CCR News: Our Discoveries
Side effects of CAR T-cell therapy are dramatically reduced with new receptor
Jan 22, 2020
A new immunotherapy for lymphoma has been found to cause lower levels of neurologic toxicity than other T-cell therapies for lymphoma. The findings come from the first clinical test of a CAR T-cell therapy using a new anti-cancer T-cell receptor developed in the Center for Cancer Research. Read more...
Genomic profiles of lung cancer differ based on ancestry
Jan 14, 2020
An analysis of tumors from people with non-small cell lung cancer by researchers at the Center for Cancer Research revealed differences in genomic instability and homologous recombination deficiency in tumors from people with African ancestry compared to those with European ancestry. These findings highlight ancestry-related differences in tumor biology and may help improve our understanding of the higher incidence of cancer burden and high mortality observed in African Americans. Read more...
Protein affecting cell division hints at a way to overcome drug resistance
Jan 9, 2020
Researchers have uncovered the way in which a protein, called CLR4, helps complete the cell division process. The mechanism could potentially be harnessed to overcome resistance of cancer cells to chemotherapy drugs such as paclitaxel. Read more...
Binding preferences of Ras and Raf yield clues for developing targeted cancer therapies
Dec 19, 2019
Using living cells, researchers in CCR have found that a set of enzymatic proteins, known as Raf kinases, have differing affinities in how they bind to a class of cancer-related proteins, known as the Ras GTPases. This could offer new strategies for developing more effective targeted therapies. Read more...
Histone deacetylase inhibitors block cancer-driving gene networks by obstructing DNA folding
Dec 19, 2019
Studies of the pediatric cancer rhabdomyosarcoma have revealed an unexpected way to intervene in cell-identity-determining networks that are abused by many aggressive cancers. Read more...
Differences between anti-viral and anti-tumor T-cell responses could impact immunotherapy
Dec 19, 2019
A finding published in Cell Reports holds promise for resolving some of the conundrums surrounding CD4+ T cells and their potential in fighting cancer. The work found that CD4+ T-cell responses to tumor antigens are quite different from those to infections, highlighting a need to re-think how to harness the power of CD4+ T cells. Read more...
Differences between anti-viral and anti-tumor T-cell responses could impact immunotherapy
Dec 19, 2019
A finding published in Cell Reports holds promise for resolving some of the conundrums surrounding CD4+ T cells and their potential in fighting cancer. The work found that CD4+ T-cell responses to tumor antigens are quite different from those to infections, highlighting a need to re-think how to harness the power of CD4+ T cells. Read more...
New findings hint at therapies for African Americans with lung cancer
Dec 16, 2019
A study published in Nature Communications reveals that two genes tend to be mutated at higher rates in cancerous lung tissue samples taken from African Americans, hinting that these patients may benefit more from certain therapies targeting those genes. Read more...
Unlocking the key to HIV persistence
Dec 2, 2019
Even though antiretroviral therapies have allowed many people to live long lives, ridding the body of HIV completely has been an elusive goal ever since the discovery in the 1980s that HIV causes AIDS. New research from the Center for Cancer Research shows that proviral DNA sequences and their integration at specific sites could provide clues for researchers developing drugs to eradicate AIDS. Read more...
Computational analysis leads to potential new drug combination for pancreatic cancer
Nov 20, 2019
A computer analysis has been able to predict that low levels of asparagine, an amino acid required for protein synthesis, combined with the shutdown of a stress response pathway can lead to reductions in the fitness of a tumor. These combined findings could potentially lead to new combination therapies to treat aggressive tumors, such as those found in pancreatic cancers. Read more...