a promising new approach ????

Much research is currently being carried out to try to block the functioning of proteins involved in cancer.

In a study published in Nature Communicationsscientists, rather than targeting the function of a single proteinblocked the ability tointeraction between two of them. The results obtained, in models mouseshows that this strategy allows to induce the death of tumor cells and also to activate an immune response against tumor.

To allow cancer cells to proliferate, several proteins must interact with each other. Among these, a protein called ERK, important in one of the signaling pathways that causes proliferation. Currently, treatments consist of inhibiting ERK function.

In this study published in the journal Nature Communicationsscientists have developed pharmacological inhibitors capable of blocking the interaction between ERK and MyD88, a protein involved ininflammation.

The results showed that, when the interaction is blocked, cancer cells, derived from patient tumors, undergo significant stress, which pushes them to die.

Experiments carried out in mouse models show that blocking the ERK-MyD88 interaction not only reduces the size of tumors, but also stimulates an immune cell response against these tumors.

This work represents a new approach: it is not a question of directly targeting the enzymes involved in tumor growth, but rather the interactions between proteins. This method paves the way for new, more targeted cancer treatments, which could be more effective while reducing side effects because they act more precisely. These results are currently in phase of preclinical development to evaluate their potential in clinical treatments future.

Reference:

Virard, F., Giraud, S., Bonnet, M. et al. Targeting ERK-MYD88 interaction leads to ERK dysregulation and immunogenic cancer cell death. Nat Common 15, 7037 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-51275-z