Silencing DSTYK to improve chemotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer

Enhancing chemotherapeutic efficacy in triple-negative breast cancer via DSTYK silence

NIH-funded research University of Toledo Health Sci Campus · NIH-11308361

Seeing if turning off a protein called DSTYK helps chemotherapy kill triple-negative breast cancer cells.

Quick facts

Grant typeR01 grant
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionUniversity of Toledo Health Sci Campus NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Toledo, United States)
Project IDNIH-11308361 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

Researchers will study aggressive triple-negative breast cancer using human cancer cells and animal models to understand why some tumors stop responding to chemotherapy. They have found that chemoresistant cells make more of a protein called DSTYK and will test ways to silence DSTYK, including packaging silencing molecules into exosomes. The team will compare tumor response and cell death with and without DSTYK silencing in lab dishes and mice. They will also study the biological steps DSTYK uses to help cancer cells survive chemo so future treatments can be designed.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Although this project is lab and animal research, its results would most directly apply to people with triple-negative breast cancer, especially those whose tumors have become resistant to standard chemotherapy.

Not a fit: People with non–triple-negative breast cancers or tumors that do not rely on DSTYK are unlikely to benefit from this specific approach.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this could make chemotherapy more effective for people with triple-negative breast cancer and help prevent or reverse drug resistance.

How similar studies have performed: This approach is relatively new: prior work has linked DSTYK to chemoresistance and early lab results are encouraging, but exosome-based DSTYK silencing in TNBC is largely untested clinically.

Where this research is happening

Toledo, United States

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Conditions Breast CancerBreast Cancer Cell
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.