Melanoma of the Eye: Preclinical Study Points to Potential Treatment
Uveal melanoma, or UM, is a rare and deadly cancer of the eye, and the mortality rate has remained unimproved for 40 years. Half of the melanomas spread to other organs of the body, causing death in less than a year.
Now a preclinical study by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Emory University, Atlanta, offers hope — a small molecule inhibitor has been identified that dampens the potent drivers of this tumor. In mouse models, the inhibitor, KCN1, strongly limited primary disease in the eye and metastatic tumor dissemination to the liver, and animals survived longer, without overt side effects. At the molecular level, treatment with KCN1 to inhibit the hypoxic induction of P4HA1/2 decreased the hydroxylation of proline amino acids in the procollagen. It also caused cleavage of the collagen and disordered the structure of collagen VI, a mature structural component of the extracellular matrix. These collagen changes correlated with a reduction in tumor cell invasion.
Thus, this class of inhibitory compounds shows promise, though the co-leaders of the research say the drug needs further optimization before clinical use.
More info: technologynetworks.com
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