Targeting Receptor–Regulator Interactions

    August 2013 in “ Nature Reviews Drug Discovery
    Harrison Charlotte
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    TLDR New treatments for cancer and skin disorders show promise in disrupting harmful cell interactions and promoting hair growth.
    The document summarizes several studies on cancer and dermal disorders. One study found that a peptidomimetic could disrupt the interaction between the androgen receptor (AR) and the co-regulator protein PELP1, inhibiting AR nuclear translocation and androgen-induced proliferation, and reducing tumor growth in a mouse model of prostate cancer. Another study identified a secreted variant of the tumor suppressor PTEN, called PTEN-long, which could enter cells, antagonize PI3K signaling, and reduce tumor growth in mice, suggesting potential therapeutic benefits. A third study developed a thermodynamic sensor assay using the HSP90 chaperone to profile the specificity of 30 kinase inhibitors against over 300 kinases in living cells, identifying new targets for existing drugs. Lastly, a study on dermal disorders showed that fibroblast growth factor 9 (FGF9) is key for hair follicle regeneration after skin wounding in mice, and its overexpression increased neogenic hair follicles, indicating that FGF9 might be a target for inducing hair follicle regeneration in humans.
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