Target Identified With Potential To Overcome Cancer Drug Resistance
Researchers have identified a novel drug target with the potential to overcome drug resistance and prevent tumor regrowth.
Complete the form below to unlock access to ALL audio articles.
University of Queensland researchers have identified a novel drug target with the potential to overcome drug resistance and prevent tumour regrowth in cancer patients.
Associate Professor Helmut Schaider from UQ’s Frazer Institute said the newly identified molecule was not currently a target for treatment, opening the potential for drug development.
“Drug resistance is the single major cause of death in cancer patients,” Dr Schaider said.
“For example, almost half of patients with lung cancer die from the disease due to tumour regrowth.
“Drug resistance affects all cancer types, with adverse outcomes for patients and the healthcare system.”
Want more breaking news?
Subscribe to Technology Networks’ daily newsletter, delivering breaking science news straight to your inbox every day.
Subscribe for FREEDr Schaider said an international research effort was underway into how cancer patients develop resistance to drugs and to find suitable targets for intervention, but so far success had been limited.
“One of the mechanisms which leads to permanent cancer drug resistance is an adaptive process based on a chronic stress response,” he said.
“This process accounts for about 40 per cent of cancer patients developing drug resistance.
“Our research has identified a molecule which is crucial for cancer cells to regain the ability to proliferate while under treatment.
“The next step is to develop drugs to target this molecule.”
Dr Schaider partnered with the Queensland Emory Drug Discovery Initiative (QEDDI), a business unit of UQ’s commercialisation company UniQuest, to work on first-in-class small molecule inhibitors as novel anticancer therapeutics.
UniQuest CEO Dr Dean Moss said it was encouraging to see therapeutic options emerge from collaborative partnerships between UQ researchers and QEDDI.
“We are utilising Dr Schaider’s expertise in cancer biology and QEDDI’s drug development capabilities to develop novel inhibitors that could become new medicines to treat patients with advanced solid tumours,” Dr Moss said.
Reference: Ravindran Menon D, Hammerlindl H, Gimenez G, et al. H3K4me3 remodeling induced acquired resistance through O-GlcNAc transferase. Drug Resist Updat. 2023;71:100993. doi: 10.1016/j.drup.2023.100993
This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.
