{"id":352896,"date":"2026-06-18T18:52:46","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T13:22:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=352896"},"modified":"2026-06-18T18:52:46","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T13:22:46","slug":"the-seek-for-mysterious-creature-in-antarctica-that-might-help-cure-skin-cancer-news-weird","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/18\/the-seek-for-mysterious-creature-in-antarctica-that-might-help-cure-skin-cancer-news-weird\/","title":{"rendered":"The seek for mysterious creature in Antarctica that might help cure skin cancer | News Weird"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Sea spiders were among the many creatures seen by the Antarctic divers through the search (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

An odd organism living within the icy waters of Antarctica could hold the important thing to curing melanoma skin cancer.<\/p>\n

A team from the University of South Florida (USF) has returned from a six-week expedition to some of the distant regions on Earth to review a species of ascidian, commonly often known as a sea squirt, which accommodates a bacterium able to killing melanoma cancer cells.<\/p>\n

USF chemistry professor Bill Baker\u2019s research has identified the organism\u2019s potential cancer-fighting properties. <\/p>\n

He’s now helping to steer a US National Science Foundation-supported project aimed toward understanding the compound in greater detail and assessing whether it could in the future contribute to latest treatments for melanoma patients.<\/p>\n

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Researchers from the University of South Florida spent six weeks diving in Antarctica (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Professor Baker said: \u2018We first discovered this ascidian produces a bacterium that accommodates a toxic compound that kills melanoma cancer cells while not harming normal human cells. <\/p>\n

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\u2018That selectivity is critical in drug development because you must treat the disease without harming the patient.\u2019<\/p>\n

For a long time, Professor Baker has travelled to Antarctica to review marine organisms that will have pharmaceutical applications. <\/p>\n

Previous discoveries by his team have led to patented compounds with potential uses in tackling diseases including drug-resistant malaria, cancer and antibiotic-resistant infections.<\/p>\n

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The special species of ascidian, or sea squirt, accommodates a bacterium that kills melanoma cells while leaving normal human cells unharmed (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Researchers say Antarctica offers a singular natural laboratory due to its long geographical and environmental isolation.<\/p>\n

Professor Baker added: \u2018The continent is exclusive since it has been geographically and environmentally isolated for hundreds of thousands of years.<\/p>\n

\u2018In consequence, species in Antarctica have had time to evolve independently, resulting in highly specialized organisms. The ascidians we study are adapted specifically to this environment and are usually not found anywhere else.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Antarctica\u2019s isolation means it\u2019s a singular natural laboratory (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While Professor Baker advised the 2026 expedition from america, USF diving safety officer Ben Meister and postdoctoral researcher Sam Afoullouss represented the university on the Antarctic mission.<\/p>\n

Afoullouss said: \u2018Our expedition focused on determining where the ascidian\u2019s melanoma-killing bacterium occurs and the way widespread it’s.<\/p>\n

\u2018We also wanted to know the way it lives contained in the organism and the way that connects to the compounds linked to melanoma research.\u2019<\/p>\n

The ascidians studied through the expedition are typically found at depths of between 60 and 80ft, often attached to steep or vertical surfaces on the seafloor where strong currents provide a gentle supply of nutrients.<\/p>\n

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The expedition took six weeks and dives were around 25 to 35 minutes at a time (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Collecting the specimens required multiple dives in addition to the deployment of remotely operated vehicles to research deeper waters and discover latest collection sites along the Antarctic Peninsula.<\/p>\n

Mr Meister said: \u2018On average, our dives were about 25 to 35 minutes at a time with a maximum of 130 feet.<\/p>\n

\u2018But in Antarctica, you\u2019re coping with ice, leopard seals, changing seas and sometimes very limited visibility. <\/p>\n

\u2018Every dive have to be rigorously planned to balance getting the work done while keeping everyone secure.\u2019<\/p>\n

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The expedition focused on determining where the ascidian\u2019s melanoma-killing bacterium occurs and the way widespread it’s (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Scientists say careful planning is important not just for diver safety but in addition to make sure samples are collected and preserved appropriately for laboratory evaluation. <\/p>\n

Maintaining the integrity of the specimens is taken into account crucial because even minor changes could affect understanding of how the compounds function.<\/p>\n

Now that the expedition has concluded, researchers say crucial phase of the work is starting.<\/p>\n

Specimens collected through the mission will likely be analysed by multiple teams specialising in genetics, chemistry and biology. <\/p>\n

The method is anticipated to take months, and potentially years, as scientists seek to know the compounds and their possible medical applications.<\/p>\n

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The findings may have each medical and environmental significance (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Professor Baker said: \u2018This research is very important each environmentally and medically.<\/p>\n

\u2018We’re learning how organisms use symbiosis to survive in extreme conditions, which remains to be largely unknown in cold-water ecosystems like Antarctica. <\/p>\n

\u2018Understanding the source and performance of this compound is critical if we hope to develop it right into a drug.\u2019<\/p>\n

Researchers say discoveries equivalent to these represent the earliest stages of a lengthy scientific process, but could eventually help discover a cure for melanomas, in addition to other complex diseases.<\/p>\n

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Sea spiders were among the many creatures seen by the Antarctic divers through the search (Picture: Courtesy of Sam Affoullouss and the Desert Research Institute\/Cover Media) An odd organism living within the icy waters of Antarctica could hold the important thing to curing melanoma skin cancer. A team from the University of South Florida (USF) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":352897,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20691],"tags":[28265,46,31197,4037,3613,395,1315,1441,2055],"class_list":["post-352896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-antarctica","tag-cancer","tag-creature","tag-cure","tag-mysterious","tag-news","tag-search","tag-skin","tag-weird"],"aioseo_notices":[{"message":"The permalink for this post just changed! This could result in 404 errors for your site visitors.","status":"warning","options":{"id":"0a2ae5f84bc2c0423042ed7ec22d2e40","isDismissible":true,"actions":[{"url":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/wp-admin\/admin.php?page=aioseo-redirects","label":"Add Redirect to improve SEO","class":"aioseo-redirects-slug-changed"}]},"allowedContexts":["posts"]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=352896"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352896\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":352899,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352896\/revisions\/352899"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/352897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=352896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=352896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=352896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}