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Article “Quantensprung in der Krebsfrüherkennung” published in DUP Unternehmer Magazin (DUP Entrepreneur Magazine)
issue 01/24, February 23rd 2024 in German language. See English translation below.
Quantum leap in early cancer detection
It controls cell division and plays a crucial role in the development of the brain: TKTL1 has rightly been the focus of science and research for several years. It could also revolutionize the early detection and treatment of cancer. The discoverer of the gene, Dr. Johannes Coy, explains.
What distinguishes the Neanderthal brain from that of Homo sapiens? It couldn’t be size, so in 2022, research teams from the Max Planck Gesellschaft led by Wieland B. Huttner and the Nobel Prize winner for Medicine, Svante Pääbo, looked for other explanations. The result: during brain development, modern humans produce more nerve cells in the frontal lobe than their extinct relatives. The reason for this is a change in a single amino acid in the protein transketolase-like 1, or TKTL1 for short.
The formation of neurons in the fetal brain is considered an important factor for improved cognitive abilities during evolution. It may come as a surprise that TKTL1 plays a decisive role in this process: When Dr. Johannes Coy at the German Cancer Research Institute discovered the gene in the early 1990s, he postulated that the gene had a “special function in certain cells”. However, he was alone in this opinion at the time. “At the time, we were collaborating with the Sanger Center in the UK, and they said the gene was broken. I could forget about it,” explains the molecular biologist.
As a defective gene, it was ignored by researchers. But those days are now over: according to Coy, TKTL1 has gone “from being a defective gene to the most important gene in humans”. The enzyme not only plays a fundamental role in the development of the brain, but also in the entire cell process – from cell division to the repair of damaged cells.
Main factor in the formation of new cells
In general, the importance of TKTL1 can hardly be overestimated. People who lack the enzyme have a life expectancy of only 30 to 35 years. However, not only healthy cells benefit from TKTL1 metabolism. Unwanted cells, such as cells infected by viruses and cancer cells, are also beneficiaries of the TKTL1 metabolism. Coy therefore advocates the inclusion of TKTL1 “in the early detection and treatment of cancer”.
About the person
Dr Johannes Coy
is a German biologist and cancer researcher. He is the
discoverer of the genes TKTL1 and DNaseX (Apo10)
TKTL1 as a universal marker for tumor types
Using the proprietary platform technology “EDIM®” (Epitope Detection in Monocytes), the stomach contents of macrophages, the scavenger cells of the immune system, are examined. These immune cells eliminate unwanted cells in the body. “Our immune system recognizes tumour cells and eats them up,” says Coy. The “PanTum Detect®” looks for increased concentrations of two markers in the macrophages – one of which is TKTL1 – which reflect processes that are present in all cells and therefore apply to all tumor types.
More targeted use of imaging
If DNaseX (Apo10) and TKTL1 are elevated, the “PanTum Detect®” provides a conspicuous result, i.e. an indication of malignant cancer. “If you have the biomarkers, then you can use imaging in a more targeted way,” says Coy, explaining the great potential of TKTL1 and “PanTum Detect®” for early cancer detection. Various studies carried out at Tübingen University Hospital and elsewhere, both with supposedly healthy test subjects and with cancer patients, underline the performance of the blood test and markers: “PanTum Detect®” has a sensitivity of 95.2 percent (sick people are recognized as sick) and a specificity of 99.5 percent (healthy people are recognized as healthy).