Researchers have discovered key mutations in certain cancer cells that make them resistant to WRN inhibitors, a new class of anti-cancer drugs.
European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Oct 24 2024 The yet-to-be-published findings are presented on Friday at the 36th EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Barcelona, Spain.
Dr. Gabriele Picco, senior staff scientist and project lead in Dr Garnett's lab, told the Symposium: "WRN inhibitors function through a mechanism called synthetic lethality, where two non-lethal genetic events cause cell death when combined. MSI cancer cells, which have a defect in DNA repair, become dependent on WRN for survival. When WRN is inhibited, these cells cannot repair DNA damage, leading to their death, while healthy cells remain unaffected.
"These mutations in the WRN gene highlight a novel resistance mechanism and provide a way for us to test the efficacy of alternative WRN inhibitors that might be able to overcome this resistance." "Tracking resistance mutations via liquid biopsy could be a potential strategy for monitoring treatment response," said Dr. Picco.
Genetic Blood Colorectal Colorectal Cancer DNA DNA Replication Drugs Gene Genes Helicase Immunotherapy Protein Research Stomach Therapeutics
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