"Basic researchers believe that one of the most promising strategies to finding lifelong cures for cancers lies in understanding the molecular underpinnings specific to cancer cells," explains Dr. Therrien, "It is hoped that this will translate to the development of inhibitors tailored to specific molecular defects and, as a result, should increase the effectiveness of new target-based cancer therapies."

"Protein kinases are the targets for some of the most successful anti-cancer drugs in the clinic," says Dr. Sicheri. "Now that we have discovered how to turn off the RAF protein without interfering with other proteins, we may be able to design drugs that have unprecedented precision in targeting cancer cells while reducing the toxic side effects for patients."

The Therrien-Sicheri team intends to jointly pursue work in this area to identify drug-like molecules to block the dimerization process of RAF, which may possibly lead to the discovery of new classes of anti-cancer agents.

Source: University of Montreal