One study shows that a drug used by more than 8 million people in the UK can help the immune system fight cancer and reduce tumors.
Serotonin restore inhibitors are widely used, or SSRIS- used to increase the availability of serotonin in the brain, a neurotransmitter that contributes to mood, emotions and sleep.
But scientists have also discovered that the drug can enhance the ability of T cells, a type of white blood cell to combat cancer and suppress tumor growth in a wide range of cancers.
The study, published in the Journal of Cell by UCLA in California, examined the models of mice and human tumors responsible for melanoma, breast, prostate, colon and bladder.
“It seems that SSRIs don’t just make our brains happier; they also make our T cells happier – even while they are tumors,” said Dr. Lily Young
“These drugs have been widely used to treat depression for decades, so their recapture for cancer is much easier than creating a completely new treatment.”
While serotonin is best known for its role in the brain, it also plays a role in digestion, metabolism and immune activity.
Dr. Young and his team began researching the role of serotonin in the fight against cancer for the first time after the immune cells separated from the tumors had a higher level of serotonin regulatory molecules.
Initially, they focused on Mao-A, an enzyme that breaks down serotonin and other neurotransmitters, including norepinephrine and dopamine.
In 2021, they reported that T cells produce Mao-A when detecting tumors, making it harder for them to fight cancer.
They found that the treatment of mice with melanoma and colon cancer using MAO inhibitors, as well as MAOI – the first class of antidepressants invented – helped T -cells attack tumors more effectively.
But since Maois can cause side effects and interact with specific foods, they decided to try a different serotonin regulatory molecule: SERT.
Dr. Bo Lee, the first author of the study and a senior research scientist in Yang Lab, explained: “Unlike Mao -a, which breaks down several neurotransmitters, SERT has a job – to transfer serotonin.”
“The sert is made for a very attractive goal because the drugs they act – SSRIs – are used using minimal side effects,” said Dr. Lee.
Researchers tested SSRIs in mice and human tumors on behalf of melanoma, breast, prostate, colon and bladder, and found that they were reducing more than half the size of the tumor.
The antidepressant is also made more efficiently, known as the Cancer Cancer, known as the T -killer cells.
The team also tested antidepressants along with existing cancer therapies that suppress immune cell activity so that T cells could attack T cells. This compound reduces the size of the tumor in all treated mice.
However, to confirm these findings, the team should examine whether patients with cancer in the real world of SSRI have better results.
