Auckland Researchers Use Zebrafish To Screen Cancer Drugs
A new study from the University of Auckland reports that zebrafish embryos helped researchers screen thousands of compounds to identify four new potential anti-cancer drugs.
While the zebrafish is famous among the scientific community for its regenerative abilities and transgenic cousins GloFish, researchers are now also finding it particularly useful as a model for human biology. Auckland researchers used embryos of the striped fish to test potential drugs that will stop cancer spread in the lymphatic system, where many solid cancers find an avenue for metastasis and multiplication.
Professor Phil Crosier, leader of the research team, said that the work explores the molecular foundation of the lymphatic system and its development. The compounds tested showed potential in preventing cancer spread and might be administered in conjunction with chemotherapy. “Four drugs were used in zebrafish and then taken and tried in mammalian models/mice. All four drugs blocked mouse lymphatic development, but one blocked disease spread in the lymphatic system. We found some compounds that work and established good proof of principle in the use of zebrafish,” Prof. Crosier explained.
The compounds were then further investigated in mammalian cancer systems. Principal investigator Dr. Jonathan Astin said, “These big numbers allow us to weed out a lot of false positives and negatives using the zebrafish models. Then we can take the rest into mammalian models with their in vivo efficacy already proven.”
One of the drugs moved into mouse models was a natural compound found in plants, such as broccoli and capers. All drugs that showed potency in zebrafish demonstrated an anti-lymphatic function in mice and can be studied further for other uses, reported Prof. Crosier.
The researchers’ findings were published in the journal Molecular Cancer Therapeutics.
In addition to its work in cancer research, the University was also in the news earlier this month for its work in dementia research. The University announced the opening of a new dementia research clinic — the first of kind in New Zealand. The Auckland Dementia Research Clinic is the first to be established under the Brain Research New Zealand (BRNZ)’s Centre of Research Excellence (CoRE ) and will operate within the University’s Brain Recovery Clinic.