| The folk medicine in China has yielded a new | | | | When artemisinin or any of its derivatives comes into |
| promising approach to treating cancer. The scientists | | | | contact with iron, a chemical reaction occurs, |
| in Seattle have proven that a compound extracted | | | | spawning charged atoms that chemists call free |
| from the wormwood plant seeks out and destroys | | | | radicals. The free radicals in malaria attack and bind |
| the cells of breast cancer and leaving healthy cells | | | | with cell membranes, breaking them apart and killing |
| unscathed. An inexpensive, non-toxic and safe | | | | the single-cell parasite. They need iron to replicate |
| alternative, Artemisia is closely related to oxygen | | | | DNA when they divide. Cancer cells have much higher |
| therapy. The key to it's success is peroxide linkage | | | | iron concentrations than normal, because cancer is |
| within the herb's active molecule. | | | | characterized by out-of-control cell division. |
| Dr. Henry Lai, a bioengineering researcher from the | | | | Cancer cells have a lot more transferrin receptors on |
| University of Washington, reports that the compound | | | | the surface, cellular pathways that allow iron to enter. |
| killed virtually all human cancer cells exposed to it in | | | | According to Dr. Henry Lai, breast cancer cells have |
| the test tube within 16 hours, in laboratory | | | | 5-15 times more transferrin receptors on their |
| experiments. And nearly all the normal cells were alive. | | | | surface than normal breast cells. The strategy for Dr. |
| Chinese folk practitioners extracted Artemisin from | | | | Lai was to pump up cancer cells with even more iron |
| the plant Artemisia annua L., also known as | | | | and then introduce artemisinin to selectively kill them. |
| wormwood. It was used to treat malaria thousands | | | | Lai subjected both normal breast cells and breast |
| of years ago. | | | | cancer cells to either a compound known |
| Scientist started to experiment why artemisin works | | | | asholotransferrin, a water-soluble form of artemisinin |
| as an anti-malaria agent and this also led to its tests | | | | or both compounds. Lai reported that after eight |
| as an anticancer drug. High iron concentrations turned | | | | hours, three-fourths of the cancer cells were |
| out to be the a shared characteristic of dividing | | | | completely obliterated. Nearly all of them were dead |
| cancer cells and of the malaria parasite. | | | | after 16 hours. |