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Unravelling the unique characteristics of cancer cells and finding less-harmful ways to stop their growth have long been a focus for cancer researchers worldwide. New findings, reported in
Nature Communications, describe the discovery of a unique dependence of cancer cells on a particular protein, which could lead to desperately needed treatment for hard-to-treat cancers.
The publication caps off a series of groundbreaking studies appearing in Nature journals over the last month by members of a powerful international research collaboration.
Lead author and University of Vermont (UVM) Cancer Center researcher Jason Stumpff, Ph.D., has spent over two decades studying how cells divide and how mistakes in this process contribute to diseases, such as cancer. His recent work has enhanced understanding of the role of a protein called KIF18A in driving cell division. In these new studies, Stumpff's lab demonstrates that cancer cells, with the type of abnormalities seen in aggressive tumors, are more dependent on KIF18A for growth than normal cells. This vulnerability in the cancer cells could be a potential target for interrupting cancer cell growth, as the researchers demonstrated in triple negative breast cancer and colorectal cancer cells.