GPR6’s role in therapy resistance and antibody targeting in prostate cancer
Official title: Mechanistic role of GPR6 in therapy resistance and its antibody-based targeting in prostate cancer
Funded at Methodist Hospital Research Institute · NIH-11433725 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A new project looks at how the GPR6 protein helps prostate cancer become resistant to therapy and whether antibodies against GPR6 can block this process.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Methodist Hospital Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $511,214 |
| NIH project number | 1R01CA317755-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11433725 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are men with advanced prostate cancer, especially those whose disease has progressed after standard therapies and may reflect neuroendocrine features.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without advanced or treatment-resistant disease may not directly benefit from this research.
What this research studies
Prostate cancer often becomes resistant to standard therapies, and some advanced cases can shift to a more aggressive neuroendocrine form. This grant studies GPR6, a receptor that is unusually active in these resistant cancers, to understand how it drives treatment resistance and lineage changes. Researchers will examine how GPR6 affects the CREB1 signaling pathway, tumor spread, and response to therapy, and they will test first-in-class anti-GPR6 antibodies in lab and animal models. The goal is to reveal mechanisms that could be targeted to prevent or treat resistant disease.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new antibody-based therapies that block GPR6 and improve outcomes for men with advanced, treatment-resistant prostate cancer.
How similar studies have gone: Preclinical studies with similar antibody approaches have shown promise in blocking cancer-driving receptors, supporting potential translational impact.
Where this research is happening
-
Methodist Hospital Research Institute
Houston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Li, Wenliang — Methodist Hospital Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Li, Wenliang
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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.