Cyclin D, Long Believed to Promote Cancer, Actually Activates Tumor Suppressor
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine say a protein essential to regulating cell cycle progression – the process of cell division and replication – activates a key tumor suppressor, rather than inactivating it as previously thought.
"The finding is the result of literally 20 years of work in my lab," said Steven F. Dowdy, PhD, professor in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at UC San Diego. "It completely turns upside-down what was thought to be a fundamental aspect of cell cycle progression in all cancer cells driven by one of the most common genetic pathways mutated in cancer, namely the p16-cyclin D pathway."
The findings are published in the journal eLife.