CANBERRA, July 4 (Xinhua) -- Australian scientists have developed a super-drug with potential to cure various illnesses including cancers, age-related blindness, heart disease and arthritis, according to a local media report on Tuesday.
The experimental drug, developed by Sydney researchers, works by switching off a master gene in many conditions, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Levon Khachigian, with the Center for Vascular Research at the University of New South Wales, was quoted as saying that the gene, known as c-Jun, control the activity of many genes.
The drug was designed to seek the gene out in diseased tissues and destroy it. He described the gene as "a molecular assassin."
Tests in animals have shown the drug could significantly slow the growth of skin cancers by choking off their blood supply, he said, adding that the first human test of the therapy is scheduled for early next year and treatments for patients are still "years away." Enditem
