Washington: Mutated anthrax toxin may be used as an effective cancer therapy, according to the scientists at the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.  

In a study, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, lead author Stephen Leppla and colleagues showed that Anthrax toxin has given fair results in targeting melanoma cells. Mutated anthrax toxin could be activated by matrix metalloproteinases (MMP). These proteins are highly produced only in cancer cells.

Scientists tested the mutated anthrax toxin in the mice and noted that hundred percent of the animals tolerated the dose. Even natural toxins could not provide results better than MMP toxin. It may be because of its higher specificity and longer half-life in the blood.  

Study findings indicated that MMP-toxin was also able to kill tumors like colon and lung.