Tag Archives: protein

Molecular marker predicts patients most likely to benefit longest from two popular cancer drugs

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs, gefitinib (Iressa) and erlotinib (Tarceva), are prescribed for lung and pancreatic cancer patients but only a few who have mutations in the EGFR gene usually benefit with a prolonged reduction of tumor size. The two drugs block the gene’s ramped-up protein production, but patients’ response to the drug varies widely — from no survival benefit to several years. The average is several months. …

How DNA repair helps prevent cancer

Understanding how the human body recognizes damaged DNA and initiates repair fascinates Michael Feig, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Michigan State University. Feig studies the proteins MutS and MSH2-MSH6, which recognize defective DNA and initiate DNA repair. Natural DNA repair occurs when proteins like MutS (the primary protein responsible for recognizing a variety of DNA mismatches) scan the DNA, identify a defect, and recruit other enzymes to carry out the actual repair. "The key here is to understand how these defects are recognized," Feig explained. …

Cell memory mechanism discovered

The DNA in human cells is translated into a multitude of proteins required for a cell to function. When, where and how proteins are expressed is determined by regulatory DNA sequences and a group of proteins, known as transcription factors, that bind to these DNA sequences. Each cell type can be distinguished based on its transcription factors, and a cell can in certain cases be directly converted from one type to another, simply by changing the expression of one or more transcription factors. It is critical that the pattern of transcription factor binding in the genome be maintained…

Way to fight therapy resistant leukemia by blocking DNA repair

Scientists from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center report that their experimental combination treatment strategy — using a small molecular inhibitor along with chemotherapy — was particularly effective at stopping a stubborn leukemia called T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or T-ALL. …

Targeted therapy identified for protein that protects and nourishes cancer

Reporting this week in the journal Cell, the researchers describe the first compound that directly binds to and blocks Skp2, a protein they previously showed both turns off a cellular defense against cancer and switches on a cancer-feeding metabolic pathway. "The beauty of this study is we identified an inhibitor and showed how it functions to block Skp2. Inhibitors often are discovered without an initial understanding of how they work," said co-senior author Hui-Kuan Lin, Ph.D., associate professor of Cellular and Molecular Oncology at MD Anderson. …

What causes a small, benign polyp to develop into severe invasive bladder cancer?

Some people develop invasive bladder cancer, which is where the cancer has grown through the muscle layer of the bladder. When this occurs, there is a higher risk that the cancer will spread to other areas of the body and it is much more difficult to treat…