Scientists unlock the key to cancer’s emergency brake
BBC Science Focus Magazine: Derek Taylor, an associate professor of pharmacology and biochemistry and a member of the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCCC), spoke about research co-conducted at the CCCC identifying a site in the body where drug compounds could bind and activate a key braking mechanism against the runaway growth of many types of cancer. The discovery marks a critical step toward developing a potential new class of anti-cancer drugs that enhance activity of tumor suppressor proteins: “This allowed us to see for the first time precisely how different parts of the protein were brought together and stabilized by the compound,” said Taylor. “We can now use that information to start developing compounds that could achieve the desired profile, specificity and potency to potentially translate to the clinic.”