Wuhan University (WHU) School of Basic Medical Science working with the M.D. Andersen Cancer Center found that IL-17F, a member of the IL-17 cytokine family, can affect the development of colon cancer and its mechanism. Their article was published in Public Library of Science (PLoS ONE), a library of open access journals and other scientific literature in the United States.

Tong Cuan, a teacher at WHU’s School of Basic Medical Science, and Professor Dong Chen, a WHU alumnus and now a scientist at M.D. Andersen Cancer Center, wrote the article, with WHU named as the article’s first organization.

As helper T cells-17 play a key role in inflammatory diseases and autoimmune disease, IL-17, generated by helper T cells-17, has drawn more attention scientific community for its part in immune response regulation. Although previous studies have confirmed the role of IL-17F in the immune system, little is known about whether IL-17F plays a role in tumor’s formation.

By studying tumor growth on mice, Tong Cuan and Dong Chen have led their research group to discover that IL-17 can inhibit the development of colon cancer, which signifies a breakthrough in colon cancer prevention.

Professor Dong Chen is now working at the M.D. Andersen Cancer Center Department of Immunity. He is also a professor at WHU’s School of Basic Medical Science Open Laboratory and a WHU’s Yangtze Scholar.