Lesson plan

Actibind

Actibind is an actin-binding fungal T(2)-RNase protein that is produced by the black mold Aspergillus niger, a microorganism used in biotechnology and food technology. In plants, actibind binds actin, a major component of the cytoskeleton, interfering with the plants' pollen tubes and halting cell growth. Research published in the journal Cancer on 15 May 2006 reports evidence that actibind has antiangiogenic and anticarcinogenic characteristics. In human colon cancer, breast cancer and melanoma, increasing the level of actibind was found to reduce the ability of these cells to form tumorogenic colonies. In animal models, increased actibind inhibited the growth of colon cancer-derived tumors, metastases and blood vessel formation. During the completion of the Human Genome Project, the gene encoding for RNaseT2, the human actibind-like protein, was found on chromosome 6.

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Article summary

Actibind is an actin-binding fungal T(2)-RNase protein that is produced by the black mold Aspergillus niger, a microorganism used in biotechnology and food technology. In plants, actibind binds actin, a major component of the cytoskeleton, interfering with the plants' pollen tubes and halting cell growth. Research published in the journal Cancer on 15 May 2006 reports evidence that actibind has antiangiogenic and anticarcinogenic characteristics. In human colon cancer, breast cancer and melanoma, increasing the level of actibind was found to reduce the ability of these cells to form tumorogenic colonies. In animal models, increased actibind inhibited the growth of colon cancer-derived tumors, metastases and blood vessel formation. During the completion of the Human Genome Project, the gene encoding for RNaseT2, the human actibind-like protein, was found on chromosome 6.

Key claims

  1. publication date: 2006-05-15 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the publication date is "2006-05-15". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.