Some cells fail by chance, and not due to a genetic defect, to properly initiate the molecular processes for the breakdown of sugar. These cells are unable to grow and subsequently die. This discovery was done by a multidisciplinary team led by Bas Teusink, professor in Systems biology at VU University Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This discovery fundamentally changes our perceptions of such metabolic pathways and their regulation, and could potentially lead to novel ways of treating cancer cells. Einstein said: "God does not play dice". It appears, however, that cells do: the chance of a metabolic failure can be predicted and manipulated, but it is not possible to predict which individual cells will be affected. The results from this study were published in Science on 16 January.
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