Since the online journal Metabolomics reported that an active biologic constituent in green tea altered the rate at which pancreatic cells metabolize, Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) scientists are sharing the good news. The lead researcher at the Los Angeles-based institute, Wai-Nang Lee, MD, said past findings are no longer relevant and that the active biologic constituent in green tea, ECGC, changes the metabolism of pancreatic cancer cells by suppressing the expression LDHA, an enzyme associated with cancer.
“Scientists had believed they needed a molecular mechanism to treat cancer, but this study shows that they can change the metabolic system and have an impact on cancer,” said Lee, who is also authoring the study.
Noting metabolism can now be viewed in an entirely different way , Lee added, “it is no longer a case of glucose goes in and energy comes out. Now we understand how cancer cell metabolism can be disrupted, and we can examine how we can use this knowledge to try to alter the course of cancer or prevent cancer.”
