Fatal cancer cells identified

UC Davis researchers have identified a microRNA that helps jump-start prostate cancer cell growth midway through the disease process, eventually causing it to become fatal. The discovery is an important link to finding new treatments targeting this cellular function and reducing cancer deaths among American men. The study, authored by Xu-Bao Shi, a project scientist in the Department of Urology, and Ralph deVere White, director of the UC Davis Cancer Center, was published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.