Toxic Fungus from King Tut’s Tomb Could Help Fight Cancer
What once fueled pharaoh curse myths is now inspiring leukemia research at Penn
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| Tutankhamun Tomb in Luxor, Egypt / Image Credit: Pexels |
A spooky whisper of pharaohs’ curse is getting a modern twist thanks to some unexpected medical promise. Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have been digging into a notorious fungus that once haunted the tunnels of King Tutankhamun’s tomb. This yellow spored mold, known as Aspergillus flavus, made headlines for allegedly causing respiratory illnesses or worse among 1920s archaeologists. But now researchers are hailing it as a possible cancer fighting hero.
Deep in Penn’s labs, teams extracted a class of molecules nicknamed asperigimycins from the very spores once blamed for mysterious deaths. These compounds belong to a rare group of fungal RiPPs, or ribosomally synthesized and post translationally modified peptides, and they showed serious muscle in lab tests. Two of the four variants blocked leukemia cell growth without any alterations.
But the team didn’t stop there. By attaching a lipid tag, similar to royal jelly from bees, to one variant, they saw effects rivaling standard chemo drugs cytarabine and daunorubicin. The tweaks help the compound penetrate cells and disrupt the microtubule machinery that cancer cells depend on to divide.
What makes this even cooler is its precision. Unlike blasts of traditional chemotherapy, these asperigimycins seem laser focused on leukemia cells, sparing breast, liver, and lung cancer cells in early testing. That specificity could mean fewer side effects for future patients.
A fungus once feared as the "pharaoh's curse" has been transformed into a cancer-fighting drug. Led by @XueSherryGao and Qiuyue Nie of @CBE_Penn, researchers turned the toxic Aspergillus flavus into a potent leukemia therapy.— Penn Engineering (@PennEngineers) June 24, 2025
Lead researcher Sherry Gao puts it best: fungi gave us penicillin, and now may deliver something equally groundbreaking. The next big step is testing these compounds in animals, then eventually humans if things keep looking up.
So the legend of a deadly mummy’s curse might just transform into a lifesaving breakthrough. What was once considered toxic superstition is morphing into a cutting edge therapeutic possibility. The tomb’s curse may yet turn into a cure.
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