MADRID .- So far, some research had suggested that people who work night shifts have more cancer risk than the rest of the population. The key to this phenomenon is called circadian rhythm, our internal biological clock that regulates sleep-wake cycles. And judging by the latest results of a Spanish investigation, also plays an important role in the case of tumor cells.

This clock runs from the brain activity of all organs of our body to become more active at certain times than others. And such activity is also regulated in each cell individually, except in the case of the tumor, which appears to be ‘spoiled’, according to results of a study conducted by Professor Manel Esteller.

The job of program director Epigenetics IDIBELL biomedical research institute (in Barcelona) took the cover of the latest issue of the journal Cancer Research, American Society for Cancer Research (AACR, by its initials in English) .

Working with two different types of blood cancer, leukemia and lymphoma (both cell lines and in mice), Esteller and his team have discovered that tumor cells lack a molecule responsible for regulating the rest-wake rhythm. ” That makes them wake up and be allowed to permanently stimulate the production of cancer-causing genes (oncogenes), while it blocks the production of opposites: tumor suppressor.

The molecule of the biological clock that is inactive in cancer is BMAL1 responsible for checking that certain genes are expressed rhythmically. The good news, Esteller explains in a press release, is that there are drugs on the market capable of reviving this item when it is off, so it is possible to ‘switch on’ outside to return to regain control over the genes circadian.

As pointed in their conclusions, this finding could have implications when designing treatment strategies for patients, the chemotherapy at the time of day best suited for that malignant cells are more responsive (chronotherapy). However, the next step should be to confirm their results in larger trials with patients.

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