BioCentury
ARTICLE | Targets & Mechanisms

K-Ras' Achilles' heel

June 11, 2009 7:00 AM UTC

Three research teams associated with Harvard Medical School have identified key proteins and pathways that K-Ras-driven tumors require for survival, providing points to disrupt the proliferation of cells that harbor drug-resistant mutations of the oncogene. These secondary targets include a bevy of kinases and other enzymes involved in cell division.

Many of these weak spots in the underlying wiring of K-Ras (KRAS)-driven tumors are already being pursued by cancer companies. Indeed, the new studies suggest that rather than being an unwanted complication, K-Ras activation may in fact increase the sensitivity of tumors to drugs that target these secondary pathways...