British researchers at the University of East Anglia have identified a cancer-promoting gene, suggesting that blocking this gene would prevent the spread of cancers. The gene, WWP2, is found in all humans, but can become dysfunctional and subsequently help cancer cells proliferate and spread. When the WWP2 gene malfunctions, it induces the breakdown of a group of inhibitor proteins called SMADs, which usually keep cell growth in check. In fact, recently conducted cell cultures showed that without the inhibitor SMAD7, cancer progressed and spread very quickly. By blocking the WWP2 gene and suppressing its function, scientists were able to block that cancer spread.
Dr. Andrew Chantry, the project's lead researcher and cell biologist at the University of East Anglia, said he believes this finding has the potential to impact future drug development, BBC News reported.
Chantry said the discovery could lead to the development of new cancer drugs that stop the faulty gene's activity, effectively stopping the spread of cancer. Surgical removal of tumors is a primary treatment for cancer, but reoccurrence is high because of metastatsis, or the spread of cancer. This occurs when secondary tumors start in other parts of the body after cancer cells move through the bloodstream or lymph fluid.
The idenitification of WWP2 joins a collection of other genes that have been shown to compel the growth and spread of cancer, increasing the understanding of pathophysiology of cancer needed for better anti-cancer drugs.
-compiled by Jennifer Tran
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