[(From left) Ji-hyun Kim and Chae-yeon Lee, undergraduate students in the Department of Applied Chemistry, Bio-pharmaceutical Major at Kookmin University; Min-seong Choi, graduate student in the Department of Bio-pharmaceutical Sciences (co-first author); Hyun-jung Kim, professor (co-corresponding author); Gyun Heo, professor (provided by Kookmin University)]
Kookmin University (President Lim Hong-jae) announced that Kim Ji-hyun, a senior student majoring in Bio-pharmaceuticals in the Department of Applied Chemistry (advisor Professor Heo Gyun), participated as a co-first author in a research paper on the development of ovarian cancer anticancer drugs using drug repositioning, which was published in the SCI-level international journal Biomedicines (Impact Factor, IF 4.757).
Drug repositioning is a method of drug development that studies the expansion of new indications for drugs that are already on the market or drugs that have failed in clinical stages. Drugs discovered through drug repositioning already have safety and pharmacokinetic data, which can significantly shorten the research and development period and drastically reduce development costs, making it a drug development method noted for its high success rate and efficiency.
In this study, a screening of drugs that inhibit the growth of ovarian cancer cells was conducted using about 1,000 drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (US-FDA). It was confirmed that Gentian violet (GV), previously used as an antibacterial and antifungal agent, effectively inhibits the growth of ovarian cancer cells. Notably, this study was the first to demonstrate that Gentian violet induces apoptosis by increasing reactive oxygen species (ROS) in various ovarian cancer cells.
Professor Heo Gyun, the corresponding author and professor of Bio-pharmaceuticals in the Department of Applied Chemistry at Kookmin University, stated, “This paper presents the potential for developing Gentian violet as a treatment for ovarian cancer through drug repositioning research. Undergraduate students participating in the UROP program have actively engaged in the research over the past year, achieving meaningful results.”
Undergraduate students Kim Ji-hyun and Lee Chae-yeon, who participated as co-first authors and co-authors, said, “This research achievement was made possible through the UROP and research internship programs, which greatly helped us develop academic capabilities and prepare for our careers. We are very grateful to the university for providing this opportunity and to Professor Heo Gyun for his extensive support in the development of ovarian cancer anticancer drugs.”
The research team is currently applying for a utility patent for Gentian violet and, with support from the LINC 3.0 project, plans to present the research results at the JCA-AACR International Conference on Precision Cancer Medicine to be held in Kyoto, Japan, on the 28th.
Meanwhile, this research was conducted with support from the Mid-career Researcher Support Project of the National Research Foundation under the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Infectious Disease Treatment Technology Development Project under the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
[Schematic diagram of the ovarian cancer growth inhibition mechanism of gentian violet presented in this study (Provided by Kookmin University)]
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