Scientists Find Toxic Mushrooms In Pharaoh Tutankhamun's Grave Can Help Fight Cancer

JAKARTA - The deadly fungus behind the so-called curse of Pharaoh Tutankhamun's grave can be used to fight cancer, according to scientists.

Asperallus flavus, a toxic fungi associated with death in ancient grave excavations, can be converted into a powerful compound to fight cancer, the findings found.

Researchers at Penn University, Pennsylvania, believe it opens up new opportunities in the discovery of more fungal drugs.

The fungus, named after its yellow spora and has long been considered a bad microbial, has been found growing in a closed tomb in Egypt and is considered responsible for the deaths of some people who entered it.

Spora Asperangllus grew well, especially in grains, whose supplies were abundant in Tutankhamun's grave, with offerings in the form of raw bread and seeds stored in many baskets.

Ideas about the curse of the firaun have existed since the 1820s, with the discovery of a terrible memorial on the tomb wall meant to prevent robbers.

After Tutankhamun's tomb opened, there were a series of deaths by members of the excavation team, including expedition protector Lord Carnarvon, investor George Jay Gould, and Ancient Egyptian Arthur Mace, who sparked the idea of a curse.

Decades later, doctors theorized, fungal spora, which has been inactive for thousands of years, may play a role.

In the 1970s, a dozen scientists entered Casimir IV's grave in Poland. In a few weeks, 10 of them died. The next investigation revealed the tomb contained A. flavus, which can cause lung infection, especially in people with a disordered immune system.

Meanwhile, Mumivis II was brought to Paris in 1976 and 89 fungal species were isolated from him, including asperallus.

Now, the same fungus is an unexpected source of promising new cancer therapy.

"Jamur gives us fun", saidction Gao, from Penn University, a senior author of a new paper at Nature Chemical Biology on the findings, as reported by The National June 24.

"These results show that there are still many drugs originating from natural products that still need to be found," he continued.

The researchers scanned a dozen Asjavellus outlets, to find promising candidates who could produce drugs.

They found that identified mushrooms could be modified to create cancer-resistant molecules called asperigimicine.

Even without modifications, when mixed with human cancer cells, asperigimin shows medical potential fortunate cells.

Another variant, added by researchers with fat molecules found in royal jelly that provides nutrients to developing bees, works as well as the two drugs that have been used for decades to treatiri.

Through further experiments, researchers found that asperigimin could disrupt the process of cell division.

"The cancer cells divide uncontrollably," Gao said. "These compounds hinder the formation of microtubules, which are important for cell division," he continued.

These compounds appear to have a special effect on situated cells, but have little or no effect at all on breast, liver, or lung cancer cells.

Qiuyue Nie, a postdoctoral researcher and first author of the paper said the compounds had "strong biactivity".

"This is an area that has not been explored with extraordinary potential," he added.

The next step is to test asperigimycin on animal models, in the hope that one day it can be continued to clinical trials in humans.

"Alam has given us this incredible drug," Gao said.

"We have to reveal the secret. As engineers, we are excited to continue to explore, learn from nature, and use that knowledge to design better solutions," he said.