@Ponderable
Good news, and they may find even more variants with even less side effects.
One question, if there are no DNA breaks and such, what is the mechanism that kills the cancer cells?
@sonhouse saidThat is sort of explained but in a confusing way in the OP link with;
One question, if there are no DNA breaks and such, what is the mechanism that kills the cancer cells?
"...it also causes damage to chromatin, a kind of marbles inside the cell nucleus around which the DNA is wrapped..."
but I find that a confusing assertion because it implies the DNA isn't part of the chromatin itself but, and as wiki says, the DNA IS part of the chromatin itself!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromatin
"Chromatin is a complex of DNA and protein ..."
So perhaps what they meant to say but messed up the edit of it was just the protein part of the chromatin i.e. NOT the DNA part?
So the original source is available:
https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/06/16/1922072117
The Point in Question is to Damage the Chromatin, which kills the cell. Of course the authors don't explain About Chromatin and the Science Journalist didn't enlighten us really.
The Point in Question is that in earlier times it was thought that the Breaking of both DNA-starnds simultaniously was the key for the anti-Cancer activity. But it was found out that actually the Chromatin-dmahgae alone is sufficient and that activity seems to be restricted mainly to Cancer cells.