Building on basics part 4

Targeting the triggers
(continued)

"Twenty years ago we believed that cells became malignant when they went out of control and multiplied," said Kung, who earned his Ph.D. in chemistry at Cal Tech in 1975. "Now we know that is only part of the answer. To become malignant, we now know, cells must know how both to grow and how not to die. So we must look at what gives the cell both messages. If we can find that trigger or triggers, it may be a target for therapy because we would only have to devise ways to affect this regulatory pathway rather than to try to target the very subtle molecular differences in cancer cells themselves."

Kinases, so - called because they can add a phosphate molecule to a protein, fit that bill nicely, according to Kung.

"The tyrosine kinases are the trigger," said Kung. "So we believe that when it comes to devising therapeutic cancer strategies that will convert cancer cells back to healthy cells, altering the trigger is an easier target than trying to alter the biochemistry of the cell."

Tyrosine kinases are only found in highly evolved multicellular organisms, where cells have to grow, multiply and also die for the organism to remain healthy. That's why they make a logical target as a cancer-causing suspect.