Liver cancer research led by City University of Hong Kong has identified a metabolic pathway that suppressed tumor growth in mice, pointing to a potential target for future treatment. The findings do not establish that fructose or the experimental compound tested can treat liver cancer in people.

Key Takeaways

  • Fructose suppressed tumors in mice lacking the ALDOB gene in their livers, but had almost no effect in mice with normal gene expression.
  • The researchers identified ebselen as an inhibitor of the same pathway and filed a patent application for its use in liver cancer.

Liver cancer research points to a metabolic weakness

The study focused on hepatocellular carcinoma, or HCC. Researchers found that as the cancer progresses, expression of ALDOB, a gene involved in breaking down fructose, declines. They also observed metabolic features in human HCC tissue samples that were consistent with those in their mouse model.

In mice with a liver-specific ALDOB knockout, drinking water supplemented with 10% fructose suppressed tumor formation and growth. The team found that a fructose-derived compound accumulated and inhibited an enzyme called mannose phosphate isomerase, or MPI, triggering stress and cell death in cancer cells.

Compound tested in mice

After screening approximately 2,000 drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration or in clinical trials, the team identified ebselen as an MPI inhibitor. In mouse models, ebselen suppressed liver cancer growth and enhanced tumor suppression when combined with sorafenib, an existing targeted therapy.

Ebselen has previously undergone clinical trials, but the reported liver cancer findings were from mouse models. The researchers said they had filed a patent application for its use as a liver cancer treatment.

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