He lung cancer It is one of the most frequent, and causes the most deaths in the world. More of 30,000 people are diagnosed each year and only 19% of patients survive five years after discovering it. Now, one new molecular pathway, unknown until now, could be decisive for To brake dry this type of malignant tumor, according to a study by Tulane University (United States) published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The research could lead to the development of a new anticancer drug and a more personalized treatment, according to Hua Lulead author of the study and holder of the Reynolds and Ryan Families Chair in Translational Cancer at the School of Medicine of this university.
The study found that a well-known suppressor protein of tumors called RBM10 can inhibit growth of lung cancer by suppressing the function of c-Myc, a protein that drives the growth and proliferation of cancer cells when overexpressed. The researchers discovered that RBM10 associates with two ribosomal proteins (RPL5 and RPL11) to destabilize c-Myc and prevent the spread of lung cancer.
These findings are the first to identify a cancer-inhibitory relationship between the proteins. “We found that RBM10 can directly target c-Myc for degradation and reduce its carcinogenic effects by binding to RPL5 and RPL11,” explains Lu. “We know a lot about cancer, but lThe molecules involved remain a black box. Piece by piece, we are understanding them better.”
To understand how the process can work to stop the progression of lung cancer, let’s imagine two factories in a cell, each manufacturing parts to assemble into new protein machineries; c-Myc plays a usual role in this protein production process -and cell growth in general- and human beings could not live without it.