Natural products reveal new targets for cancer therapy
Nature Chemical Biology
August 8, 2011
Targets for anti-cancer therapy discovered by studying a collection of natural products that similarly inhibit the growth of human cancer cells are reported online this week in Nature Chemical Biology.
Some naturally occurring small molecules can inhibit growth of human cancer cells, but the mechanism underlying these growth inhibitory properties is often unknown.
Matthew Shair and colleagues indentified the targets oxysterol-binding protein (OSBP) and OSBP-related proteins for natural products in cancer cells. OSBP and OSBP-related proteins have been implicated in signal transduction, lipid transport and lipid metabolism but were not known to impact cancer cell growth or survival.
The identification of a series of molecules that inhibit cancer cell growth by targeting these proteins provides the tools needed to further investigate the relationship between OSBP and OSBP-related proteins and cancer and provides new targets that should stimulate research into new therapies.
doi: 10.1038/nchembio.625
Research highlights
-
Aug 13
Animal behaviour: Pheromone turns locusts into a swarm enemyNature
-
Jul 30
Genetics: ENCODE expands the encyclopaedia of regulatory elementsNature
-
Jul 24
Drug repurposing: Large-scale screen reveals potential anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugsNature
-
Jul 23
Genomics: Six genomes provide clues to bats’ exceptional adaptationsNature
-
Jul 23
Biotechnology: A safer, rapid assay for studying SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodiesNature Biotechnology
-
Jun 30
Biotechnology: Bioengineered scaffold repairs uterus and supports live births in rabbitsNature Biotechnology
