You don't need to kill 100 sharks to get their information and use it to Fight cancer. Sharks have been around for muuuchhh longer than us and have sustained all types of diseases.
Sounds Good.
-
Please tell me something has changed and I am just the last one to know it. That would so make my day.
Unless laws did change, Japanese or other shark fishing boats will go, catch sharks, remove the fins, and toss the sharks back into the water, causing more sharks to come, and massive slaughters of every kind of shark to happen. They kill sharks until their holds are full of nothing but fins in most every case. That's what brings in the bucks the fins. Anyone realize the amount of sharks it takes to do that? It's massive. And I think totally irresponsible.
So guys, there is Plenty of shark blood if we make them preserve it. Then maybe the lives of the sharks won't be so in vain. And it would take up more room on their ships if they had to bring back blood and fins, or sharks whole... even better.
That whole deal has always made me upset. Like shark fin soup is that great anyhow.
I never had it, but I don't eat seafood, even in Japan, I just don't seafood. ick.-
-
- arcticspirit
- 1 month ago
-
-
so a bit of shark blood mixed in whit some radio active scorpion venom
and BAM cancers gone-
-
- rainbowryan420
- 1 month ago
-
-
Sounds like a potential discovery, though I hope people don't start getting too over-excited at the idea of shark-cures and start mass-ordering shark fin soup. A sure-fire way of losing a potential cancer cure - and an amazing species too.
-
You have to wonder how it is those creatures can survive for so many years. and to our knowledge they live their lives relatively free of disease or illness.
By the way I was eaten by a friggen shark. A shark ate me. lol
Samuel L. Jackson is crap
-
-
- Nitewalkar
- 1 month ago
-
-
I'm pretty sure the Chinese have been using shark bits in their medicines for AGES...but if it's going to help cancer, then it's good...if there are any sharks left by the time they figure it out
-
-
- dirtyemowords
- 1 month ago
-
-
This research is bullshit and everyone in the scientific community knows it.
There are looking seed money and grants. Total lies. Fuck these idiots.
-
Ugh, you people. Seriously.
They wouldn't have to go out and "kill all the sharks".... they would recreate the enzymes in the blood that have this potential. Like Vaccines?It's no wonder the world laughs at Americans.
-
-
- chillwillNJ
- 1 month ago
-
-
i think it could work
it might not be real
but i still support it. -
this is very interseting!
:Oi never knew that or i would
of never even thought something like thisshark blood?
really? -
sharks blood can cure cancer?
thats crazy -
hahhaha have you seen deep blue see a shark ate me a fing shark ate me hahla\
it seems that as we go forth into the future there have been more and more significant breakthroughs in medicine, science, technology and new understandings of were we came or what we cam from.
(which makes me think if the goverment somehow is behind this conspiracy theory lol) -
poor sharks, first fin soup, now cancer cures...just let people die its natural! Cancer sucks, but so does over population. We keep our fatally sick alive as long as possible, our old way past their use, and still diseases exist. If we cure cancer, another will replace it. This is the way life works.
-
-
- krush_producions
- 1 month ago
-
