研究前列腺癌嚙齒動物模型的癌癥研究人員，使用腺病毒載體移植了兩種轉錄因子，PEA-3和AP-1，這兩種轉錄因子選擇性激活腫瘤抑制基因清除癌細胞，但是不會損傷正常組織。

哥倫比亞大學醫學中心的研究人員構建了一種包含轉錄因子PEA-3和AP-1的腺病毒載體。目前已知這些因子能夠觸發無活性PROM-PEG癌蛋白轉化為一種凋亡起始子，活性PEG-3(progression-elevated gene-3)。PROM-PEG通常在癌細胞中大量存在，但是在正常細胞中并不存在。

研究結果發表在2005年1月25日的《美國國家科學院進展》上，解釋了接受了該載體的小鼠腫瘤死亡而正常組織沒有受到影響。PEA-1/AP-1結合也對黑色素瘤、卵巢、乳房和神經膠質瘤（大腦）等腫瘤同樣有作用。

哥倫比亞大學醫學中心臨床病理教授、主要作者Paul B.Fisher醫生 說：“令人高興的是我們現在能夠設計出僅僅針對并清除癌細胞的治療方法。我們希望這種方法能夠特別清除我們不能看見的轉移性腫瘤，這種腫瘤不能被手術或者放療清除。基因治療，特別對癌癥，正在開始治療的新紀元。”
 
Transcription Factor Genes Kill Tumors
 
Cancer researchers working with a rodent model for prostate cancer have used an adenovirus vector to implant the genes for two transcription factors, PEA-3 and AP-1, which selectively activated a tumor-suppressing gene and eradicated the cancer cells without harming normal tissues.

Investigators at Columbia University Medical Center (New York, NY, USA) created an adenovirus vector containing the genes for the transcription factors PEA-3 and AP-1. These factors were known to trigger the conversion of inactive PROM-PEG cancer protein into active PEG-3 (progression-elevated gene-3), an apoptosis initiator. PROM-PEG is generally found in abundance in cancer cells but is not present in normal cells.

Results published in the January 25, 2005, issue of the Proceedings of the [U.S.] National Academy of Sciences revealed that tumors in mice receiving the vector died while normal tissues were not affected. The PEA-1/AP-1 combination was also found to act on melanoma, ovarian, breast, and glioma (brain) tumors.

“What is exciting is we may now be able to design a therapy that will seek out and destroy only cancer cells,” said senior author, Dr. Paul B. Fisher, professor of clinical pathology at Columbia University Medical Center. “We hope it will be particularly powerful in eradicating metastases that we cannot see and that cannot be eliminated by surgery or radiation. Gene therapy, especially for cancer, is really starting to make a comeback.”