Scientists have created a protein that resists radiation
(ORDO NEWS) — The new fusion protein , created by Russian scientists, can withstand the impact of radiation on the body. Development has already gone from design and performance studies to animal testing.
Research results showed that the new protein protected animals from a lethal dose of radiation. In the future, it can be used to treat various diseases, wounds and organ transplants.
Scientists of the Kurchatov Institute as part of a research group analyzed the PSH protein, which has radioprotective properties, reports press service of the National Research Center. The results are published in the journal Biochemical Engineering Journal…
To create the protein, the authors used genetic engineering. The complex molecule consists of two natural antioxidants – peroxiredoxin, which is found in the human body, and bacterial superoxide dismutase. The researchers carried out structural studies of the resulting protein to explain its unusual properties.
“We made sure that the active centers, on the one hand, do not interfere with each other’s work, but on the other, they are in the same bundle, which allows them to effectively act on harmful molecules. Now, knowing the structure, we can offer biologists options for modifying it to further enhance the radioprotective properties, ”explained Valeria Samygina, head of the structural biology department of the Kurchatov complex of NBIKS-nature-like technologies.
Preclinical studies have shown that PSH protects animals from even lethal doses of radiation, while being harmless to the body. In the future, scientists plan to create more advanced versions of PSH, which can be used not only for protection from radiation, but also for the treatment of pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases, wounds and burns, as well as for organ transplantation.
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