'Uncooking' eggs has huge potential for cancer treatment

Scientists from Flinders University and the University of California-Irvine have found a way to uncook an egg, with a device that could drastically cut costs for the pharmaceutical industry, according to Flinders University

Using a machine called the vortex fluid device, invented by Flinders Professor Colin Raston, the researchers have discovered the ability to untangle the proteins in the white of a hard-boiled egg to make them active again in a clear solution.

As an egg is boiled, proteins in the egg white begin to unravel then re-fold in a tight, tangled structure that gives the boiled egg its white, rubbery look.

Proteins are used in a variety of industries including in the development of cancer medications, however Raston said they tend to “misfold” – as the proteins in an egg white do when it is being cooked – rendering them useless.

Raston said: “If you think of a protein as a long piece of spaghetti, it coils up in a special way.

“Often these proteins coil up into structurally incorrect shapes which makes them extremely difficult to process.

“But the vortex fluidic device causes the proteins to unwind and refold normally by spinning the material in a liquid in a rapidly rotating tube which can be titled at different angles and the speed of rotation can be varied.”

The research has the potential to improve the efficiency of protein processing, dramatically reducing the amount of waste generated and making the procedure cheaper and cleaner, according to Raston.

He said: “The processing time is dramatically reduced from days to minutes and also results in a dramatic reduction in the amount of waste being generated. This is important in developing sustainable, cost-effective technologies for the future.

“The pharmaceutical industry has a $160 billion annual industry based exclusively on proteins so if we can cut the processing time and save waste, it will pave the way for new protein applications.

“And the number of applications of the device in medicine, health and indeed food processing are rapidly growing. The potential is huge.”

The findings, which have just been published in the European journal ChemBioChem, result from a multidisciplinary collaboration with Greg Weiss and his research team at the University of California-Irvine.