🧫 Promoting pyroptosis—an inflammatory form of programmed cell death—has become a promising treatment strategy for cancer. In research published in The FASEB Journal, investigators purified a long-chain sugar molecule, or exopolysaccharide, from deep-sea bacteria and demonstrated that it triggers pyroptosis to inhibit tumor growth. ⁠ ⁠ The compound, called EPS3.9, consists of mannose and glucose and is produced by the Spongiibacter nanhainus CSC3.9 bacterial strain and other members of the genus Spongiibacter. ⁠ ⁠ Mechanistic analyses showed that EPS3.9 can directly target five membrane phospholipid molecules and exert tumor toxicity by stimulating pyroptosis in human leukemia cells. EPS3.9 also had significant anti-tumor effects in mice with liver cancer and activated anti-tumor immune responses. ⁠ ⁠ "Our work not only provides a theoretical basis for developing more carbohydrate-based drugs but also highlights the importance of exploring marine microbial resources," said correspondi...