Blocking SUV39H1 to help treat colon cancer
Official title: Development of SUV39H1-selective inhibitor for human colon cancer therapy
Funded at Augusta University · NIH-11284052 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A new drug that blocks the SUV39H1 enzyme is being developed to help people with colorectal cancer, especially the common tumors that don't respond to PD‑1/PD‑L1 immunotherapy.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Augusta University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Augusta, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2024 |
| Project end | January 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $486,615 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA278852-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11284052 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with colorectal cancer—particularly those with microsatellite‑stable (MSS) or metastatic tumors that do not respond to PD‑1/PD‑L1 therapies—would be the most relevant candidates for future trials.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with cancers that already respond well to PD‑1/PD‑L1 therapy (for example MSI‑H colorectal cancer) or those with non‑colon cancers may not benefit from this specific approach.
What this research studies
Researchers aim to create a drug that inhibits SUV39H1, an enzyme that helps some colon cancer cells resist immune‑cell killing. They will design and optimize drug candidates in the lab, test them on colon cancer cells and animal models, and measure whether tumors become more sensitive to immune‑triggered cell death. The team will also study how the drug distributes in the body and its safety profile before moving toward human testing. If the lab and animal results are promising, this could lead to early clinical trials combining the inhibitor with PD‑1/PD‑L1 immunotherapy.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could make the majority of colorectal cancers that currently don't respond to immunotherapy more likely to be killed by a patient's own immune cells.
How similar studies have gone: PD‑1/PD‑L1 immunotherapy works well for MSI‑H colorectal cancer, but using an SUV39H1 inhibitor to sensitize the common MSS tumors is a novel approach with encouraging preclinical rationale but little clinical data yet.
Where this research is happening
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Augusta University
Augusta, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Liu, Kebin — Augusta University
- Study coordinator: Liu, Kebin
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.